There are many schools of thought on what will work in a hurricane; Many methods that are adequate and even amazingly effective in lower categories will only provide more fodder for the devastation evident in a Cat 5.

Best bet? Hire a structural engineer and get his recommendation. But that takes money I can't afford.

I definitely agree that precut, prefab, Just-Bolt-It-On shutters are much more desirable than trying to make them under the time constraint of an impending hurricane. Drawback: Have a place to store these things because you may only use them once or twice in a DECADE. This is only the second time I've had to sticky up my windows (We don't use tape...we use clear Shelf Paper because it goes on fast and comes off without leaving residue) since I've moved to FL back in 1990.

Given a choice, I'd have probably used some nifty clips I saw Home Depot selling years ago that allow a board to bite into the sides of inset windows...in my case, into mortar and stone, thus holding it in place. Haven't seen them in years however.

If you can afford it, protection is good. Have a place and a method to store the shutters long-term, however, without compromising rapid deployment (Rapid meaning full deployment in 4 hours or so) yet protecting the shutters from rust and rot is an absolute must.

Panz