Dock & Coastal
Hurricane Shutters in Charleston, SC
Panels, accordions and roll-downs — and the trade-off between them.
Panels, accordions and roll-downs — and the trade-off between them.
Quick answer: Removable storm panels cost least and take the most work to put up before every storm; accordion and roll-down shutters cost more and close in minutes, which decides it for upper floors and second homes. The anchoring matters more than the shutter: a rated shutter fixed into substrate that will not hold protects nothing. Some insurers credit rated shutters; ask yours. Southeastern Renovation installs shutters in the Charleston area (SC CLG.127339). Call (843) 718-8177.
Related: Hurricane-Hardening a Charleston Home: The Grants, the Insurance Credits, and What Actually Holds a Roof On · Impact windows and doors.
Removable panels are the cheapest option and the most work. They are stored somewhere, carried out, fitted to every opening and taken down again, and the number of openings on a house is usually larger than people remember when they are pricing it.
Accordions and roll-downs cost more and take minutes. On a second-floor window or a house that is empty for part of the year, that difference is the whole decision — panels you cannot fit in time protect nothing.
What matters technically is the attachment, not the shutter. A rated shutter fixed into substrate that will not hold is a rated shutter that leaves with the wind, and the fixing detail is where a good installation is separated from a cheap one.
We take this work across greater Charleston, from Summerville and Goose Creek to Mount Pleasant, West Ashley and the sea islands, and on the York County side around Rock Hill, Fort Mill, Tega Cay and Lake Wylie. More on our dock and coastal services.
It depends on how much work you are prepared to do with a storm coming. Panels cost least and take longest to fit; accordions and roll-downs cost more and close in minutes.
On upper floors or a house that sits empty, the fast option is the only one that reliably gets used.
They can, and it depends on the product, its rating and your insurer. It is worth asking your carrier what they credit before choosing, because the answer sometimes changes which product makes sense.
The fixings rather than the shutter. A rated panel anchored into substrate that will not hold is not protecting anything, and that detail is invisible once it is finished.