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 method neighbors track tropical waves, the pre-storm rush to stockpile, and the ritual of hauling ladders to install panels. After 20 years defining, installing, and repairing building envelopes from Key Largo to Palm Beach, I've seen what holds up and what does not. When the goal is genuine protection with year-round convenience, Miami-Dade approved, energy‑efficient impact windows surpass shutters in ways that go beyond storm day. They alter how a house feels in August, how quiet your living room remains on a Saturday night, and how positive you are when a storm line spins up faster than predicted.
This is a useful look at why lots of South Florida house owners are moving from shutters to cyclone impact-resistant windows, how to read the standards behind "Miami-Dade authorized," what products matter, and how to get the installation right the very first time.
Miami-Dade County's Item Control Department sets among the toughest benchmarks in the nation for building parts exposed to windborne debris. Approval is not a marketing sticker label. It is made through specific lab tests that replicate genuine typhoon conditions.
First comes big missile impact. A 9-pound 2x4 is contended the glass at approximately 34 miles per hour. That imitates roofing system tiles, branches, or pieces of fencing that fly in the eyewall. After the impact, the exact same unit faces cyclic pressure loading, countless pressurization and depressurization cycles that simulate rapid wind gusts over hours. If the glass remains in the frame without letting the envelope breach, it passes. The difference in between "fulfills Florida building code windows" and "Miami-Dade approved windows" often lives in these test limits. Miami-Dade is just stiffer, especially in High Speed Hurricane Zone requirements, which include Miami-Dade and Broward.
Wind rankings differ by opening size and design pressures, represented as PSF worths. On ocean-facing residential or commercial properties or high-rises, I frequently specify systems ranked at +60/ -80 PSF or higher. Inland or in more safeguarded direct exposures, rankings in the +45/ -60 PSF variety can be enough, commercial window installation Boca Raton however you size and specification based upon the site's wind map, constructing height, and surrounding structures. An expert knows that a corner direct exposure at the second story demands different support than a sheltered window under a deep porch.
Hurricane shutters vs effect windows is not a one-to-one contrast. Shutters can fulfill 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 projection track tightens up, the buy hurricane proof windows Boca Raton last thing you want is a ladder, a dead cordless drill, and a missing wing nut.
Impact windows reside in location. You get continuous defense, even if a pop-up storm surprises you while you're stuck on US 1. You also get benefits every day of the year.
Noise control is the most underappreciated advantage. Laminated impact glass is essentially a sandwich: 2 panes of glass bonded by a durable interlayer, typically PVB interlayer glass or SentryGlas. That interlayer damps noise. On tasks along busy passages like Biscayne Boulevard or near flight courses, I have actually measured interior noise drops in the 5 to 10 decibel range, sometimes more when coupled with insulated glass units.
Security improves due to the fact that laminated glass withstands forced entry. An intruder can shatter the external lite with a hammer, but the interlayer holds the shards. They satisfy a sticky, stubborn membrane rather of a fast path inside. Insurance coverage underwriters understand this, which is why policies often use credits for impact windows and doors. In my tasks, premiums generally drop 10 to 25 percent, depending on the carrier and the number of openings are protected.
Energy efficiency is the 3rd pillar. Energy-efficient effect windows with contemporary low-E impact glass and warm-edge spacers can cut solar heat gain while maintaining visible light. That means less a/c demand, particularly on west and south direct exposures where the afternoon sun punishes interiors. In one Coral Gables retrofit, we replaced 1980s single-pane sliders with laminated low-E effect units. Summertime afternoon peak load visited roughly a ton of cooling, and the home's yearly electricity usage fell in between 12 and 18 percent. Outcomes vary with shading, attic insulation, and a/c efficiency, however the direction is consistent.
Laminated effect glass is the heart of the system, however not all laminated items are equal.
Most property cyclone windows use a PVB interlayer glass stack, commonly 0.030 to 0.090 inches thick in single or several plies. Thicker interlayers improve effect resistance and sound control, however they add weight and expense. For oceanfront or high openings, you may see SGP (ionoplast) interlayers, which are stiffer and stronger than PVB, enabling thinner areas to accomplish greater style pressures. For noise-sensitive sites, acoustic PVB solutions tweak the polymer to much better take in noise in the 1,000 to 3,000 Hz range, where traffic and voices sit.
