STS Impact Windows, Doors & Roofing is a veteran-owned company based in South Florida that specializes in premium hurricane protection solutions, including impact windows, doors, custom storefronts, and roofing. Combining over 25 years of industry experience with military precision, STS provides expert installation, full transparency, and outstanding customer service, backed by a leading 3-year installation warranty. Their comprehensive services ensure security and peace of mind for both residential and commercial clients, with a strong focus on quality, reliability, and efficiency.
View on Google MapsSTS Impact Windows and Doors specializes in hurricane protection solutions, offering high-quality impact windows, storm-resistant doors, custom storefronts, and professional roofing services. With expert installation, full transparency, and outstanding customer service, the company ensures homes and businesses stay secure and energy-efficient.
STS Impact Windows and Doors is located at 1000 Holland Dr Suite 10, Boca Raton, FL 33487, United States. The company proudly serves residential and commercial clients across Florida and throughout the United States, delivering reliable storm protection solutions. View their location on Google Maps.
Yes, STS Impact Windows and Doors is a veteran-owned company recognized for its dedication, integrity, and service to the community. This background adds an extra level of trust and reliability for homeowners and businesses seeking storm protection solutions.
STS Impact Windows and Doors provides a wide range of services including the installation of hurricane impact windows, impact doors, custom commercial storefronts, and roofing services. Each project is backed by expert craftsmanship, a 3-year installation warranty, and over 25 years of industry experience.
The company proudly serves both residential homeowners and commercial property owners. From protecting family homes to fortifying businesses with hurricane-rated storefronts, STS Impact Windows and Doors delivers customized solutions that ensure safety, durability, and efficiency.
Clients benefit from the company’s focus on quality, reliability, and efficiency. Their impact-resistant windows and doors not only enhance security and hurricane protection but also improve energy efficiency, reduce noise, and increase property value. With a 3-year installation warranty, customers can trust in long-term performance and peace of mind.
STS Impact Windows and Doors has been recognized with multiple industry honors, including the South Florida Veteran Owned Business Excellence Award, Best Hurricane Protection Provider 2023 Florida, and the Angi’s Super Service Award for Window Installation. These awards highlight their commitment to excellence, customer satisfaction, and industry leadership.
You can reach STS Impact Windows and Doors by phone at 561-600-1018 or visit their website at stswindows.com. They are open Monday through Friday from 8am to 5pm and are available on Facebook and Instagram for updates and project showcases.
Business Name: STS Impact Windows & Doors
Address: 1000 Holland Dr #10, Boca Raton, FL 33487, United States
Phone: (561)-600-1018
Hurricane season shapes life along Florida's coasts. You feel it in the way neighbors track tropical waves, the pre-storm rush to stockpile, and the routine of hauling ladders to mount panels. After twenty years defining, setting up, and fixing building envelopes from Key Largo to Palm Beach, I have actually seen what holds up and what doesn't. When the objective is real protection with year-round convenience, Miami-Dade approved, energy‑efficient effect windows outperform shutters in ways that go beyond storm day. They alter how a house feels in August, how peaceful your living-room remains on a Saturday night, and how confident you are when a storm line spins up faster than predicted.
This is a practical look at why many South Florida property owners are moving from shutters to hurricane impact-resistant windows, how to read the requirements behind "Miami-Dade approved," what products matter, and how to get the setup right the very first time.
Miami-Dade County's Item Control Division sets one of the most difficult benchmarks in the country for building parts exposed to windborne particles. Approval is not a marketing sticker label. It is earned through specific lab tests that imitate real cyclone conditions.
First comes big missile impact. A 9-pound 2x4 is shot at the glass at approximately 34 miles per hour. That simulates roofing tiles, branches, or pieces of fencing that fly in the eyewall. After the effect, the exact same unit faces cyclic pressure loading, thousands of pressurization and depressurization cycles that mimic rapid wind gusts over hours. If the glass stays in the frame without letting the envelope breach, it passes. The distinction in between "satisfies Florida building code windows" and "Miami-Dade approved windows" typically lives in these test limits. Miami-Dade is just stiffer, particularly in High Velocity Cyclone Zone requirements, which include Miami-Dade and Broward.
