Discover Why Wind Rated Garage Doors Are Beneficial

WHY WIND RATED GARAGE DOORS?

So, what are wind rated garage doors?   Your home’s garage door(s) is sturdy, but can they stand up to the most harsh winds?  Some modern garage doors feature a wind code rating to indicate their wind bearing strength.  Wind rated garage doors help protect against wind and storm damage that occurs during hurricanes, tornadoes and other weather events.  Some areas of the United States require homeowners to have wind rated garage doors.

To know if your garage doors are wind rated, look for a label on the interior of your doors.  The label will have its wind code rating and other relevant specifications on it.  Wind ratings present a series of figures, including a maximum wind strength rating in miles per hour and a measurement of how much pressure a door can withstand before it breaks–illustrated in pounds per square foot.

WHO NEEDS WIND RATED GARAGE DOORS?

Any homeowner will benefit from the strength and durability of a wind rated garage door.  Homes in hurricane-prone  regions of the United States, such as the East Coast, and tornado prone regions of the Mid West United States will benefit the best by having wind rated garage doors.  There are several states that actually require wind rate doors–California, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, Nevada and Utah.  Wind rated doors are a form of protection that protects the structural integrity of your garage and the rest of the home.  Did you know that garage door failure contributes to the build up of internal pressure during the storm, leading to a complete or partial blowout of the home’s walls and roof?

WIND CODE RATINGS EXPLAINED

Your garage door’s wind rode rating indicates how much wind and wind-borne debris it can withstand before issues arise.  Each region’s building codes designate its own strength rating.  Florida has three regions of wind-borne debris levels.  They range from 130 mph to 140 mph to a high velocity zone.  A wind code rating includes a maximum wind speed the door can withstand.

POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE PSF

Pounds per square foot is a measurement of pressure the garage door can withstand, via wind or wind-borne debris.  also known as design load, the value indicates resistance in both positive and negative directions toward the door.  Positive pressure indicates the amount of wind blowing against the door and negative pressure indicates the amount of wind pulling or sucking our door outwards.  As such, design pressures express both positive and negative values.  The higher the value, the more weight the door handles before buckling.  Standard wind load value is around 20PSF.

DO I HAVE WIND RATED GARAGE DOORS?

To find out if you have wind rated garage doors, look for a large sticker or label on the inside of your door,  This sticker should feature the maximum MPH rating (anywhere from 74 to 180 MPH), a PSF+ value and a PSF- value.  If you live in Florida, the sticker could also feature a dedicated wind value rating of W-1 to W-9.  The higher this “W” rating is, the stronger the door.

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR GARAGE DOOR LACKS A WIND RATING

Most garage doors away from coastlines are not wind rated.  Prior to 2006, there were no requirements for wind-rated doors for homes built outside of Florida.   If your home predates 2006, it is likely your garage doors will not stand up to hurricane force winds–what can you do?

Buy New Garage Doors-You could buy new garage doors that come wind rated from the manufacturer.  This will protect your home from wind and storm damage.   Some parts of the county offer insurance premium discounts to homeowners with wind rated garage doors

Brace Your Existing Garage Doors– If new wind rated doors are not in your budget, you can always brace your pre-existing doors to help build up their wind resistance.  You can temporarily brace them ahead of a storm or go for a more permanent solution.  Reinforcing existing doors is not as effective as install new wind rated doors but every little bit helps.

For more information on wind rated garage doors or to schedule an estimate for new garage doors or a service or evaluation on your existing garage doors, please contact us at www.valleylockanddoor.com