Many people do not realize that the prevalence of tornadoes is increasing year by year. In 2020, there were about 1075 tornadoes. But in 2021, there were 1,376 tornadoes in the United States!
Some people theorize that this is the result of climate change. Regardless of the reason, it is making a lot more people interested in designing a home to be safe from tornadoes.
Of course, some people imagine that making a home safe from tornadoes would be an extremely difficult process. The truth is, there are a few principles you can apply to help keep your home as safe from tornadoes as possible. Read on to learn all about the most important things to focus on when you want to tornado-proof your home!
Understand Which Houses Need the Most Protection From Tornadoes
There is no single set of best home design ideas when it comes to protecting your home from tornadoes. That is because the rules for tornado-proofing houses change depending on the nature of your house. In particular, the kind of foundation that you have has a huge impact on how naturally protected your home will be from a tornado.
For example, wood-frame houses are extremely vulnerable to tornadoes. Practically every part of them, including the roof and siding, is susceptible to high winds.
On top of that, if one part of a wood frame home starts to collapse, it can cause the rest of the home to collapse as well. If you’re building a home from scratch, then you will definitely want to avoid wood frames when it comes to keeping your home safe from tornadoes. But, most people are looking to turn a home that already exists into a safe place.
In this case, there is very little you can do to make a wood frame home structure safe from tornadoes. That means that you need to focus on other strategies. In particular, to keep your family safe, you will probably want to use a safe room strategy.
How to Protect Your Home
There are a number of things you can do to protect your home from suffering the maximum amount of damage from a tornado.
The doors and windows of your home will be the most susceptible to damage from a tornado. You can get impact-resistant windows and secure your entry and garage doors.
You can also make sure that essential documents and values are kept in a safe place like a safe.
If you have the budget for it, you can also install roof structures that are resistant to high winds. This can be pretty expensive, but depending on your situation, you might decide that it is worth it.
Figure Out Your Home Construction Budget
Of course, there are other things that you can also do to tornado-proof a home. But the question is, which of those methods are the most effective and affordable? Depending on how much you are willing to spend, you will have to let certain safety techniques go unused.
Of course, you may want to sacrifice and increase your budget if you think there is a higher chance that you will be hit by a tornado. You might also decide that you should spend more on tornado safety if you have sentimental reasons to protect the structure of your home.
Whatever your situation, your budget is going to determine a lot of what you can do or not to protect your home.
Make a Storm-Proof House With a Safe Room
When it comes to preparing for a tornado, the most important thing is that you have a safe place to go. Your home might suffer a lot of damage, but you can always protect your health. On top of that, you can take any especially valuable property with you into your safe room.
Whatever else you decide to invest in, a safe room is probably the number one thing that you should build to prepare for a tornado. It will give you the most bang for your buck.
If you have a basement, then it will probably act as a pretty good safe room. Make sure that your important documents and property are in the basement. Alternatively, make sure that you are ready to take them there if you need to.
On top of that, make sure that everybody understands the plan if there is a tornado. You want people to be able to independently get to the safe room so that nobody has to slow down to check if everybody else is going.
If you do not have a solid basement, then you’ll need to construct a safe room. You can construct FEMA safe rooms almost anywhere on your property. These rooms are built to be extremely strong and resistant to winds.
Of course, you want to be certain that you are working with quality builders. When it comes to a safe room, quality matters more than anything else.
Be Prepared for Designing a Home to Be Safe From Tornadoes
We hope that some of the ideas in this brief article about designing a home to be safe from tornadoes have been helpful for you. Depending on where you live, it can be essential to have a plan for the possibility of a tornado.
If you can manage it, the best plan is to have a setup including a home that can resist the damage that a tornado would otherwise inflict.
Many people fail to take that kind of preparation. But, preparation on that level is an investment that will more than pay for itself down the line. To learn more about how to keep your home safe from tornadoes or to talk with experts in architecture who can help you, feel free to reach out and get in touch with us here at any time!