Wind rankings differ by opening size and style pressures, denoted as PSF worths. On ocean-facing homes or high-rises, I typically define units rated at +60/ -80 PSF or greater. Inland or in more protected exposures, rankings in the +45/ -60 PSF variety can be enough, however you size and spec based on the website's wind map, building height, and surrounding structures. A professional knows that a corner exposure at the 2nd story needs various reinforcement than a protected window under a deep porch.
Hurricane shutters vs impact windows is not a one-to-one comparison. Shutters can satisfy code, and they're much better than absolutely nothing. But they ask you to do work at the worst possible time. When a watch turns to a warning and the forecast track tightens, the last thing you want is a ladder, a dead cordless drill, and a missing wing nut.
Impact windows live in place. You get constant security, even if a pop-up storm surprises you while you're stuck on United States 1. You also get benefits every day of the year.
Noise control is the most underappreciated benefit. Laminated effect glass is basically a sandwich: 2 panes of glass bonded by a resistant interlayer, typically PVB interlayer glass or SentryGlas. That interlayer damps noise. On tasks along busy corridors like Biscayne Boulevard or near flight courses, I have actually measured interior sound drops in the 5 to 10 decibel range, often more when coupled with insulated glass units.
Security improves due to the fact that laminated glass withstands required entry. An intruder can shatter the outer lite with a hammer, but the interlayer holds the shards. They fulfill a sticky, persistent membrane instead of a fast course inside. Insurance coverage underwriters know this, which is why policies typically provide credits for impact windows and doors. In my tasks, premiums normally drop 10 to 25 percent, depending upon the carrier and how many openings are protected.
Energy efficiency is the third pillar. Energy-efficient effect windows with contemporary low-E effect glass and warm-edge spacers can cut solar heat gain while protecting noticeable light. That suggests less cooling need, specifically on west and south direct exposures where the afternoon sun penalizes interiors. In one Coral Gables retrofit, we replaced 1980s single-pane sliders with laminated low-E impact systems. Summer season afternoon peak load visited roughly a lots of cooling, and the home's annual electricity use fell between 12 and 18 percent. Outcomes differ with shading, attic insulation, and heating and cooling efficiency, however the instructions is consistent.
Laminated impact glass is the heart of the system, but not all laminated items are equal.
Most property typhoon windows use a PVB interlayer glass stack, typically 0.030 to 0.090 inches thick in single or several plies. Thicker interlayers enhance effect resistance and sound control, however they add weight and cost. For oceanfront or tall openings, you might see SGP (ionoplast) interlayers, which are stiffer and more powerful than PVB, permitting thinner areas to accomplish greater style pressures. For noise-sensitive sites, acoustic PVB formulas tweak the polymer to much better take in sound in the 1,000 to 3,000 Hz range, where traffic and voices sit.
Tempered glass windows come up frequently in discussions due to the fact that tempered glass is stronger in bending than annealed glass. That holds true, and tempered lites are typically utilized as the external or inner ply in an effect unit. But tempered alone is not impact-resistant in the typhoon sense. When it fails, it explodes into small cubes and falls out of the frame, which leaves the opening vulnerable. The effect efficiency originates from laminated building and construction, not tempering by itself. Numerous systems utilize a tempered outer lite laminated to a hardened inner lite, or both tempered, however constantly bonded through a PVB or ionoplast interlayer.
Low-E coatings matter for comfort. A soft-coat low-E tuned for South Florida typically targets a solar heat gain coefficient in the 0.25 to 0.35 variety while keeping noticeable light transmission around 50 percent or greater. Go too short on SHGC and the glass can look gray or green, especially in larger openings. The sweet spot depends on your façade orientation and shading. On east and west elevations, I frequently tighten SHGC and accept a small tint to handle early morning and afternoon blasts. On north elevations, I favor greater noticeable transmittance for daylighting.
