Frequently Asked Questions
Q: My Hurricane Shutter just fell and now there is a gap at the top, what happened?
A: You more than likely have PVC shutter slat (slat is the term we use for each individual horizontal piece of the main curtain of your shutters). PVC, when installed new, was a very nice working, quiet and smooth product. Over time, it becomes weak and brittle, due mostly to the fact that it is formulated from petroleum and loses it's elasticity to the environment. The thinnest part of the slat is called the "J" Hook, this is the part that "hooks" into the next slat above it and is the part of the slat that pulls all the weight. This is why, mainly, the slat at the top of the shutter will break. It is just a matter of time before anyone with this type of slat will suffer what we call a separation, which simply means the slat weakened and broke off.
Q: My electric rolldown shutter just makes a buzzing sound when I try to roll it up or down, what's wrong?
A: Your Tubular Electric Motor has burned out it's Capacitor. It will never work again without replacing it. While it's possible to take the motor out and replace the the faulty part, this generally happens to motors that are over 10 - 12 years old (this is what we estimate to be the average life span of Tubular Motors installed in Hurricane Shutters, of course some will last longer and others will fail sooner), we do not rebuild or offer rebuilt motors due to the fact that replacing the faulty part and re-installing the motor, the customer still has an old motor that can be prone to a host of other problems and there is no way for us to offer a warranty. We have replaced failed motors that customers have purchased as rebuilt and sad to say, sometimes purchased from companies advertising as a "new" motor, in fact, turned out to be over 10 years old. Many of these Customers who knowingly purchased a rebuilt motor, paid in the $300 to $400 dollar range for an old, worn out motor. Don't be misled, as you can see from our new motor prices, we believe it is much more economical to purchase a factory new motor that comes with a 5 year manufacturers warranty.
Q: My electric rolldown shutter does nothing when I push the switch, what's going on?
A: There are several possibilities. The first thing to check is that your electricity is on and it is live at the switch that controls your shutter. Many times these switches are installed on circuits which contain a GFCI (this is one of those outlets that have a little reset button on them and are designed to keep you from getting electrocuted near water). While this may seem silly, we have actually had service calls where this was the only problem. Another scenario is that your electric switch may be bad, it has to be checked to make sure it is functioning properly and that there are no loose wires inside the outlet box. If these all check out, it has to be a problem at the unit itself. The shutter hood will have to be opened up and checked to see that all connections to the motor are good. One problem we have seen over the years is what we call a slat shift. Every other slat in a non-endcap shutter system (and even on endcap systems that do not have safety plates installed) should have a slat lock installed on both ends. These slat locks can be pulled off the slat or sometimes were never installed at all. This is most critical at the top slat because it is usually the only one that is out of the track. When the slat shifts too far toward the motor end, the motor wire itself can be cut by the slat. Finally if all of this checks out as not being the problem, you simply have a dead motor.
Q: Should I schedule yours or another Company to do regular maintenance on my Hurricane Shutters?
A: This is, of course, entirely up to you. But before you make the call, let us explain what is involved with the maintenance of Rolldown Hurricane Shutter Systems. Most people assume that the motors must be lubricated, this is not true, the motors are a sealed unit and cannot be opened. There are 2 points on shutters that need any lubrication at all. First is the tracks where the slats contact inside on each side, there you will find a piece of felt running the length of each side of the track. This is your aiming point for the silicone. Everyone who has Hurricane Shutters should lubricate with only Silicone spray twice a year. The other point is what is called a split bracket bearing, this exists only on shutters where two or more sections are operated by one motor. The purpose of this bearing is to support the weight of the reel, otherwise there would be too much flex. This part should be lubricated once every 3 to 4 years, with white lithium grease. As you can see maintenance is minimal, unless you have Hurricane Shutters on every opening of your house, it should only take a few minutes to spray the tracks with silicone. So unless you are unwilling or unable to do it yourself, just go to any hardware store and get silicone spray. If you do make the call, you know what we will charge, it's all here on this web site. Expect to pay other companies up to $150 or more.
Q: My Hurricane Shutters are very old and the slats are starting to break all the time, should I have the whole system replaced?
A: If you have more money than you know what to do with or if you just like to have brand new things, then by all means have them replaced. But keep in mind, many of the parts of a Hurricane Shutter System will last, if not forever, a very long time. Why would you pay for parts and the labor to install them (again), when yours are perfectly usable? We can do slat upgrades on your existing Hurricane Shutters and save up to 70% of the price of a new system.
Q: I have a 20 year warranty on my Hurricane Shutters, why should I call your Company for service?
