Be Prepared

• The key to making homemade hurricane shutters is planning in advance of storms. While nailing up plywood at the last minute may work, buildings with aluminum siding may be damaged by hasty applications. Rock or concrete walls present unique problems in that holes must be drilled into the rock ahead of time because nails or screws will not work with hard substrates. Doors are often the most difficult openings to cover and advanced planning may be required to achieve a secure fit.
  
  

Last Minute Shutters

• Of course, running to the hardware store to buy plywood at the last minute is always possible. Cutting pieces of plywood that are slightly larger than the windows and then nailing or screwing these pieces in place will often serve to protect a building in the path of a powerful storm. The key in all hurricane shutter installations is to affix the protective material securely and close to the openings in such a way as to not allow wind to work under the overlapping corners of the protection.
  
  

Basic Removable Shutters

• The best low cost method of building hurricane shutters is to build the plywood panels ahead of time and to have all the holes pre-drilled and the securing bolts or hardware stored where they can be quickly accessed. Because hurricanes are repeating events, a good homemade shutter program can be mounted quickly, removed when the danger is past, and then stored in such a way as to be ready for the next time they are needed.
  
  

Permanent Shutters

• According to the Shutter Guide, published in Florida's Sun Sentinel newspaper, the optimal hurricane shutters are those that are always mounted and then raised or swung to the side when not in use. Professional installation of permanent shutters can be expensive, but shutter construction is actually not so difficult. A reasonably energetic amateur should be able to study a few professional installations and then mimic the project on their own home or building. Ironically, in Europe, where hurricanes are almost nonexistent, protective exterior shutters are built into many homes as a matter of tradition and style.