Frames are the other half of the story. Aluminum frames control here due to the fact that they manage large openings and won't swell. Thermal breaks and enhanced glazing gaskets have narrowed the energy space with vinyl. Top quality vinyl impact frames, when enhanced effectively, can perform well for standard-sized openings and have much better insulating values, but I avoid them for extremely large sliders or high storefront-style windows in high-wind zones. Wood-clad systems look lovely in older Mediterranean Revival homes, however they require careful upkeep and smart flashing. The Florida sun damages inexpensive vinyl and chalks low-grade aluminum finishes quickly. Try to find powder-coated surfaces ranked for seaside exposure, and demand written warranty information in salt-air environments.

Window installation can make or break efficiency. An expensive system installed like a handyman swap-out will not pass a storm's stress test. The load path is the core. Effect forces need to travel from the glass through the frame, to the anchors, into the substrate, and then into the structure's framing or masonry.
In cinder block building, you desire stainless or hot-dipped galvanized anchors embedded into strong material. Hollow cells must be grouted or you require to hit the bond beam. Tapcons in soft, unfilled block are a failure waiting to happen. In wood-framed houses, structural screws should bite into solid trimmers, not simply sheathing. Shimming and plumb alignment matter so the locks engage cleanly and the weatherstripping compresses evenly.
The sealant joint is not just visual. An effectively sized backer rod and premium polyurethane or silyl-modified polymer sealant develop a resilient, flexible seal that handles thermal growth. Too little a bead and it tears under motion. Too big and it treatments improperly. On coastal jobs, I never ever match different metals without a barrier, and I always specify corrosion-resistant fasteners. Ten years later, you will see who took shortcuts.
Flashing is the other non-negotiable. Pan flashing at sills, self-adhered membranes at jambs and heads, and combination with the water-resistive barrier are crucial. If you depend on sealant alone, water will discover its method. That wetness might disappoint up as a drip. It might rot a sill plate slowly, then betray itself as a buckling floor or a musty odor 2 hurricane seasons later.
I have absolutely nothing against properly designed shutters. Accordion shutters that are preserved and lubed, roll-down shutters with battery backups, and even removable panels kept thoroughly can secure homes efficiently. They likewise help in particular cases.
Second homes or seasonal rentals where spending plan is tight sometimes lean on shutters to satisfy the Florida building regulations windows requirement for protected openings. On specialized openings like a lanai that is seldom utilized in summertime, a tidy motorized roll-down can be sensible, specifically if pairing with impact windows and doors somewhere else stresses the budget plan. For homeowners who plan to move within a year, shutters can be a brief bridge to compliance before a sale.
But shutters bring trade-offs. They darken your home when deployed, and they require action at exactly the time you are managing insurance coverage papers, gas cans, and family logistics. Throughout Typhoon Irma, I saw a next-door neighbor attempt to install steel panels hours before landfall. The ladder sank in saturated soil, a panel slipped, and we spent the next hour in the urgent care waiting room. He endured with stitches. His living-room window did not. Shutters likewise rattle and can vibrate under sustained winds, sometimes loosening fasteners over time if not maintained.
For long-term owners who wish to set it and forget it, impact windows provide typhoon proof windows protection while protecting daytime and view. The benefit grows important once you have actually experienced one storm season with no preparation beyond locking the sash.
South Florida homes fight two fights: hidden load from humidity and best hurricane proof windows available sensible load from direct solar heat gain. Impact glass upgrades can help both if specified intelligently.
Low-E impact glass utilizes microscopically thin metallic layers to show infrared energy while letting noticeable light through. With the ideal covering stacks, you can obstruct a large portion of radiant heat and UV. UV obstruction in laminated units comes mainly from the interlayer itself, which normally filters 95 to 99 percent of UV, decreasing fading of materials and floor covering. Include the low-E, and you suppress the solar heat that drives your air conditioning crazy midafternoon.
