Virginia Beach Homes Need Hurricane Shutters for Storm Protection

Virginia Beach is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the opening of the Chesapeake Bay. Virginia Beach is the most inhabited city in Virginia, and is a humid, sub-tropical area, with mild winters and warm, wet summers. Because of the location, it is prone to hurricanes and tropical storms. Hurricane Isabel, which hit Virginia Beach in 2003, was the costliest disaster in Virginia's history. Hurricane force winds were recorded at 107 mph, and Isabel caused significant beach erosion and home damage before she was finished.

storm doors with screens

Hurricane Isabel is not the only hurricane to damage Virginia Beach:

STORM DOORS

Hurricane Charley passed over southeast Virginia Beach, and winds were recorded at 104 mph and over 110,000 homes were without power during and after the storm.

Hurricane Bonnie knocked out power to 320,000 customers in the Norfolk-Virginia Beach area. Structural damage to buildings occurred. The heavy rain and storm surge produced street flooding in Norfolk, Virginia Beach and Portsmouth. Storm damages in Virginia totaled more than million.

When Hurricane Floyd hit the area and caused rainfall of up to 20 inches in some parts of Virginia. More than 300 roads were closed in the peak of the storm from flooding and downed trees.

Obviously, homes in the Virginia Beach area need storm protection, and hurricane shutters are one of the best ways that you can protect your home. Hurricane shutters protect you from the missile impacts that occur during a storm, also keep pressure changes from occurring quickly inside your home, and keep out wind and rain that storms bring. And out of all the hurricane shutters available on the market today, rolling shutters are the best available.

Roll-down shutters can be closed in a matter of moments when a storm is imminent. Rolling shutters cover your windows and doors with a touch of a button, and if there is no power (during Hurricane Isabel, 1.8 million electrical customers were left without power) there is a manual option to roll them down. Whether the power is on or not, roll down shutters have got you covered. They remain on your home year-round, so there is no putting up and taking down when storms come and go, and they are both convenient and unobtrusive. They can be matched to your home's color, making them both attractive and practical.

No matter what kind of hurricane shutters that you choose, they are necessary to protect your home during a storm. Install hurricane shutters today and provide your home and family with the defense against the storm that they deserve.

Virginia Beach Homes Need Hurricane Shutters for Storm Protection

STORM DOORS

Storm Shutters: Smart Hurricane Protection For Your Home

Because Nova Scotia extends far into the ocean, it's one of the warmest places in Canada. The ocean helps to moderate temperatures there, so Nova Scotia doesn't have an extreme range of temperatures, and it also has a long, late summer. Also because it protrudes out into the Atlantic, it is prone to tropical storms and hurricanes in late summer and autumn. There have been forty or so heavy storms, almost half of them hurricanes, making landfall in the area since records were kept. That's about one major storm every three years.

storm doors for sale

Smart homeowners install hurricane shutters on their homes. Rolling shutters are the most convenient and practical type of shutter. They can be custom matched in color and style to your home, and have many other benefits.

STORM DOORS

Rolling shutters:

Are the most popular storm shutter available
Are easy to install on any new or existing home
Have both electric or manual operation, so even if the power goes out, you're covered
Cover even large openings and can be made to fit any style or size window
Provide protection from heat and light and reduce sun damage to your home
Improve your insulation from heat and cold
Give you privacy
Are easy to operate
Improve security of your home
Reduce outside noises, and increase your privacy
Are very convenient if you have second story windows or have difficulty reaching windows to manually roll down shutters

If you have impact resistant glass in your windows and doors, you might believe that you don't need to add hurricane shutters to keep your home and family safe. But this isn't necessarily true: Impact resistant glass can still break if struck by debris thrown by the high winds during a storm, and once they are broken, the storm is going to come inside. Storm shutters added over the impact resistant glass will protect your windows further and save you the cost of an expensive replacement or repair.

Rolling shutters are a convenient storm and security protection. They can be easily matched to your home, and are unobtrusive until you close them. They can be added to existing homes or put on your windows right from construction, and they will provide you and yours with storm protection.

If you live in Nova Scotia and want to protect yourself from the frequent tropical storms and hurricanes, you should add rolling shutters to your new or existing home today. Reduce the damage caused by storms and provide your home and family with protection and peace of mind.

