Hurricane Preparedness

One crucial step in the preparation process is scheduling a comprehensive home inspection. A thorough inspection with documentation and photos conducted by Seacoast Building & Design certified professionals can identify your home’s vulnerabilities and provide valuable insights to fortify your property against impending storms. An up-to-date inspection report can help you maintain adequate insurance coverage and potentially reduce your premiums. It also provides documented evidence of your home’s condition before hurricane season, which can be invaluable if you need to file an insurance claim after a storm. Below are four of several categories that will be inspected.

Windows are a weak point in your house, and if they break, they create a range of dangers during severe storms. Broken glass being whipped around by strong winds is likely to cause serious injury. Broken windows also allow air pressure to rise in the house, increasing the risk of roof failures. Visually pleasing storm shutters fit over your windows and act as a barrier between the glass and the wind. Our team can to install aluminum, steel storm panels and hurricane shutters. Our team can to install aluminum, steel storm panels and hurricane shutters.

Track shutters are the most common, costing around $7 per square foot. Track shutters are fitted to tracks on your windows. Estimate 15 minutes per window for deployment. Roller storm shutters are also available, which are more expensive. These are affixed to your home all year round and are pulled down in the event of a storm, saving you time. Deployment for roller shutters in roughly 30 minutes for the whole house.

If you do not have storm shutters, boarding your windows with plywood does offer ample protection versus none. Before a hurricane makes landfall, we will measure your windows and cut 5/8 inch thick exterior-grade plywood sheets coverings to size and install them carefully. Seacoast retains material suppliers that carry the correct size and thickness of plywood for adequate coverage for your windows. Our assistance will allow you to focus on other personal preparations.

Gaping holes in windows are inviting to possible thieves after natural disasters. Boarding your windows up can help discourage anyone but you and your family from accessing your home. You also increase your eligibility for insurance coverage if you can prove that the damage your home sustained occurred during the storm, not in the days following, because your broken windows were boarded up and protected against damage.

Hurricane film is a transparent, self-adhesive material which can be left on the inside of windows and doors year-round. The polyester film holds glass together, preventing windows from shattering. It can withstand the impact of smaller objects, such as tree branches and debris. Although this will lessen risk of injury should your windows break, it does not protect them from blowing in. Seacoast suggests that homeowners combine the use of hurricane film with a quality shutter system.

Exclusive to 3M™ window film is the “Glass Shield” storm and safety technology. As the most durable and powerful window protection available, Glass Shield provides an extra layer of protection to your home and business most vulnerable areas. If the glass breaks, it’s held together and in place, to resist repeated impacts and offer protection against flying glass and debris, which reduces the risk of injury.

Fabric hurricane panels (also called wind abatement screens) act as a support barrier from flying projectiles and windblown rain. Hurricane Fabric delivers “full envelope” protection for your home or commercial property, against hurricane force winds while preventing destructive rapid pressurization. This storm-generated rapid pressurization is what causes roof lift-off and catastrophic damage. It weighs just ounces per square yard making it one of the easiest systems to manage.

AstroGuard is our choice hurricane panel. After years upon years of observing storm patterns, hurricane destructions, and ways in which other hurricane protective barriers fell short, the manufacturer created the revolutionary AstroGuard that combines efficiency with affordability. Hurricane Fabric is a resin-coated hybrid fabric that has nearly twice the burst strength of others, providing unmatched protection.

Hurricane straps, also known as hurricane ties or clips, are critical components in building construction, especially in regions susceptible to high winds and hurricanes. Extreme winds, such as those generated by powerful hurricanes, can sometimes rip the truss of the roof off the walls of a home. There are several different shapes of hurricane straps for trusses including twist ties, hurricane clips, hurricane strap, hurricane gusset angle and saddle ties.

Seacoast Building & Design can provide hurricane strap installation services to help fortify your roof against hurricane-force winds. In certain areas of Florida hurricane ties must be installed on all new homes. They also require some existing homes that are getting roof replacements to be retrofit with the straps. Can a homeowner install hurricane straps? No, only professional roofers are qualified to install.

One of the larger risks during hurricanes is flying debris, which can be dangerous to people and property. To lower the risk of injury and damage, Seacoast Building & Design will assist with clearing the exterior and lawn of your property from loose objects that may become airborne in strong winds. We will secure or bring in outdoor objects like patio furniture, decor, tools, jungle gyms, toys, etc. If you have no external storage, we will secure them inside your home.

Seacoast will check the surrounding area for tree limbs that might come down in a storm and try to cut back heavy branches that overhang your property before hurricane season. We will wedge sliding glass doors to prevent lifting from their tracks ahead of a storm. We will also review the readiness of any outdoor pets including identifying if they will be evacuated to a pet-friendly shelter and what is required.