Blowing in the wind

We thought we were going to be happy to show you the HGTV Green Home project, until we saw that it is encouraging people to use Fiber Cement siding for their homes. Fiber Cement siding has a number of flaws, not the least of which is its inability to withstand wind-blown objects. http://www.hgtvpro.com/hpro/pac_ctnt/text/0,2595,HPRO_20196_64689,00.html?xp=1
Watch for yourself as a 2x4 is blasted through Fiber Cement siding in this test conducted by the Brick Industry of America: http://www.bia.org/html/sheltervideos/Series%202%20Impact%201.mov
The study, conducted at the Wind Science and Engineering Research Center at Texas Tech University, demonstrated that a medium-sized wind-blown object, such as a 7.5-foot long 2 x 4, would penetrate homes built with vinyl or fiber-cement siding at a speed of 25 miles per hour (mph). By comparison, the same object would need to travel at a speed exceeding 80 mph in order to penetrate the wall of a brick home
In a test that simulated wind-blown debris traveling at a speed of 34 mph, the 2 x 4 bounced off the brick veneer with no damage to the interior wall. When the same test was conducted on a vinyl or fiber-cement sided wall, the 2 x 4 easily penetrated the wall, with more than five feet of the timber passing through the interior wall. The test was representative of weather that would generate wind speeds of between 100 and 140 mph.
Now watch the same test when the 2x4 is launched against brick:
http://www.bia.org/html/sheltervideos/Series%201%20Impact%201.mov