A: If you read through the fine print of your warranty, you will most likely discover that you were only entitled to service with labor included for a period of 1 year after purchase. One of the largest Hurricane Shutter companies is charging $150 for a basic service call. There may be many instances, because so many people are seasonal, that they may have only used their Hurricane Shutters a few times before they malfunctioned, but a year had passed. So essentially what you have is a company making money from their own mistakes. Another certainty, is that these companies will not tell you that the problem was an installation or manufacturing defect. Otherwise they would not be able to charge you. They also have such a large markup on their parts, that even if you have a repair done and the parts are supposedly covered under warranty, you can be assured they are making money. Especially when you consider what they are charging for labor on top of the parts. We have inside knowledge of at least one company charging $185 for a single part that we can buy for $14.95. That's in excess of 1200% markup. If you now have PVC or foam filled aluminum shutters that are old and malfunctioning, these companies really do not even want to talk to you about replacing just the slat in your shutters. What they will want to talk to you about is an upgrade to their new product. That means a total new install. If you're Hurricane Shutters are still under partial pro-rated warranty, they may offer you a discount on their new product, in lieu of honoring the warranty on the first product, but rest assured, anything they offer you price wise will be absorbed into the new product price.
Q: I went to put my Hurricane Shutter up and it just kept going right up into the hood,why?
A: This is one more way that a Tubular Motor can malfunction. Primarily we have seen it happen with Somfy brand motors which are 1996 and older. These motors (manual override type) are equipped with push button limit switches that have a tendency to fail. The limit switches, put simply, are just what the name implies. They are an electronic switch built into the motor that actually "counts" the revolutions the motor travels until it reaches the limit that was set for the other direction. While they can be reset, we have found that once they start to malfunction, they will continue to malfunction. It may work for years more, or it may stop working the next day. At best it is a crap shoot. If you do find yourself in this situation DO NOT EVER try to get it back down by running the switch. We have seen many customers absolutely tear their Storm Shutters apart by doing this.
Q: I had my Hurricane Shutter motor go bad in its fifth year of a five year warranty and it cost me $680 to replace, what gives?
A: You have been the victim of a Hurricane Shutter company offering you it's own motor warranty. How this works is they offer you a five year warranty but fail to mention that it is a pro-rated warranty. While a five year warranty sounds good, if they were honest and told you it was pro-rated it might not sound so good. Let us delve into this a little farther, there are several manufacturers of Tubular Electric Motors and not all applications are for Hurricane Shutters. One thing is pretty much universal, they offer a five year warranty. This is not a warranty that was made up by the company you purchased you're shutter from, it is a MANUFACTURERS warranty. This means that anyone who purchased the motor, if it fails within five years, can return it and receive 100% credit for another motor. Some companies make up their own warranty to pass on to you thereby insuring that they will make a nice sum of money if you're motor does fail. They will charge you up to $680 (their pro-rated fifth year is 80% cost of their motor price of $850 for manual override motor) to install a new motor, take the old one back and receive 100% credit. Essentially you have paid for the same motor twice. We offer customers nothing more than the manufacturers 5 year warranty, which means if the motor fails within 5 years, we will come and replace it, at the basic service charge.
*We offer this page as a service to our current and prospective customers and is for informational purposes only. Read through this section and you will learn facts about your Hurricane/Storm Shutters you probably didn't know and may even be able to avoid a service call. Information on this page cannot be reproduced or distributed in any way, without the express written consent of Daniel Bumpus LLC.
Q: I put my Hurricane Shutter down on a chair, what do I do?
A: Once your rolldown Hurricane Shutter contacts an object that you inadvertently placed underneath it, you are almost 99% sure to have caused it to malfunction. You're Hurricane Shutter has no way to tell that you have let it down on something, so it will try to keep running until it reaches the point that it is set to stop at. This causes what we refer to as a "wrap", the Shutter will keep running and expand into the hood. This makes it very difficult, if not impossible, for someone not trained, to repair this type of mishap and it can also severely damage your shutter slat. The best way to avoid this situation is to always watch you're Shutters as you operate them. If this does happen to you, here are the steps to avoid possible damage to your Shutter and maybe a service call.
1. Once your Shutter makes contact with an object, DO NOT push the switch to go back up.
2. As soon as you notice what has happened, IMMEDIATLY shut the power switch off.
3. Get some help (Hurricane Shutters can be very heavy). DO NOT try to lift anything if you are physically unable.
4. You and you're helper gently lift up on each side of the affected panel just enough to remove the object.
5. Once the object is removed DO NOT just drop the shutter, let it down easy.
6. Go back to the power switch and carefully run the Shutter DOWN all the way.
7. If you're Hurricane Shutter goes all the way down without a hitch, you're back in business, go ahead and raise it back up.
8. If you're Hurricane Shutter goes crooked, STOP, you have what we call a shifted slat, caused by the Shutter coming down on the object unevenly. Unless you are mechanically inclined and can open the Shutter to fix this, you are going to have to call for service. If you're situation has gone beyond any of these steps, or if you're Shutter makes any unusual banging or clanging noises, you are going to require a service call.
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