Storm Shutters: Smart Hurricane Protection For Your Home

STORM DOORS

Improvising Fallout Protection

If an enemy attack should occur when you are at home, and you have made no advance shelter preparations, you still might be able to improvise a shelter either inside or outside your house. In a time of emergency, the radio broadcasts may tell you whether you have time to improvise a shelter or should take cover immediately.

storm doors with doggie doors

An improvised shelter probably would not give you as much protection as a permanent or a preplanned family shelter, but any protection is better than none, and might save your life.

STORM DOORS

The best place to improvise a shelter would be the basement or storm cellar, if your home has one.

SHIELDING MATERIAL NEEDED

To improvise a shelter you would need shielding materials such as those mentioned concrete blocks, bricks, sand, etc. Other things could also be used as shielding material, or to support shielding material, such as:

-House doors that have been taken off their hinges (especially heavy outside doors).

-Dressers and chests (fill the drawers with sand or earth after they are placed in position, so they won't be too heavy to carry and won't collapse while being carried).

-Trunks, boxes and cartons (fill them with sand or earth after they are placed in position).

-Tables and bookcases.

-Large appliances (such as washers and dryers).

-Books, magazines, and stacks of firewood or lumber.

-Flagstones from outside walks and patios.

IMPROVISING A BASEMENT SHELTER

Here are two ways of improvising fallout protection in the basement of a home:

Set up a large, sturdy table or workbench in the corner of your basement that is most below ground level.

On the table, pile as much shielding material as it will hold without collapsing. Around the table, place as much shielding material as possible.

When family members are "inside the shelter"-that is, under the table-block the opening with other shielding material.

If you don't have a large table or workbench available-or if more shelter space is needed-place furniture or large appliances in the corner of the basement so they will serve as the "walls" of your shelter.

As a "ceiling" for it, use doors from the house that have been taken off their hinges. On top of the doors, pile as much shielding material as they will support. Stack other shielding material around the "walls" of your shelter.

When all persons are inside the shelter space, block the opening with shielding material.

USING A STORM CELLAR FOR FALLOUT PROTECTION

A below-ground storm cellar can be used as an improvised fallout shelter, but additional shielding material may be needed to provide adequate protection from fallout radiation.

If the existing roof of the storm cellar is made of wood or other light material, it should be covered with one foot of earth or an equivalent thickness of other shielding material for overhead shielding from fallout. More posts or braces may be needed to support
the extra weight.

After the roof has been shielded, better protection can be provided by blocking the entrance way with 8-inch concrete blocks or an equivalent thickness of sandbags, bricks, earth or other shielding material, after all occupants are inside the shelter. A few inches should be left open at the top for air. After particles have stopped falling, the outside door may be left open to provide better ventilation.

If shielding material is not available for the entrance way, shelter occupants should stay as far away from it as possible. They also should raise the outside door of the storm cellar now and then to knock off any fallout particles that may have collected on it.

USING THE CRAWL SPACE UNDER YOUR HOUSE

Some homes without basements have "crawl space" between the first floor and the ground underneath the house. If you have this space under your house-and if the house is set on foundation walls, rather than on pillars-you can improvise fallout protection for your family there.

First, get access to the crawl space through the floor or through the outside foundation wall. (A trapdoor or other entry could be made now, before an emergency occurs.)

As the location for your shelter, select a crawl-space area that is under the center of the house, as far away from the outside foundation walls as possible.

Around the selected shelter area, place shielding material- preferably bricks or blocks, or containers filled with sand or earth-from the ground level up to the first floor of the house, so that the shielding material forms the "walls" of your shelter area. On the floor above, place other shielding material to form a "roof" for the shelter area.

If time permits, dig out more earth and make the shelter area deeper, so you can stand erect or at least sit up in it.

IMPROVISING AN OUTSIDE SHELTER

If your home has no basement, no storm cellar and no protected crawl space, here are two ways of improvising fallout protection in your yard:

Dig an L-shaped trench, about 4 feet deep and 3 feet wide. One side of the L, which will be the shelter area, should be long enough to accommodate all family members. The other side of the L can be shorter, since its purpose is to serve as an entrance-way and to reduce the amount of radiation getting into the shelter area.

Cover the entire trench with lumber (or with house doors that have been taken off their hinges), except for about 2 feet on the short side of the L, to provide access and ventilation.

On top of the lumber or doors, pile earth 1 to 2 feet high, or cover them with other shielding material.

If necessary, support or "shore up" the walls of the trench, as well as the lumber or doors, so they will not collapse.

Dig a shallow ditch, 6 inches deep and 6 inches wide, parallel to and 4 feet from the outside wall of your house.

