Wind Resistance

Cedar shakes and shingles are top performers in high wind and hurricane conditions. The Southeast Forest Experiment Station and the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory, a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, describe the performance of cedar roofing in their publication "Houses Can Resist Hurricanes".

"Often, the greatest total damage in hurricanes occurs when asphalt shingles and other roofing materials are blown from roofs . . . Wood shingles and built-up roofs show up best in hurricane damage while asphalt shingles and metal roofs give the poorest performance . . . Wood shingles have the ability to remain in place even during periods of extreme wind velocities."

Following hurricanes Andrew and Iniki cedar shakes and shingles received top performance reports.

"Cedar shakes and shingles that were properly fastened came through (Hurricane Andrew) without a scratch..."

Charles B. Goldsmith, Chairman
Roofing Industry Committee on Wind Issues

"Wood shake roofing usually survived intact when used on residential or commercial building or resort hotels. Blow-off of asphalt shingle roofing was commonly observed."

American Plywood Assoc. Report T93-1
Hurricane Iniki

Dade County Product Approval 98-0918.01 for hurricane winds.

Star Lumber cedar shake and shingle products passed the stringent Dade County, Florida wind driven rain test for roofing product approval. Products tested were medium cedar shakes and cedar shingles. Each product was tested on spaced sheathing with the equivalent of 8½" of rain per hour applied to the roof deck. The wind velocity during the test exceeded 100 miles per hour.

Additional static uplift tests on cedar shakes and shingles prove that wind resistance exceeds 130 mph.

Wind is a concern in all regions of the United States and roofing products should withstand a minimum 70 mph wind speed. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has mapped wind velocities below, which demonstrates the need for high wind resistant roofing materials.