Project Zomboid boarding windows: How to board up windows and doors

The Project Zomboid boarding windows mechanic is extremely important fort providing security to your base and ensuring zombies cannot enter it easily, so you may want to learn how it all works. 

Project Zomboid is a survival role-playing game set during a zombie outbreak in Kentucky. It stands out due to its complexity and attention to detail, requiring players to think about every aspect it takes to survive and thrive in a zombie apocalypse. Securing your base is just one of these aspects to think about, but it's one of the most important early on.

So, take a look at how to barricade windows and doors in Project Zomboid.

• Once you're safe in a home, check out the Project Zomboid TV Schedule.

Project Zomboid boarding windows: What are barricades?

Click to enlarge

In Project Zomboid, boarding windows or doors will keep them more secure and make it much more difficult for the zombies to gain entry to your base of operations.

There are wooden and metal barricades which can be used, and while a wooden barricade offers plenty of protection, it can be broken after enough zombies attack it. This makes the metal barricade the superior choice for protecting a base, although it's more difficult to acquire and takes longer to barricade. 

Aside from obviously providing more protection to the entry and exit points of a building, they also stop zombies from being able to look in.

If a zombie spots you through a window in Project Zomboid, they will attempt to break in instantly, and the noise can even attract more of the undead. Sometimes a temporary barricade can also help you when scavenging and looting, so they have more utility than just protecting your main base. How do you barricade something though?

• We also a rundown of Project Zomboid tips for if you're just starting out

Project Zomboid boarding windows: How to barricade a window?

Click to enlarge

For creating a wooden barricade, players will need nails, a hammer, and at least three wooden planks, which is the max amount you can place on a window. Most of these can be found in hardware stores, but planks and nails can be found from disassembling furniture and other objects. 

The next step is to actually barricade the window. If you right-click a window or door in-game with the items in your inventory, then the option, "Barricade (planks)" should appear.

Clicking it will start the animation, and you will begin attaching a plank. You will need to select barricade three separate times to fully board up a window, and you can see it is finished once the planks appear in-game. 

The process is basically the same with a metal barricade, but you will need some more advanced tools and items. These are the propane torch, welding rod, and a metal sheet. One metal sheet can cover an entire window, but it takes two to fill a door, and you can just right-click whatever you want to barricade, and select "Barricade (metal sheet)." 

• Check our breakdown of the best Project Zomboid traits.

Project Zomboid Boarding Windows: How to remove a barricade?

Once a window or door has been barricaded in the game, it cannot be moved through by your character unless it's removed or destroyed. You can let a zombie do the work to destroy it, which obviously takes time and leaves you vulnerable, so there are some better ways. 

For removing a wooden barricade, players will need a claw hammer or a crowbar, and for a metal sheet, you will need a propane torch with some fuel again. Right-clicking the barricade and selecting the option to "unbarricade" will start an animation which removes the protections. This won't destroy the barricades and just places them into your inventory, so you can move them to another location if required. 

That's all for our guide on the Project Zomboid boarding windows mechanic, and players will be able to barricade all the doors and windows to their home base easily.

Don't forget to check out the Project Zomboid starting locations.