I examine glass specifications with 3 numbers: U-factor, SHGC, and VT. While U-factor matters more up north, it still assists here by reducing nighttime heat circulation and keeping the interior glass temperature closer to room temperature, which decreases condensation danger. SHGC drives how much solar heat goes into. VT influences how intense the interior feels. Balance is crucial. Some homeowners want the crisp, clear appearance of higher VT, even if it means accepting a couple of degrees more heat in late afternoon, since their landscaping and roof overhangs already do some shading. Others prefer a stronger tint for glare control on waterfront lots that reflect extreme light.
In useful terms, going from clear single-pane sliders to modern-day low-E laminated double-glazed units can minimize peak solar gains by 30 to 50 percent on the most exposed sides. Couple that with tuned overhangs, light-colored exterior surfaces, and a correctly sized variable-speed heating and cooling, and you start to construct durability. If the grid goes down and you change to a generator, a lower cooling load means a smaller generator and fewer gallons of fuel.
Miami-Dade Notification of Approval, or NOA, is the file you request. It information the authorized configurations, sizes, anchors, and pressures checked. It is insufficient to hear "these are Miami-Dade approved windows" in a display room. Confirm the NOA matches the specific design and choices you are purchasing, including the glazing makeup and hardware. If you are in Broward or Miami-Dade, your allowing office impact windows prices will desire this paper trail.
Statewide, the Florida Item Approval system offers FL numbers that show code compliance. In the remainder of the state outside the High Speed Cyclone Zone, Florida building regulations windows can depend on Florida Product Approval without Miami-Dade particular NOAs. Lots of top makers bring both. Where budget plans enable, I choose NOA items even outside the zone because the testing is stiffer.
NFRC labels handle energy metrics. They will not inform you impact efficiency, however they reveal U-factor, SHGC, VT, and air leakage. Aim for air leakage at or listed below 0.3 cfm/ft TWO. Tighter is much better for humidity control, however make sure your home still has actually balanced ventilation. Sealing the envelope and overlooking fresh air is a dish for indoor air quality complaints.
Impact windows cost more upfront than shutters. There's no spin around that. Installed expenses differ with size, shape, surface, and access. On simple single-family homes, per-opening expenses often land in between 1,200 and 3,000 dollars for basic sizes. Large multi-panel sliders, custom-made arches, and coastal-grade surfaces raise the numbers quickly.
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Where you recover worth:
If you plan to own the residential or commercial property for 5 years or more, the math typically tilts in favor of effect windows, especially when you factor the intangible of peace of mind. If you prepare to sell within a year and require to show compliance quickly, shutters might make more short-term sense. Context matters.
I pay attention to hardware and accessories. Multi-point locks on casements and awnings improve seal compression and security. For sliders, robust tandem rollers in stainless housings move smoother and last longer on sandy patios. Take a look at the sill design on moving doors. Weep systems must be engineered to drain heavy rains without letting wind-driven water blow back in. Ask to see a cutaway sample in the showroom.
Tint colors and reflectivity are more than style. Reflective films can run professional window installation in Boca Raton afoul of neighborhood watch or produce mirror-like glare towards neighboring residential or commercial properties. In coastal environments, extremely reflective glass can confuse birds or sea turtles in some jurisdictions. Regional pros understand which coatings balance efficiency with compliance.
Color stability is a huge offer. Dark bronze or black frames look wonderful on contemporary homes, but in Florida sun cheap finishes chalk and fade. AAMA 2605-rated coatings offer the best color retention and chalk resistance. I define them for coastal direct exposures whenever budgets allow.
Historic districts often need profiles that mimic old wood sash sightlines. There are impact-rated windows that fit these requirements, but lead times lengthen and costs climb. Anticipate additional evaluation by architectural boards, and line up a professional knowledgeable about these submissions.
Condos have another layer of governance. Associations sometimes define a narrow list of authorized items for uniformity. They also appreciate sound control between units. If your structure sits straight on Collins Opportunity or deals with a hectic beach boardwalk, push for acoustic laminated options. Work with structure management on staging and lift gain access to. Weekend work windows and restricted parking can include days and dollars.
