Giant Wind Tunnel Tests Full-Size Houses


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A wind tunnel big enough to hold a small neighborhood is about to unleash hurricane force winds -- all in the name of safety.

The 21 thousand square-foot test chamber is part of the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) Research Center, which celebrates its official grand opening today.

The test facility, located in rural Chester County, South Carolina, is funded by the insurance industry and can simulate hailstorms, wildfires and category 4 hurricanes.

Around 2 p.m. Eastern Time, researchers will bombard a pair of two-story houses with water cannons and winds between 110 and 120 miles per hour.

One house is built using conventional construction standards applied to most homes in the Midwestern US. The other house is built using storm-resistant materials and methods, such as hurricane straps -- which strengthen the connections between roofs and walls.

With 105 fans, each six feet in diameter, the test chamber can produce winds up to 140 miles per hour. Water cannons can simulate rain or hail. And researchers can add burning embers to the wind tunnel to simulate the effects of wildfires.

IBHS officials say the research conducted in this wind tunnel will eventually lead to new ways of building safer homes and businesses.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Am I the only one who wants to lie at one end on a boogie board and start those fans up?

probably...but then I'm sure others here on neowin have contemplated suicide....LOL

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Somehow, I missed this story when it was posted.

Too bad, too.... it's AWESOME. It's like the ultimate playground-

Sims: Real Life. heh

Just think of all the cool things we could invent in such an environment.

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