Protect Your Property from High Winds: Install Shutters or Plywood Window
Covers
What You Can Do
Hurricane and tornado protection can involve a variety of changes to your house
and property -- changes that can vary in complexity and cost. You may be able
to make some types of changes your-self. But complicated or large-scale changes
and those that affect the structure of your house or its electrical wiring and
plumbing should be carried out only by a professional contractor licensed to
work in your state, county, or city. One example of hurricane protection,
illustrated below, is installing storm shutters or temporary plywood covers to
protect windows. These are things that skilled homeowners can probably do on
their own.
Install Shutters or Plywood Window Covers
High winds and windblown debris can easily break unprotected windows and then
enter your house. Once inside, wind and debris can cause more damage.
Protecting windows not only helps you avoid damage to your house, it also
reduces the likelihood that you or members of your family will be hurt by
broken glass and debris.
Windows can be protected with permanent storm shutters or, as shown in the
figure, temporary plywood covers. Permanent storm shutters can usually be
closed quickly and easily -- an advantage over temporary covers. But temporary
covers can be an economical alternative and can be installed fairly quickly if
the necessary preparations are made. Plywood covers can also be used to protect
sliding glass doors and French doors.
Tips
Keep these points in mind when you install shutters or use temporary plywood
covers:
-
You should always consider using permanent storm shutters if you live in an
area where you know you will need to act quickly to protect your windows.
-
If you decide to use temporary plywood covers, you may want to hire a
contractor or handyman to make them for you. If you do the work yourself, you
will need to cut the plywood and drill holes for screws or lag bolts in each
cover and in the wall around each window. The screws or lag bolts should be
placed along the top, bottom, and sides of each cover, and they should be long
enough to penetrate the wall studs around the window, not just the siding or
wall covering.
-
Don't wait until a hurricane warning is issued to make the covers; you probably
won't have time. Make them now so that you'll be ready to install them quickly.
Store the mounting screws or lag bolts with the covers, in a place where they
are readily accessible -- don't stack heavy boxes or other hard-to-move
materials on top of or around the covers. Use a numbering or lettering system
that shows which cover goes with which window.
Estimated Cost
Storm shutters can cost $50 to $60 per square foot of window. So a set of
shutters for a 3-foot by 4-foot window could cost about $600 to $720. The cost
of a plywood cover will also depend on the size of the window. If you do the
work yourself, you can expect plywood to cost about $0.60 per square foot.
Screws or lag bolts, including washers, will cost about $0.10 to $0.15 each.
So, for example, protecting a window that is 3 feet wide and 4 feet high will
cost you about $10. This figure covers only the materials you will have to buy
and excludes the cost of any tools you use and the value of your time. If you
hire a contractor or handyman to do the work, you will have to pay for time as
well as materials.
Other Sources of Information
Against the Wind, FEMA 237 (Brochure 2-0003; Video 0-0001), 1993
Building Performance: Hurricane Iniki in Hawaii -- Observations,
Recommendations, and Technical Guidance, FIA-23, January 29, 1993
Building Performance: Hurricane Andrew in Florida -- Observations,
Recommendations, and Technical Guidance, FIA-22, December 21, 1992
Best Build I, Constructing a Sound Coastal Home, FEMA and the NAHB (videotape)