Large openings, like a 16-foot-wide slider, need unique attention in style pressure, deflection, and running hardware. Not every affordable hurricane proof windows unit that looks sturdy in a display room fulfills the wind loads on a ninth-floor balcony. Do not depend on catalog maximum sizes. Use the NOA tables that represent your site's zone, favorable and unfavorable pressures, and mullion combinations if any.
The best jobs begin with a measured study and exposure analysis. You map each opening, keep in mind the substrate, and recognize any framing irregularities or settlement cracks. During proposal, the professional shows you the NOA and the Florida Item Approval, notes anchor types, and discusses how each opening will be flashed and sealed. They prepare for stucco or drywall repairs, not pretend no damage will occur.
On install day, they eliminate one opening at a time to keep your house secure. They protect floors, draw back window treatments, and cap sprinklers. Old frames bring out care to protect interior finishes. New systems get dry-fit, shimmed, and anchored per the schedule. The team checks squareness and diagonals before setting sealant. They picture anchors for the permit file, particularly if they will be hidden. After glazing, they water-test with a controlled spray to verify drain paths and seals. The inspector sees a neat jobsite, clear labels, and documentation in order.
Six months later on, your windows still close with 2 fingers, locks bite efficiently, and there is no secret rattle during thunderstorms. You did not need to require a roller modification after the very first week. That is the standard.

Impact rating does not equal breakproof. Laminated glass can break under serious effects, but it should remain in the frame and hold together. After a storm that sends debris into the glass, you might see star fractures or spidering. The window did its job. Change the sash or IGU after the event.
Window films do not convert non-impact windows into cyclone impact-resistant windows. They can add shatter resistance, but they do not substitute for an evaluated, anchored system. Your insurance provider and structure department will not count movies as safeguarded openings.
Interior humidity matters. Tight, energy-efficient impact windows decrease air leakage. That's terrific, but it increases the significance of an effectively sized HVAC with good dehumidification. If your system is large, the thermostat satisfies rapidly and stops working to pull enough moisture from the air. Ask your HVAC pro to inspect practical heat ratio, air flow, and run time. You desire constant, longer cycles, not short bursts.
Maintenance is uncomplicated however not optional. Clean weep holes on sliders, wash salt spray from frames, and lube hardware annually with a silicone-based item that will not gum up in heat. Little routines extend lifespan.
There are genuine reasons to blend options. A pair of seldom utilized garage windows can keep detachable panels to shave budget. A deep-set deck with very little sun direct exposure might do fine with accordion shutters if you focus on other upgrades like a brand-new roof deck attachment or a prepared garage door. Shutters can likewise protect outside kitchens or cabana openings where grease and smoke would age expensive hardware prematurely.
If you select shutters, purchase quality. Stainless fasteners, smooth tracks, and motors with handbook bypasses for roll-downs make a distinction. Assign responsibility for release and practice as soon as outside of a storm watch. Inventory your hardware. The day residential hurricane proof windows you require 32 wing nuts is not the morning you want to find you have 29.
Impact windows are not only about enduring the huge one. They reshape daily living. The living-room remains cooler and quieter. The air conditioning cycles calmly rather of racing at 4 p.m. You sleep without freight trains of wind noise when a squall line passes at 2 a.m. When a hurricane threatens, your preparation list gets much shorter. You lock the sashes, set storm mode on the alarm, and concentrate on people rather than panels.
For a lot of my clients, that intangible is the choosing factor. They know storms will come. They also know life in South Florida is too excellent to live inside a fortress that just wakes up in August. Miami-Dade approved windows provide you both: a clear view of Biscayne Bay on a breezy February morning and peaceful confidence when the spaghetti designs point our way in September.
If you are weighing the option, start with a site-specific assessment. Match your exposures to design pressures, select the right laminated glass stack for wind and heat, select frames that fit the architecture and conditions, and work with a team that respects the load course. Done right, energy‑efficient impact windows deliver what shutters can not: security that never ever requests for a ladder and a much better home every day of the year.