Are StormWatch fabric shutters approved and certified?
Yes, all of our fabric shutters are certified storm shutters which have been tested to both
Florida Building Code standards, as well as the International Building Code standards.
Standards tested include:
Download PDF
For what wind zone is it rated?Standards tested include:
- TAS 201 (Miami-Dade and Florida): Impact Test Procedures.
- TAS 202 (Miami-Dade and Florida): Criteria for Testing Impact & Nonimpact Resistant Building Envelope Components Using Uniform Static Air Pressure.
- TAS 203 (Miami-Dade and Florida): Criteria for Testing Products Subject to Cyclic Wind Pressure Loading
- ASTM E330 (International): Test Method for Structural Performance of Exterior Windows, Curtain Walls, and Doors by Uniform Static Air Pressure Difference.
- ASTM E1886 (International): Test Method for Performance of Exterior Windows, Curtain Walls, Doors and Storm Shutters Impacted by Missiles and Exposed to Cyclic Pressure Differentials.
- ASTM E1996 (International): Specification for Performance of Exterior Windows, Curtain Walls, Doors and Storm Shutters Impacted by Windborne Debris in Hurricanes.
Download PDF
StormWatch offers products with extremely high design pressures to meet every wind zone need within Florida and throughout the United States and Caribbean.
Is it impact rated?
Yes, for large missiles (TAS 201 and ASTM E-1996). The hurricane fabric easily withstands significant and repeated impacts without damage. It is one of the best features of fabric shutters.
How far off the glass do fabric shutters need to be?
If the structure is outside the HVHZ (Miami-Dade and Broward Counties), there is no required setback between the hurricane fabric and the window. This is because the job of the fabric shutter is to protect the opening, and not necessarily the glass. If something heavy enough hits the hurricane fabric hard enough, the glass behind it may break; however, because the opening is still covered, your home is still protected from water intrusion and pressurization. Think about it in terms of a window with impact glass, the glass will break if something hits it, but nothing is going through it, and the opening is still sealed.
Click below for videos of how these shutters stand up to impact strikes (wiki video).
Wiki News Video
Impact Glass Video
All three are destroyed in the impact test, and all three cause the glass to be broken behind the shutter. It doesn't matter what covers your window; in the real world, the glass is going to break, at least with fabric shutters you won't have to buy a new shutter or replace an expensive impact window.
Do your products contain Kevlar?Click below for videos of how these shutters stand up to impact strikes (wiki video).
Wiki News Video
Impact Glass Video
All three are destroyed in the impact test, and all three cause the glass to be broken behind the shutter. It doesn't matter what covers your window; in the real world, the glass is going to break, at least with fabric shutters you won't have to buy a new shutter or replace an expensive impact window.
No, UV light quickly degrades Kevlar making it useless for applications where sun exposure is an issue, like hurricane shutters in Florida.
Source: Dupont's Technical Guide KEVLAR Aramid Fiber (page II-13)
Source: Dupont's Technical Guide KEVLAR Aramid Fiber (page II-13)