Tornado strength winds rip up test home in wind lab

CHESTER COUNTY, S.C. — In the last few weeks, major hurricanes have destroyed parts of Florida, Texas and Puerto Rico. Homes on the U.S. coast must be built to standards to resist hurricane-force winds, but it's not that way for the Charlotte area, and homes in most of the interior of the country.

That's why a group of insurers formed the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety. In 2010, they opened a giant test center in Chester County to study the way the worst weather damages and destroys homes, and learn how to build them better, then pass on that information to builders and governments.

Winds equal to an EF-2 tornado tore the walls from the test house at the IBHS on Thursday.

The goal of these demos is to encourage builders to fortify houses, using inexpensive metal braces to hold the foundation, walls and roof together.

"All we're really talking about is tying the bones of the house together,” Rochman, who heads the IBHS, said. “The same way ligaments and tendons tie your bones together, to add strength."

In tests done in years past, it was clear that the fortified house stood, while the standard built home either lost its roof, or was completely swept away.

The IBHS has a massive wall housing 105 fans. When turned on, they can create winds of 130 mph.  During a test, the facility draws as much power as 9,000 single family homes. On Thursday, the test pushed the fans to 120 mph for brief bursts.

Unlike in past tests, the house used was decorated, painted and furnished. That's to make it look real, but also to show home buyers there's more to look for, than curb appeal.

"They should care about what's in the house that they can't see. What's in the roof? What's in the walls?" Rochman said.

For only 1 to 2 percent more of the total cost, insurers said a builder can fortify new homes, potentially saving billions in damages.

However, the 1,400 square foot test house used Thursday held strong. It didn't lose its roof or collapse.  The house wasn't fortified and it was expected to go down fast.

Instead, after more than one hour of repeated tests, it still stood.

Leaders at IBHS admitted they were shocked, as was Kevin Gobble, with Habitat for Humanity, who built the house for the test.

"It was built to code, so I'm not exactly sure why it hasn't come apart," he said. "I guess we could have used a few extra nails that what was required."

IBHS engineers said they aren't sure why the house didn't break into pieces.

It did lose plenty of shingles, siding and one entire wall after a while. Winds also did heavy damage to the inside.

Still, Habitat for Humanity has adopted the fortified house model and has built hundreds of Habitat homes around the country using the metal braces.

IBHS was quick to point out that the test house used is just one house and one test. Every house is different and every storm is different. Their concern is that the next test house could be destroyed if it's not fortified, and so could yours.

"There was a lot of damage to the house," Rochman said. "It would have been very dangerous to be inside there during this event."

Cox Media Group