One house. Three disasters. Zero drama on the roof.
Shingles engineered to endure are easy to promise and hard to show. So GAF did something most manufacturers don’t: it built a house, roofed it with GAF Timberline and filmed what happened when wind, fire and water came for it. The short film is called Engineered to Endure, and the house is the star.
Spec sheets tell you a shingle passed a test. This film lets you watch shingles engineered for storms pass it. Here’s what each scene shows, what the numbers behind it mean, and what it does and doesn’t promise about your own roof.
- Starring
- One house
- Co-starring
- GAF Timberline
- Location
- Wall of Wind, Miami
- Runtime
- About 2 minutes
Watch shingles engineered to endure take the hit
Hurricane-force wind, a storm of embers and a wall of water, in about two minutes.
Filmed at the Wall of Wind at Florida International University, a hurricane research lab that recreates extreme wind and wind-driven rain. Also on YouTube.
Three tests, one roof, no retakes
Each scene puts shingles engineered for durability against a threat Miami Valley roofs actually see.
Hurricane-force wind
The film opens with the house facing a wall of fans built to recreate hurricane conditions. Wind pours over the eaves and tries to peel back the edges. Shingles engineered with Dura Grip adhesive stay sealed and flat, course after course.
A storm of embers
Next, jets of flaming embers rain onto the roof, the way they do when a nearby fire throws sparks on the wind. Shingles engineered with a mineral surface and limestone filler resist ignition, and the roof shrugs it off.
Water by the wall
Finally, firefighters turn hoses on the house and soak the roof with heavy water, pushed sideways like storm-driven rain. Every layer, from leak barrier to ridge cap, keeps that water on the outside.
The numbers that made the film possible
The film is the trailer. The real story happens at the plant, where GAF runs thousands of quality checks on its Advanced Protection line before a bundle ever ships. That engineering balances weight and strength so the shingle resists tearing, bends instead of cracking and holds its seal.
Shingles engineered this way also have to clear the two toughest wind standards in roofing, both run under controlled laboratory conditions. Those ratings are why we install GAF on most of the roofs we replace.
- 4,375quality checks in manufacturing
- 110 mphASTM D3161 Class F
- 150 mphASTM D7158 Class H
Ohio doesn’t get hurricanes. It gets what’s left of them.
In September 2008, the remains of Hurricane Ike swept across Ohio with wind gusts strong enough to strip roofs across the Miami Valley, hundreds of miles from the coast. Add spring derechos, summer thunderstorms and the freeze-and-thaw of a Miami Valley winter, and a roof here takes plenty of punishment without ever seeing a palm tree.
That is why shingles engineered for wind, water and heat matter in Dayton as much as in Miami. A roof that can survive the film’s worst scene is a roof that can shrug off an ordinary Ohio storm season for decades.
Every star needs a crew behind it
Two details you never see in the film, and the roof wouldn’t survive without.
Dura Grip adhesive
A strip of sealant built into shingles engineered by GAF. The sun activates it after install, bonding each course to the one below so wind can’t get under the edge.
Precision installation
Every nail has to land in the right spot. LayerLock Technology on Timberline HDZ widens that target, and our crews set every course straight.
The fine print, in plain English
The film is a demonstration run under controlled conditions. It shows what shingles engineered by GAF can take, but it isn’t a warranty on its own. Coverage comes from the GAF warranty registered for your roof, and standard wind coverage has limits that depend on how the roof is installed.
The strongest wind coverage, WindProven, applies to Timberline roofs with LayerLock Technology installed with the required GAF accessories. Read more on our GAF shingles page, or see how every layer works together in our guide to roofing components.
Your questions about the film, answered
Quick answers about the tests and what they mean for your roof.
What is the GAF Engineered to Endure film?
It is a short GAF film that puts a house roofed with shingles engineered by GAF through hurricane-force wind, a storm of flaming embers and heavy water. It shows in about two minutes what lab ratings describe in numbers.
Where was the film shot?
GAF filmed it at the Wall of Wind, a hurricane research facility at Florida International University in Miami that can recreate extreme wind and wind-driven rain.
Does the demonstration mean my roof is covered for any storm?
No. The demonstration was run under controlled conditions and is not a warranty. Your coverage comes from the GAF warranty registered for your roof, so ask us which one applies to your home.
What wind ratings does a GAF roof carry?
The GAF lineup passes ASTM D3161 Class F at 110 mph and ASTM D7158 Class H at 150 mph in laboratory testing. Timberline roofs with LayerLock Technology installed with the required GAF accessories qualify for the WindProven limited wind warranty.
Who installs Timberline roofs near me?
Thrush & Son installs GAF Timberline roofs across Miami, Montgomery, Greene and Warren counties. Call (937) 833-5136; Michelle, our virtual assistant, answers 24/7.
Your roof deserves the same ending
Thrush & Son is a family-owned roofing and exterior company, three generations deep. Homeowners across Miami, Montgomery, Greene and Warren counties call us for roof replacement, siding, windows, doors and seamless gutters.
We install shingles engineered by GAF, led by Timberline HDZ, as a complete system, so your roof is built for the same storms the film throws at that house. See all of our exterior home upgrades.
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