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Team Fritz Clay Roof Tiles have traditionally been tested in Europe for high wind area usage. Especially in the mountainous and the coastal regions extremely high winds can occur. This has been addressed in their design and with the tight interlocking feature, that creates a "interwoven" blanket on the roof. In order for the wind to lift one tile, it has to lift them all - which is virtually impossible. For areas endangered with the occurrence of hurricanes and tornados, we suggest the usage of special clips. They come in metal or fiberglass and get installed during tile application. Please look for them in our accessories section. The Florida Roofers Institute (FRI) has recently released a study Storm-Resistant
Tile Roofing Guidelines Recommended The devastation caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita has again brought up the issue of structural safety within the building industry and among home owners. It is not only the rebuilding effort- we are talking about, but we are also discussing the improvements that can be made in regards of using storm-resistant material and changing building codes.
Research
has been made after past hurricanes - such as Andrew and Charley for example,
and the essence was, that
one thing to do for the home owners is : have installed a high-wind-resistant
roofing, such as clay roof tiles - in order to protect their house. Wind tunnel tests done by
several manufacturers and European Institutes came to the conclusion that
with proper installation, tile roofing is one of only a select few roofing
materials that can withstand sustained winds in excess of 242 km/hour or
150 miles/hour. Examining the last years hurricane Charley, researches found out, that tiled roof homes (properly installed) and with the use of improved, new fastening systems (such as storm clips), experienced relatively minor damage. This was found even in the vicinity of sustained wind speeds of 234 km/hour (145 miles/hour) and reported gusts stronger/faster than 275 km/hour (170 miles/hour).
The homes that had tile roof damage had a widespread failure in common. Hip and ridge starter tiles were likely damage or went missing. Improper installation was in most cases to blame. The result is, that this
"problem" has to be addressed. One way to install the hip/ridge tiles
properly is to use clips instead of mortar to secure the hip-/ and ridge tiles.
And for proper ventilation we recommend the hip/ridge roll (mortar less ridge
and hips). Instructions for attaching hip and ridge tiles you will find in our installation manuals. It gives you step-by-step
instructions doing proper hip and ridge tile installation. Team Fritz Clay Roofs offer an interlocking system
that makes it next to impossible for wind suction to lift a single tiles. In
addition TFC Inc. offers special fiberglass clips that are easy to apply during
roof installation to further reduce the risk of wind damage. TFC Inc. recommends
the usage of the ridge and hip clips that are supplied free of charge with the
TFC Inc. tiles. We further recommend that the installation is
according to the local building code and does also implement the instructions of
the manufacturers. Wind testing in Europe has proven that the interlocking
system alone is sufficient enough for most regions. For high-risk areas in which
winds can exceed standard speeds, we have been very successful using the storm
clips. |
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Copyright © 2007 Team Fritz Clay Roof Tiles, Inc.
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