An Australian company has tested a tarp in a wind tunnel, showing the tarp failing dismally while an innovative new make-safe product holds strong.
In a video of the test, a sandbag holding the tarp falling from the roof at wind speeds of just 60km/h (37 miles/h). The tarp then fails completely at wind speeds of 100km/h (62 miles/h). The video shows the tarp blowing off the roof in slow motion, exposing the damaged home and sending a roof tile flying.
The video was made by Stormseal, an Australian company who have created an innovative material to replace leaking, flapping tarps. Like tarps, Stormseal’s ultra-strong film covers damaged structures until permanent repairs can be made. But unlike tarps, Stormseal holds strong through wild winds, rain, snow and hail.
In the same wind tunnel test, the video shows Stormseal staying in place at 160kmph/100mph (99 miles/h), the maximum speed generated by the facility. Stormseal did not flap, leak or come away from the roof, despite the simulated rain and extreme wind speeds thrown at it. The product is also safer, easier and faster to install than tarps.
Stormseal founder and managing director Matthew Lennox said Stormseal had previously been proven in wind speeds of up to 240km/h (150 miles/h) by HAAG Engineering in Dallas, hail impact tests conducted by IAG Research and Test facility and Fire Retardancy testing conducted by Intertek. The product’s strength comes from polyethylene resins combined with fire-retardant and ultraviolet-resistant additives, creating a tough, lightweight film. The film then heat shrinks to the roof, resulting in a durable plastic cover than strengthens a structure without damaging the underlying materials.
Lennox said in his experience the average tarp blows off four or five times before repairs can be made. But in thousands in thousands of Stormseal applications over three years, only three have ever failed. The product has stayed strong through tough weather conditions while storms victims wait up to a year for permanent repairs.
Stormseal has even been installed on the roof of an exposed hut high in the Swiss Alps—the most extreme natural conditions the company could access. There, on the top of a mountain at 3900m (12,700 ft), Stormseal survived a brutal winter, resisting ice crystal attacks and winds of up to 200km/h (124 miles/h) for seven months.
Lennox said the latest wind tunnel trial was testing a new, non-intrusive fixing method that sees Stormseal fixed to brackets attached to the rafters, rather than directly on to the roof. The new method can be used even when access to the gutters is blocked, such as when a roof rail is in place.
Roofing contractors anywhere in the United States can now attend a hands-on, two-day training program to accredit them as Stormseal installers. Once the training is complete, they will receive a unique login allowing them to purchase products from the Stormseal website.
Be confident your work will hold strong through the wildest weather.
If you register for training in the month of August to become an accredited Stormseal installer, Stormseal is offering 10% off the Stormseal starter kit. Learn more here.
Training information can be found here. If you have any questions, click here to email us, or call 561.588.5653 or 561.371.2254
