Keeping Your Roof Overhead
2009 Hurricane Season Starts June 1
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – When hurricane-force winds blow, it’s critical that your home’s roof stay intact. As one of four key “force intrusion areas” of the home (along with windows, entry doors and garage doors) severe winds can compromise your roof during a storm with tragic results.
“Once air pressure moves through a hole in a roof and into the home during a hurricane, it can literally blow out the walls and windows of the home,” says Ray Rosewall, president and CEO of DaVinci Roofscapes. “Coastal area homeowners — especially those in potential hurricane areas — need to have well-installed, solid roofs overhead to protect their homes and prized possessions.”
Homeowners need to consider two different types of winds that will affect their roofs during severe weather. Straight line winds and pressurized winds can cause different damage — from uplifting the shingles off the roof to pushing intense wind-driven rain and flying debris onto the roof.
As a first step, coastal homeowners should make sure they have proper bracing, such as galvanized metal hurricane straps, to connect the roof to the walls of the home. This can help prevent uplift during hurricane-force winds. For a second step, consider impact-resistant synthetic roofing tiles that have been formulated and tested to withstand hurricane strength winds and severe impact.
According to the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH), one of ten steps to building a disaster-resistant roof includes selecting an impact-resistant roof covering tested to the latest standards for wind and impact resistance. FLASH recommends using the standards of ASMT D 3161 enhanced or UL 2390 for wind resistance and UL 2218 for impact resistance.
To achieve these ratings, companies use independent, third parties to test their roofing materials.
“DaVinci synthetic roofing tiles have passed ASTM D 3161, UL 2390 as well as TAS 125 pressure testing,” says Rosewall. “We have also achieved Miami Dade and Florida Building Code acceptance. This means these products can be installed in wind zone areas reaching 150 mph, which is the top range of a category 4 hurricane. Additionally, they have a Class 4 rating for impact resistance from flying debris during a hurricane.
“Having a synthetic roof overhead means you have gone the extra mile to increase the odds that your home, personal belongings and family treasures will be there when the severe weather has passed,” says Rosewall. “And, in many areas, there’s the added benefit that selecting this type of roofing can lower your homeowners insurance bills.”
DaVinci Roofscapes uses virgin resins to assure product consistency and longevity in their roofing tiles. The proprietary engineered polymer incorporates fire retardant and state of the art UV and color stabilizers specifically formulated to withstand the wide variety of challenging environments that roofing materials are exposed to year after year.
DaVinci Roofscapes has manufactured award-winning synthetic slate and shake roofing since 1999. The polymer roofing tiles are virtually maintenance free and far more cost effective than the natural product. DaVinci leads the industry in tile thickness, the tile width variety and the greatest selection of subtle earth-toned colors. For additional information call 1-800-328-4624 or visit our website.