Every year, tropical wind storms form over the Atlantic Ocean. The Atlantic hurricane season usually begins in June and ends in November and it averages out at about five to six hurricanes per year. Classed as a Category 1, the lowest wind speed of a hurricane starts at 74 mph and can be highly destructive. There are five categories altogether and each category is based on its wind speed and its potential to cause damage. A Category 5 hurricane includes winds that exceed 156 mph. The costliest hurricane America has seen to date is Hurricane Katrina, which caused damages of an estimated $108 billion and a tragic number of lives lost. Latest hurricanes such as Harvery and Irma caused severe damages.
All You Need to Know: Facts, Info, Occurrences and Consequences
Hurricanes can pick up wind speeds of up to 160 mph
Hurricanes can unleash more than 2.4 trillion gallons of rain in one day
Florida is one of the biggest hurricane-affected areas in the United States
Storm-Affected Areas
There are certain areas in the United States that are hurricane prone. The High Velocity Hurricane Zones (HVHZ) include the county of Miami-Dade and Broward, which is defined by the Florida Building Code. Depending on what region you live in, different hurricane protection systems are necessary. All heroal protection systems are approved by both Florida Building Code and the Texas Department of Insurance, and they are certified to be installed in HVHZ and non-HVHZ regions.
The heroal hurricane and storm protection systems can be adapted to fit windows and doors in all shapes and sizes. Not only do our products provide the highest level of certified protection, but they also offer a variety of designs, energy efficiency measures, burglar resistance and environmental sustainability.
Tested Quality for a Secure Home
Protecting a building against hurricanes usually begins with the windows and patio doors – both must resist penetration by flying debris and remain in place and intact throughout a storm. If the building envelope is breached by means of a broken window or patio door, wind may enter the building and cause an increase in pressure that could lift the roof off and push the walls out. The level of impact protection is categorized into five different missile levels (from A to E) – each of which is measured by the speed and mass of the object. The highest category, Category E, requires a 2 x 4 lumber of 9.0 lb. with an impact speed of 80 f/s. The way in which the impact resistance is tested, is by shooting an object, such as lumber and steel balls, onto the shutter system. The shutters should have no rips or holes exceeding a length of 5 inches and a width of 1/16 of an inch, through which air can pass – this is to avoid pressurization of the home. In addition to this, wind load resistance tests are expressed in both positive and negative values. Our systems can withstand wind speed of up to 150 mph. Find out how FBC & TDI define their standards which can be found in the table below.
Protection Levels
Missile Level
Protection Level
Impact Speed
Impact Size
* If break-in resistance is required, RC 2 N is only recommended for those components which are unlikely to face a direct attack on the glazing.
A
Basic level of protection
89 mph
Small
B
Moderate level of protection
34 mph
Medium
C
Increased level of protection
27 mph
Large
D
High level of protection
34 mph
Extra Large
E
Superior level of protection
55 mph
Extra Large
Impact Test Demonstration
Better Protected with heroal
heroal provides effective protection against hurricanes, to ensure your safety. Find out for yourself!
Certified hurricane protection
FBC & TDI approved
Category E: highest level of protection
HVHZ approved
Hurricane Protection Partners
Did you know? You can save money on your insurance by installing a hurricane protection system. Simply contact your broker now and find out more about the advantages of such systems and how much you can save on costs.
Our Best Products for Hurricane and Storm Protection
Hurricane Shutters
Are you living in a region where hurricane protection is essential? Find out more about the unique heroal hurricane shutters for maximum safety and protection.
We will gladly send you the contact details of the matching heroal specialist in your area or give a heroal expert the possibility to get in touch with you directly. To do this, we need your name, zip code, city and email address. We’ll also happily contact you by phone. In order to find the right specialist for your specific requirements, please specify which products you are interested in.
Our heroal Promise: Manufactured in Germany, Fabricated in North America
One of the most important things in life is the freedom to choose – and heroal fully supports this. As a family-run company with over 140 years of experience, we strongly believe that you should never compromise on quality. With the extensive range of heroal products, there is no shortage of optimal solutions that meet all demands. As leaders in technology, quality for us means better efficiency, better reliability, and better performance and therefore solutions that are “SIMPLY BETTER”.
After over 30 years of fostering business relations with the US, heroal is now fully represented in the United States of America. Since 2015, heroal has provided complete support and a fully qualified on-site team as well as a dedicated service team at our customer’s disposal. The same values are of utmost importance to both our German and our American organizations: quality engineering, premium innovation, and flawless service. Your local team is ready when you are!