Tempered glass windows show up frequently in conversations because tempered glass is more powerful in flexing than annealed glass. That holds true, and tempered lites are commonly utilized as the external or inner ply in an impact system. But tempered alone is not impact-resistant in the cyclone sense. When it fails, it explodes into little cubes and falls out of the frame, which leaves the opening susceptible. The impact performance originates from laminated construction, not tempering by itself. Many systems utilize a tempered outer lite laminated to a hardened inner lite, or both tempered, but always bonded through a PVB or ionoplast interlayer.
Low-E finishings matter for comfort. A soft-coat low-E tuned for South Florida generally targets a solar heat gain coefficient in the 0.25 to 0.35 range while keeping noticeable light transmission around 50 percent or greater. Go too low on SHGC and the glass can look gray or green, particularly in bigger openings. The sweet area depends on your exterior orientation and shading. On east and west elevations, I typically tighten up SHGC and accept a minor tint to handle morning and afternoon blasts. On north elevations, I favor greater visible transmittance for daylighting.
Frames are the other half of the story. Aluminum frames dominate here due to the fact that they manage big openings and will not swell. Thermal breaks and improved glazing gaskets have actually narrowed the energy space with vinyl. Top quality vinyl impact frames, when strengthened properly, can perform well for standard-sized openings and have better insulating worths, but I prevent them for really broad sliders or high storefront-style windows in high-wind zones. Wood-clad systems look stunning in older Mediterranean Revival homes, however they require careful maintenance and wise flashing. The Florida sun destroys inexpensive vinyl and chalks low-grade aluminum surfaces quickly. Try to find powder-coated surfaces ranked for seaside exposure, and demand written warranty information in salt-air environments.
Window setup can make or break performance. A pricey unit installed like a handyman swap-out will not pass a storm's tension test. The load path is the essence. 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 should be grouted or you need to hit the bond beam. Tapcons in soft, unfilled block are a failure waiting to occur. In wood-framed homes, structural screws must bite into strong trimmers, not simply sheathing. Shimming and plumb alignment matter so the locks engage cleanly and the weatherstripping compresses evenly.
The sealant joint is not simply visual. A properly sized backer rod and premium polyurethane or silyl-modified polymer sealant create a durable, flexible seal that deals with thermal expansion. Too little a bead and it tears under motion. Too huge and it remedies poorly. On coastal jobs, I never ever combine different metals without a barrier, and I always specify corrosion-resistant fasteners. 10 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 important. If you count on sealant alone, water will discover its method. That moisture might disappoint up as a drip. It might rot a sill plate gradually, then betray itself as a buckling floor or a moldy odor 2 hurricane seasons later.
I have absolutely nothing versus well-designed shutters. Accordion shutters that are maintained and lubricated, roll-down shutters with battery backups, and even removable panels stored carefully can secure homes effectively. They also assist in particular cases.
Second homes or seasonal rentals where spending plan is tight sometimes lean on shutters to fulfill the Florida building regulations windows requirement for secured openings. On specialized openings like a lanai that is seldom utilized in summertime, a clean motorized roll-down can be affordable, specifically if coupling with impact doors and windows in other places stresses the spending plan. For property owners who plan to move within a year, shutters can be a short bridge to compliance before a sale.
But shutters bring compromises. They darken your house when released, and they need action at specifically the time you are juggling insurance papers, gas cans, and family logistics. During Typhoon Irma, I viewed 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 immediate care waiting room. He survived with stitches. His living room window did not. Shutters likewise rattle and can vibrate under continual winds, in some cases loosening up fasteners in time if not maintained.
For long-lasting owners who wish to set it and forget it, effect windows give cyclone proof windows coverage while maintaining daylight and view. The benefit grows valuable once you've experienced one storm season with zero prep beyond locking the sash.
South Florida homes fight 2 battles: latent load from humidity and reasonable load from direct solar heat gain. Effect glass upgrades can help both if specified intelligently.