Remove the heaviest doors from the house. Place the bottoms of the doors in the ditch (so they won't slip), and lean the doors against the wall of the house.

On the doors, pile 12 to 18 inches of earth or sand. Stack or pile other shielding material at the sides of the doors, and also on the other side of the house wall (to protect you against radiation coming from that direction).

If possible, make the shelter area deeper by digging out more earth inside it. Also dig some other shallow ditches, to allow rain water to drain away.

AN IMPROVISED SHELTER ON THE GROUND FLOOR

If your home has no basement or storm cellar (and no crawl space that is surrounded by foundation walls up to the first floor), you can get some limited fallout protection by improvising a fallout shelter on the first or ground floor of your house. However, this type of shelter probably would not give you nearly as much protection as the other types of improvised shelters described in this chapter.

Use an inner hall, inner room or large clothes closet on the ground floor, away from outside walls and windows.

With doors, furniture and appliances, plus stacks of other shielding material, you can create an enclosure large enough to live in for a short time. If possible, use boxes filled with sand or earth as shielding material, and fill drawers and trunks with sand or earth.

If there is not room for the shielding material in the limited space of a closet or small room, you can place the material on the other sides of the walls, or on the floor overhead.

BOATS AS IMPROVISED SHELTERS

If no better fallout protection is available, a boat with an enclosed cabin could be used. However, in addition to emergency supplies such as food, drinking water and a battery-powered radio, you should have aboard the items you would need (a broom, bucket, or pump-and-hose) to sweep off or flush off any fallout particles that might collect on the boat. The boat should be anchored or cruised slowly at least 200 feet offshore, where the water is at least 5 feet deep. This distance from shore would protect you from radioactive fallout particles that had fallen on the nearby land. A 5-foot depth would absorb the radiation from particles falling into the water and settling on the bottom.

If particles drift down on the boat, stay inside the cabin most of the time. Go outside now and then, and sweep or flush off any particles that have collected on the boat.

Improvising Fallout Protection

Jay Krunszyinsky is a Psychiatric Rehabilitation Counselor and Abuse Investigator for the state of Pennsylvania. He has counseled youth, parents, and couples during crises and has provided crisis counseling during emergency situations. Visit his website at http://www.emergencysteps.net

STORM DOORS

Roll Shutters - Easy Privacy and Storm Protection

You may think purchasing new shutters for your home would be a simple task, but it is not. There are many different styles, materials and colors, making your decision a difficult chore. What are roll shutters? Will they look the best on your home? How much do they cost? What is currently the most popular type of shutter?

storm doors black

There are many uses for roll shutters. Besides covering windows, they can be used on doors, skylights, and screened porches both inside and outside. Roll shutters are not just for personal use either, many business use them for service windows, pull up windows, and kiosks commonly seen in shopping malls. They are an everyday sight but how functional are they?

STORM DOORS

To protect their windows from sun, wind, rain, and other forces of nature, many people install roll shutters. They prevent many kinds of damage, such as fading, leaks, and shattering. They also reduce the level of noise and prevent breakins. But are roll shutters worth the extra cost of purchasing and installing them?

This is somewhat more expensive than the basic shutters. When you consider how beneficial that roll shutters are, this little difference is worth the cost. Usually the median price is similar to high grade patio doors or windows.

These hurricane shutters, as some call them, could end up saving you money over time. The damage that is caused by weather and other factors can become very costly. Even if the homeowner has insurance that will cover this damage, chances are there will be a high deductible and there is a possibility that the insurance company will raise their premiums. You can lessen these damages, if not avoid them entirely, by using these shutters.

If you are thinking about using these shutters, you should find a company that will meet you at home and give you an approximate idea of the cost. Make sure the cost of set up is added in also. It is recommended that you investigate the company and obtain referrals before you agree to the purchase.

Roll Shutters - Easy Privacy and Storm Protection

Roll Shutters do much more than merely cover the widows. These Hurricane Shutters are used for Storm Protection, and protection from the sun, wind, rain and other elements. They offer protection from fading, leaking, breakage, and other damage. Also, many people opt for these shutters for noise reduction, and to keep intruders away. The price is slightly more than for regular shutters. But when you consider all of the advantages of these shutters, the small price difference is worth it. Generally, the average cost is roughly the same as for a high quality patio door or window. To find out more about hurricane protection please visit our site [http://www.123hurricaneshutters.com/].

STORM DOORS