Hurricane panels tested to 185 mph including flying debris, and nothing in the wall to rot. What steel SIPs mean on the Maine, Cape Cod and Rhode Island coast.
Coastal buildings get the worst of New England at once: wind, driven rain, salt air, and a house that often sits closed for months. The questions people ask about a shore property are different, so here are the answers in one place.
Wind
On exposed sites we specify the hurricane panel, which is designed, tested and certified to withstand 185 mph including flying debris, to the Florida and Miami-Dade projectile protocol. It carries eleven studs on the exterior face, and it holds Florida Product Approval and a Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance. Both documents are on our resources page.
Your engineer sets the design wind speed and exposure for the site; the sealed load tables and connection details give them what they need to work with.
Salt air
The steel is galvanised and fully enclosed behind whatever cladding you choose. There is no wood in the assembly and no organic material for moisture or salt to attack.
Driven rain
Air and water penetration are tested under ASTM E283, E331 and E330. If water does get in during construction or a storm, there is no OSB skin to delaminate and no framing to rot. How the cladding goes on, including rainscreens, is covered in cladding a panel wall.
A house that sits closed
Second homes and summer rentals spend months shut up. Nothing in a steel and EPS wall feeds mold or mildew, which matters in a damp, closed building. We go further into that in mold, moisture and indoor air.
Floodplains and low ground
EPS and galvanised steel do not rot or delaminate when wet, a meaningful difference from wood framing or OSB-faced panels. Elevated first-floor designs and rated below-grade panels are both available.
Short building windows
Coastal and shoreland projects often have a narrow season. A shell that closes in days rather than weeks means less time exposed to weather and to the calendar, and nothing in the assembly has to dry before the next trade starts.
Where we deliver
We supply the whole coast, from Bar Harbor and Portland to Cape Cod and Newport. Freight is a quoted line item on the estimate.
Building in New England?
Send plans, a sketch or a description. We will come back with a panel take-off and a delivered price at no cost. Get a free estimate →
Keep reading
Cladding a panel wall: siding, brick, standing seam and rainscreens
The exterior you present to the street is entirely your decision. Here is how each one attaches.
Mold, moisture and indoor air in a steel panel house
Steel and EPS do not feed mold, do not off-gas and contain no carcinogens or allergens. What that means for indoor air, and why ventilation still matters.
What the fire and STC reports actually say
A plain reading of the documents your plan reviewer and your acoustician will ask for.
Get a price on your project.
A panel take-off and a delivered price, at no cost, and an honest comparison against building it the usual way.