Low-E effect glass utilizes microscopically thin metal layers to reflect infrared energy while letting visible light through. With the ideal finishing stacks, you can block a big part of convected heat and UV. UV obstruction in laminated systems comes mostly from the interlayer itself, which typically filters 95 to 99 percent of UV, minimizing fading of fabrics and floor covering. Include the low-E, and you suppress the solar heat that drives your AC crazy midafternoon.
I evaluate glass specifications with 3 numbers: U-factor, SHGC, and VT. While U-factor matters more up north, it still assists here by minimizing nighttime heat circulation and keeping the interior glass temperature closer to room temperature level, which decreases condensation risk. SHGC drives how much solar heat enters. VT affects how brilliant the interior feels. Balance is crucial. Some house owners want the crisp, clear look of higher VT, even if it indicates accepting a few degrees more heat in late afternoon, since their landscaping and roofing overhangs already do some shading. Others choose a more powerful tint for glare control on waterfront lots that show severe light.
In practical terms, going from clear single-pane sliders to modern-day low-E laminated double-glazed units can decrease peak solar gains by 30 to half 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 begin to construct resilience. If the grid goes down and you change to a generator, a lower cooling load suggests a smaller generator and less gallons of fuel.
Miami-Dade Notification of Approval, or NOA, is the document you request for. It information the authorized setups, sizes, anchors, and pressures tested. It is insufficient to hear "these are Miami-Dade approved windows" in a display room. Verify the NOA matches the specific design and options you are purchasing, including the glazing makeup and hardware. If you remain in Broward or Miami-Dade, your permitting workplace will want this paper trail.

Statewide, the Florida Product Approval system provides FL numbers that show code compliance. In the remainder of the state outside the High Velocity Typhoon Zone, Florida building code windows can depend on Florida Item Approval without Miami-Dade particular NOAs. Numerous leading producers carry both. Where budgets enable, I prefer NOA items even outside the zone because the screening is stiffer.
NFRC labels deal with energy metrics. They won't inform you impact performance, however they show U-factor, SHGC, VT, and air leak. Aim for air leak at or below 0.3 cfm/ft TWO. Tighter is much better for humidity control, but ensure your home still has actually stabilized ventilation. Sealing the envelope and ignoring fresh air is a recipe for indoor air quality complaints.
Impact windows cost more upfront than shutters. There's no spin around that. Installed costs vary with size, shape, surface, and gain access to. On uncomplicated single-family homes, per-opening expenses typically land in between 1,200 and 3,000 dollars for standard sizes. Large multi-panel sliders, custom arches, and coastal-grade finishes raise the numbers quickly.
Where you recoup worth:
If you plan to own the residential or commercial property for 5 years or more, the mathematics typically tilts in favor of impact windows, especially when you factor the intangible of peace of mind. If you plan to sell within a year and need to reveal compliance rapidly, shutters may make more short-term sense. Context matters.
I focus on hardware and devices. Multi-point locks on casements and awnings enhance seal compression and security. For sliders, robust tandem rollers in stainless real estates slide smoother and last longer on sandy outdoor patios. Take a look at the sill Boca Raton storm windows design on sliding doors. Weep systems need to be crafted 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 fashion. Reflective films can contravene of neighborhood watch or produce mirror-like glare toward neighboring residential or commercial properties. In coastal communities, extremely reflective glass can confuse birds or sea turtles in some jurisdictions. Local pros understand which coatings balance performance with compliance.
Color stability is a huge deal. Dark bronze or black frames look fantastic on modern-day homes, however in Florida sun inexpensive surfaces chalk and fade. AAMA 2605-rated coverings provide the very best color retention and chalk resistance. I specify them for seaside direct exposures whenever budgets allow.
Historic districts often require profiles that mimic old wood sash sightlines. There are impact-rated windows that fit these requirements, however lead times lengthen and costs climb. Expect extra evaluation by architectural boards, and line up a specialist knowledgeable about these submissions.
