If you live in a hurricane-prone area like Miami, this article is for you. Every year, thousands of Americans? homes are damaged or destroyed by storms. Many factors including the quality of the construction, design, air sealing, and ventilation of your home can affect its safety. Will your home or family be part of next year?s statistics? Not it if your home is adequately storm-proofed.
One of the easiest home storm-proofing measures you can take is installing impact resistant windows and/or doors. Before you upgrade, check out the information below on how these impact resistant options can protect you, your home, and your family:
Impact Resistant Windows and Doors
Most hurricane resistant and impact resistant windows are made from vinyl, aluminum, or wood and can withstand storm winds up to 200 miles per hour. In fact, impact resistant windows and doors are so advanced today that these hurricane windows and impact doors can withstand Category 5 wind conditions. A normal, non-impact resistant window, on the other hand, will shatter in only Category 2 wind conditions.
One of the most common causes of injury or death in hurricanes is flying debris, either coming in through windows or from the shattered glass of windows themselves. With impact windows and hurricane doors, the likelihood of this debris causing injury or death can be significantly lowered by several times.
Energy Savings from Impact Resistant Windows and Doors
High impact windows do more than protect you and your family, though ? they also protect your bank account. Did you know that the average American home loses around 1/3 of its heat or air-conditioning energy due to inefficient windows and/or doors?
Most impact resistant windows and hurricane doors are Energy Star-qualified, meaning they can lower your energy bills by at least 7%, and sometimes up to 15%. New impact resistant windows last an average of 20 years, meaning you will reap these savings year after year. In fact, replacement impact resistant windows yield a 78% return on investment (ROI), while steel front doors have a long-term return of 98%.
What are you waiting for? Upgrade to new impact resistant windows and hurricane doors today. Don?t wait until it?s too late!
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