The Need for Hurricane Impact Glass
Acts of nature can be quite powerful and destructive, from high-magnitude earthquakes to volcanic eruptions to tornadoes and hurricanes, and more. While it is nos possible to prevent these acts of nature, modern geologists and meteorologists are working hard to better predict when and where such phenomena may happen, and to what degree. This makes it easier to evacuate everyone who will be in harm’s way. But what about the buildings that are left behind? No one can evacuate a skyscraper or a hotel, but construction crews can make a city safer against storms. Levees and elevated foundations can help protect against flood waters, and as for hurricane winds, hotel door suppliers and window manufacturers can provide hurricane glass doors and impact glass models. Hurricane proof windows go a long way toward protecting a public building from such storms, and construction managers can look up “impact glass miami” or “hurricane glass door suppliers nearby” to find these. Ordinary homeowners probably won’t look up “impact glass miami,” but rather, find hurricane shutters. These specialized windows and doors are most often found on hotels, skyscrapers, condos, and the like.
The Power of Hurricanes
Just how devastating can these storms be? Many studies are done each year to better predict and understand these storms, and many statistics can be referenced. In the 20th century, a total of 158 hurricanes struck the United States, and 57 of them hit Florida alone, with Texas getting hit with another 26 of them. Among these, Hurricane Andrew was a standout, and this mammoth category 5 hurricane devastated Miami in 1992. Hurricane Andrew also demonstrated that a hurricane can make many tornadoes during its life, and this particular storm generated 62 of them in total.
Even smaller hurricanes are quite powerful, and the largest are incredibly impactful. What is more, trends suggest that now in the 21st century, hurricanes are even more powerful and frequent, possibly due to climate change and a warming of the world’s oceans. Hurricane Irma may act as evidence of that trend, as this monster 2017 hurricane was the most powerful Atlantic hurricane on record. It contained an incredible seven trillion watts of energy and had 185 MPH winds for 37 hours, and it devastated Barbuda and other Caribbean locales. A storm like this could very well strike in the future, so contractors in Miami and other hurricane prone areas are taking steps to prepare.
Protection Against Hurricanes
While no building may be 100% safe from a hurricane during a storm, the right glass windows and doors can go a long way toward protecting the interior. In any storm, a building’s window and doors are a weak point, but it’s not an option to simply omit them. So, in hurricane prone areas like Miami, construction managers will look up “impact glass miami” and “hurricane proof glass doors wholesale” to get their hands on such hardware and install it in commercial buildings. When looking up “impact glass miami”, a contractor may find a number of local companies that can provide the goods, and the contractor can pick and choose among them. Larger construction firms might even have purchasing agents on hand who will look up “impact glass miami” and “hurricane glass doors for hotels” and place cost-effective orders on behalf of their clients.
Hurricane proof windows and doors are made with a special glaze so they can endure the pressure of strong winds, drastic air pressure changes, and the blunt trauma of wind-blown objects striking them. Window and doors that have an impact glaze system of +105/-130 can endure hurricane force winds 100 MPH or stronger, and this is vital for keeping winds and rains out of a structure during a hurricane. Otherwise, shattered windows and doors allow rain and debris to devastate the interior, which calls for costly repairs. Hurricane doors and windows won’t let that happen.
On a final note, an entrepreneur who purchases real estate along the Florida coast may want to check the windows and glass doors to ensure that they are up to date and tough enough for a storm. If not, those windows and doors can be replaced with modern high impact doors and windows, which will be a great investment when and if a hurricane ever arrives.