Understanding Impact-Resistant Windows

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Impact Resistant Windows Impact-resistant windows consist of impact-resistant glass surrounded by a heavy duty frame which is securely fastened to the interior window header and frame. Their construction and anchoring keep high hurricanes’ winds and debris from hurricanes from breaching your home’s outer envelope. Impact-resistant windows look like traditional glazing, but they are multi-layered, with stronger, heavier frames than traditional windows. The idea for shatter-resistant glass windows for homes came from the automotive field where laminated glass has been in use for years to protect occupants. There are two common types of impact-resistant glazing for your windows. The first is laminated glass consisting of two sheets of glass with an inner shatter-proof membrane between them. Once the glass receives a significant impact, it may shatter but the inner membrane holds the pieces firmly in its frame so that the barrier is not broken. These windows are designed to handle wind-borne debris hurled at high wind speeds and repeated impact from would-be intruders. In both cases, penetration or wind or water is nearly impossible. Interior lamination varies from .015 inch to .090 inch in thickness and the inner film can be ordered in a variety of color tints helping to reduce or eliminate sun fade and UV damage in your home. The second, less-hardy variety of impact-resistant glass uses window film applied to the surface of the glazing. With filmed windows, shatter-resistant film is placed over the glass to keep the window shards in place if broken. Since these films are added to the glazing, they may not function as a complete system. Their durability really depends on how well the glass and protective laminate stay in the frame and window assembly. Protecting the Building Envelope Windows offer a significant opportunity for combined wind and water damage in hurricanes, but manufacturers originally came up with impact-resistant windows to save structures from destruction. A broken window provides a point of entry for wind, that enters the house, increases pressure, and seeks another way out. “When a building envelope is breached, the difference in air pressures inside and out will cause a building to lose a roof or a wall and when that happens, the building is done for,” says Brian Hedlund, national product marketing manager for Jeld-Wen Windows & Doors. The only way to protect against damage from wind entry is to keep it out. This means deflecting wind and driving it around the building. This is why hurricane measures have been enacted in Florida for new building in hurricane zones. Residents must install impact resistant windows or a permanent shutter system. For homeowners in existing homes, replacing standard glass windows with impact –resistant windows brings peace of mind. “Take Florida for example,” Hedlund says. “Typically you have homeowners living there who will leave the state for periods of up to six months. If they know that a hurricane is coming, they have to return before it hits to either put shutters or plywood over the windows. If they have impact resistant windows, however, they have the peace of mind that they don’t have to take any special precautions and that their windows won’t be breached.”

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