Condos have another layer of governance. Associations in some cases specify a narrow list of approved products for harmony. They likewise care about sound control in between systems. If your structure sits directly on Collins Avenue or faces a hectic beach boardwalk, push for acoustic laminated alternatives. Work with building management on staging and lift access. Weekend work windows and minimal parking can include days and dollars.
Large openings, like a 16-foot-wide slider, need unique attention in design pressure, deflection, and operating hardware. Not every unit that looks strong in a display room fulfills the wind loads on a ninth-floor balcony. Do not rely on catalog optimum sizes. Use the NOA tables that represent your site's zone, favorable and unfavorable pressures, and mullion combinations if any.
The best jobs start with a measured study and exposure analysis. You map each opening, keep in mind the substrate, and recognize any framing irregularities or settlement cracks. Throughout proposal, the specialist shows you the NOA and the Florida Product Approval, lists anchor types, and describes 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 get rid of one opening at a time to keep your home protected. They affordable hurricane proof windows Boca Raton protect floors, pull back window treatments, and cap sprinklers. Old frames come out with care to maintain interior finishes. New systems get dry-fit, shimmed, and anchored per the schedule. The team checks squareness and diagonals before setting sealant. They photograph anchors for the permit file, specifically if they will be concealed. After glazing, they water-test with a controlled spray to confirm drainage paths and seals. The inspector sees a neat jobsite, clear labels, and paperwork in order.
Six months later, your windows still close with two fingers, locks bite efficiently, and there is no secret rattle throughout thunderstorms. You did not need to call for a roller modification after the very first week. That is the standard.
Impact ranking does not equivalent breakproof. Laminated glass can crack under severe impacts, however it needs to remain in the frame and hold together. After a storm that sends particles into the glass, you may see star cracks or spidering. The window did its job. Change the sash or IGU after the event.
Window movies do not convert non-impact windows into typhoon impact-resistant windows. They can include shatter resistance, however they do not substitute for a checked, anchored system. Your insurance company and building department will not count films as safeguarded openings.
Interior humidity matters. Tight, energy-efficient effect windows minimize air leakage. That's fantastic, but it increases the significance of a correctly sized HVAC with good dehumidification. If your system is extra-large, the thermostat pleases quickly and stops working to pull enough moisture from the air. Ask your HVAC pro to inspect practical heat ratio, airflow, and run time. You want constant, longer cycles, not short bursts.
Maintenance is simple but not optional. Tidy weep holes on sliders, wash salt spray from frames, and oil hardware each year with a silicone-based item that will not gum up in heat. Little practices extend lifespan.
There are legitimate reasons to blend services. A pair of rarely utilized garage windows can keep detachable panels to shave budget. A deep-set porch with minimal sun direct exposure may do fine with accordion shutters if you focus on other upgrades like a brand-new roofing deck accessory or a fortified garage door. Shutters can likewise safeguard outdoor kitchens or cabana openings where grease and smoke would age elegant hardware prematurely.
If you pick shutters, invest in quality. Stainless fasteners, smooth tracks, and motors with handbook overrides for roll-downs make a distinction. Assign duty for deployment and practice once outside of a storm watch. Inventory your hardware. The day you need 32 wing nuts is not the morning you wish to discover you have 29.
Impact windows are not only about surviving the big one. They improve daily living. The living room stays cooler and quieter. The AC cycles calmly rather of racing at 4 p.m. You sleep without freight trains of wind sound when a squall line passes at 2 a.m. When a typhoon threatens, your preparation list gets shorter. You lock the sashes, set storm mode on the alarm, and concentrate on people instead of panels.


For much of my customers, that intangible is the choosing aspect. They know storms will come. They likewise understand life in South Florida is too great to live inside a fortress that only gets up in August. Miami-Dade approved windows offer you both: a clear view of Biscayne Bay on a breezy February morning and quiet confidence when the spaghetti designs point our method September.
If you are weighing the option, begin with a site-specific assessment. Match your exposures to design pressures, pick the best laminated glass stack for wind and heat, choose frames that fit the architecture and conditions, and work with a crew that respects the load path. Done right, energy‑efficient impact windows provide what shutters can not: defense that never ever requests for a ladder and a better home every day of the year.