TAMPA (WFLA) – When it comes to getting your house ready for hurricane season, most homeowners shutter the windows to protect the glass, but the largest opening to your home is your garage.
The garage door can be vulnerable to the strong winds, and if the garage door fails, the strong winds rush into the home and can blow the roof off.
The first option for any homeowner is to get a new wind-rated garage door installed. That will cost about $1,000 for a single-car door. A cheaper option is to brace the existing door.
“You’ll notice that on the left and right side, you have full support from the metal tracking, but in the middle is what’s most vulnerable because you don’t have anything holding it to the ground,” said Justin Piszczynski with Lowe’s Home Improvement. “Using a metal brace, it will make it so your door can’t flex and won’t blow in in the event of a high wind storm,” he continued.
Homeowners can buy brace kits at most home improvement stores. One bracket is attached to the wall above the garage door and one is drilled into the concrete on the floor. When a storm approaches, a metal brace is set between the two to give extra strength to the door.
“If you have a two-car garage, it’s recommended that you do two braces. If it’s a single-car garage, you should do one in the middle,” said Piszczynski.
Finally, to protect the door without the brace system, a fabric shutter system can be installed on the outside that is both wind-rated and impact-rated.
