How to Prepare for Dangerous Weather

Living in Florida, hurricanes cause disasters almost every year. It is important to take precautions before these hurricanes hit your area. With the right hurricane protection and house preparation, it can help eliminate injuries to your family and your property. Make sure you are stocked up on food, generators, water, flashlights, and emergency kits. In this blog post, I will go through the steps to keep your family protected from hurricane disasters.

Supply Checklist

It is important to be stocked up on supplies for at least 72 hours. The hurricane can either go by very quickly or consolidate over your area for days so it is important to stay stocked up on resources. Below, I will provide a checklist of supplies you should consider keeping on hand.

• Non-perishable food (at least three days worth)

• Water (at least three days worth)

• Toilet Paper

• Batteries

• Flashlights/Candles

• AM/FM Radio

• Generator

• Hurricane Shutters or Hurricane Impact Windows

• Soap/Toothpaste

• Strike Matches

• Pet Food/Supplies

• Medicine

• Multi-Purpose Tools

• Emergency First Aid Kit

Hurricane Preparedness Checklist

• Fill up car gas tanks

• Move potential airborne objects inside (patio furniture, statues, plants, etc.)

• Move cars away from any power lines or trees

• Cut trees that look like they could fall down

• Keep generator charged and phone batteries charged

• Cover all windows with hurricane shutters

• Find a shelter room in the middle of your house, away from all windows

• If you are deploying storm panels, plan a day ahead because they take a long time to deploy

Hurricane Shutter Protection

It is important to invest in hurricane protection. Living in Florida, hurricanes are common and there needs to be some sort of protection, or else your property will be damaged. Look to invest in either hurricane impact windows or hurricane shutters. There are many hurricane shutter options that you can choose from that I will discuss below.

Hurricane Storm Panels

Hurricane storm panels are the most common type of hurricane protection. The hurricane storm panels normally come with your house but sometimes can be the wrong measurements therefore you may need a few new panels cut to the exact size of your windows.

Hurricane storm panels provide maximum protection but are very time-consuming to deploy. The storm panels can take anywhere from 6-8 hours to deploy depending on how big your house is and how many helpers you have. Hurricane storm panels are dangerous because they are very heavy and have sharp edges. There have been situations where people have been severe because of their weight and sharpness. Make sure to use gloves and have helpers when deploying your hurricane storm panels. What attracts many buyers to hurricane storm panels is the cheap price tag, but you pay for convenience.

Accordion Shutters

Accordion shutters are a great alternative to hurricane storm panels. Accordion shutters are also cheap shutters but provide much more convenience than storm panels. The accordion shutters are deployed using a sliding rail system that pulls the shutters shut when needed and opens with ease during the offseason. The accordion shutters also come with a key and lock to hold together when hurricanes are present.

The accordion shutters offer maximum protection and are on the cheaper side and not time-consuming. Many people switch from hurricane storm panels to accordion shutters because there isn’t a big cost difference but there is a huge difference in time consumption. Accordion shutters take anywhere from 20-30 minutes to deploy around your whole property making it way faster than the traditional storm panels.

Bahama Shutters

If you are looking for a more aesthetic hurricane shutter to protect your property with, look no further. Bahama shutters are a great option providing a top hinge design that allows for easy deployment and provides beauty to your property. The Bahama shutters are a great option because they provide privacy, sunshade, and maximum protection for your home.

The Bahama shutters are on the pricier end but they will increase the value of your home, a great investment. They are very convenient like the accordion shutters, only taking 20 minutes to secure the whole property. Here at Johnson Aluminum Products, we make the Bahama shutters with .050 grade aluminum providing the most protection from hurricanes.

Roll-Up Shutters

The roll-up shutters are by far the most convenient shutter taking seconds to deploy with the touch of a button. The roll-up shutters are powered by an electric motor that can operate up to four windows simultaneously with the touch of a wireless remote button.

Since the remote is wireless, you can deploy the shutters from inside the comfort of your home. Since the roll-up shutters are the least time-consuming, they are also the most expensive option but investing in them now will make every hurricane season easy. If in case you didn’t deploy your shutters in time and the hurricane took your power out, there is a hand crank option that you can use to roll down the shutters with ease.

Conclusion

I hope this blog post was helpful in preparing you for the hurricane disaster that is inevitable. Hopefully, the checklists brought some of your mysteries to light and helped you come up with a plan to help save your property and family. If you are in need of hurricane shutters, look no further.

Johnson Aluminum Products specializes in all types of hurricane shutters including; accordion shutters, Bahama shutters, hurricane storm panels, colonial shutters, plantation shutters, and roll-up shutters. We proudly serve Brevard County (Viera, Melbourne, Palm Bay, Malabar, etc.) and Indian River County (Vero Beach, Sebastian, Fellsmere, etc.).