Multiple laws likely exist in the books about door construction if you live in a hurricane zone. Outside doors must swing outward, for example, to prevent high winds from blowing the door into your home—a dangerous situation. Also, impact-rated doors aren’t just for homes on the coasts, inland homes also require them. Now, let’s talk about hinges. Do hurricane doors need extra-strong hinges on them? Yes, but the reasons might surprise you.

Open Door Policy?

Getting back to the outward-opening doors issue, such doors come with advantages and disadvantages. Outward-opening doors do provide that extra level of safety against hurricanes. They’re also safer because interior debris is less likely to block the doors if the residents need to make a quick getaway from a fire or the like. Outward-opening doors also provide more room in the foyer, front hall, or vestibule. Unfortunately, potential intruders can easily pick hinges with pins. They can knock out the hinges after removing the pins and lift the door open. Fortunately, potential thieves cannot easily “unpin” non-removable pin hinges, and stud hinges are flush with the frame when the door is closed, making it almost impossible for robbers to break them. Clearly, hinges have a lot of say on whether someone or something can easily break into a home.

Hurricane Hinges?

While “hurricane hinges” don’t necessarily exist, plenty of strong, heavy-duty ones do. Truth be told, hinges are doing a lot of heavy lifting throughout the years. They hold the door in place and experience extra stress every time the wind throws the door open or someone allows it to hang free. Heavy-duty hinges are best with heavier, solid-core doors or doors that experience plenty of opening and closing. They can handle and distribute the weight effortlessly while enduring the toughest use. Institutional buildings that experience a lot of in-and-out traffic often use them, so they might be overkill for the average home hurricane-rated doors. Still, they get the job done.

Extra Reinforcement

Whatever hinges you have, you can always reinforce them using various methods. For example, you can use longer screws to secure the hinges to the frame. Safety studs and corrugated pins also make it harder to shake the hinges free and prevent the door from opening even if a potential intruder removes the pins. Heavy-duty hinges only become stronger through these methods, but here’s a tip: replacing hinges isn’t as easy as it seems. You can accidentally misalign the door and allow it to come free if you replace the hinges incorrectly, or you can end up damaging the door frame to the point of needing a full replacement. Honestly, leave the job to a professional. The added expense is worth it considering the greater security you’ll acquire.

That should answer the question do hurricane doors need extra-strong hinges on them? Contact us for more information or to schedule a consultation regarding your interior doors!