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 next-door neighbors track tropical waves, the pre-storm rush to stock up, and the routine of carrying ladders to mount panels. After twenty years specifying, setting up, and troubleshooting building envelopes from Key Largo to Palm Beach, I've seen what holds up and what does not. When the goal is real protection with year-round comfort, Miami-Dade approved, energy‑efficient impact windows outshine shutters in ways that exceed storm day. They alter how a home feels in August, how peaceful your living room stays on a Saturday night, and how confident you are when a storm line spins up much faster than predicted.
This is a practical take a look at why many South Florida homeowners are moving from shutters to hurricane impact-resistant windows, how to check out the requirements behind "Miami-Dade approved," what materials matter, and how to get the setup right the very first time.
Miami-Dade County's Item Control Department sets among the toughest criteria in the country for developing parts exposed to windborne debris. Approval is not a marketing sticker label. It is earned through specific laboratory tests that imitate genuine typhoon conditions.
First comes big rocket impact. A 9-pound 2x4 is shot at the glass at approximately 34 miles per hour. That mimics roofing tiles, branches, or pieces of fencing that fly in the eyewall. After the impact, the very same unit deals with cyclic pressure loading, thousands of pressurization and depressurization cycles that simulate fast wind gusts over hours. If the glass remains in the frame without letting the envelope breach, it passes. The distinction between "satisfies Florida building regulations windows" and "Miami-Dade authorized windows" frequently resides in these test thresholds. Miami-Dade is merely stiffer, particularly in High Speed Typhoon Zone requirements, that include Miami-Dade and Broward.
Wind rankings vary by opening size and style pressures, signified as PSF values. On ocean-facing residential or commercial properties or high-rises, I frequently define units ranked at +60/ -80 PSF or greater. Inland or in more secured exposures, scores in the +45/ -60 PSF variety can suffice, however you size and specification based on the website's wind map, constructing height, and surrounding structures. An expert understands that a corner direct exposure at the second story demands various reinforcement than a protected window under a deep porch.
Hurricane shutters vs impact windows is not a one-to-one comparison. 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 caution and the projection 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 protection, even if a pop-up storm surprises you while you're stuck on US 1. You likewise get advantages every day of the year.
Noise control is the most underappreciated advantage. Laminated impact glass is basically a sandwich: 2 panes of glass bonded by a durable interlayer, usually PVB interlayer glass or SentryGlas. That interlayer damps sound. On tasks along hectic corridors like Biscayne Boulevard or near flight courses, I have actually determined interior noise drops in the 5 to 10 decibel range, often more when paired with insulated glass units.
Security enhances since laminated glass resists required entry. An intruder can shatter the outer lite with a hammer, however the interlayer holds the fragments. They fulfill a sticky, persistent membrane instead of a fast path inside. Insurance coverage underwriters understand this, which is why policies typically use credits for effect doors and windows. In my jobs, premiums thermal break aluminum frames generally drop 10 to 25 percent, depending upon the provider and the number of openings are protected.
Energy performance is the 3rd pillar. Energy-efficient impact windows with modern-day low-E effect glass and warm-edge spacers can cut solar heat gain while protecting noticeable light. That suggests less air conditioning need, particularly on west and south direct exposures where the afternoon sun punishes interiors. In one Coral Gables retrofit, we changed 1980s single-pane sliders with laminated low-E effect systems. Summer afternoon peak load visited approximately a lots of cooling, and the home's yearly electricity usage fell between 12 and 18 percent. Results differ with shading, attic insulation, and HVAC effectiveness, but the instructions is consistent.
Laminated impact glass is the heart of the system, but not all laminated items are equal.
Most property aluminum impact doors cyclone windows use a PVB interlayer glass stack, commonly 0.030 to 0.090 inches thick in single or numerous plies. Thicker interlayers improve impact resistance and sound control, but they include weight and cost. For oceanfront or high openings, you may see SGP (ionoplast) interlayers, which are stiffer and more powerful than PVB, enabling thinner sections to accomplish greater style pressures. For noise-sensitive websites, acoustic PVB formulas tweak the polymer to better soak up 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 more powerful in bending than annealed glass. That's true, and tempered lites are commonly utilized as the outer or inner ply in an impact unit. However tempered alone is not impact-resistant in the typhoon sense. When it stops working, it explodes into little cubes and falls out of the frame, which leaves the opening vulnerable. The effect efficiency originates from laminated building, not tempering by itself. Many systems use a tempered outer lite laminated to an annealed inner lite, or both tempered, but constantly bonded through a PVB or ionoplast interlayer.
Low-E finishes 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 visible light transmission around half or higher. Go too short on SHGC and the glass can look gray or green, especially in bigger openings. The sweet spot depends upon your exterior orientation and shading. On east and west elevations, I typically tighten up SHGC and accept a slight tint to manage morning and afternoon blasts. On north elevations, I favor higher visible transmittance for daylighting.

Frames are the other half of the story. Aluminum frames dominate here due to the fact that they handle big openings and won't swell. Thermal breaks and enhanced glazing gaskets have actually narrowed the energy space with vinyl. High-quality vinyl impact frames, when enhanced appropriately, can perform well for standard-sized openings and have much better insulating values, however I avoid them for really broad sliders or tall storefront-style windows in high-wind zones. Wood-clad units look lovely in older Mediterranean Revival homes, but they demand mindful maintenance and wise flashing. The Florida sun damages low-cost vinyl and chalks low-grade aluminum surfaces quickly. Look for powder-coated surfaces ranked for seaside direct exposure, and request written guarantee information in salt-air environments.
Window installation can make or break efficiency. A pricey unit installed like a handyman swap-out will not pass a storm's stress test. The load course is the core. Impact 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 construction, you desire stainless or hot-dipped galvanized anchors embedded into solid material. Hollow cells should be grouted or you require to hit the bond beam. Tapcons in soft, unfilled block are a failure waiting to occur. In wood-framed houses, structural screws must bite into solid trimmers, not simply sheathing. Shimming and plumb positioning matter so the locks engage cleanly and the weatherstripping compresses evenly.
The sealant joint is not simply visual. An effectively sized backer rod and high-quality polyurethane or silyl-modified polymer sealant produce a long lasting, flexible seal that handles thermal expansion. Too small a bead and it tears under motion. Too huge and it treatments improperly. On seaside jobs, I never combine different metals without a barrier, and I constantly 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 vital. If you depend on sealant alone, water will find its way in. That moisture might disappoint up as a drip. It may rot a sill plate slowly, then betray itself as a buckling floor or a moldy odor 2 hurricane seasons later.
I have absolutely nothing against well-designed shutters. Accordion shutters that are preserved and oiled, roll-down shutters with battery backups, and even detachable panels stored carefully can safeguard homes effectively. They also help in certain cases.
Second homes or seasonal leasings 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 used in summer, a clean motorized roll-down can be sensible, especially if coupling with effect doors and windows elsewhere stresses the budget plan. For property owners who prepare to move within a year, shutters can be a short bridge to compliance before a sale.
But shutters bring compromises. They darken your home when deployed, and they need action at exactly the time you are handling insurance papers, gas cans, and family logistics. During Hurricane Irma, I saw a neighbor try to mount steel panels hours before landfall. The ladder sank in saturated soil, a panel slipped, and we invested the next hour in the immediate care waiting space. He survived with stitches. His living-room window did not. Shutters also rattle and can vibrate under sustained winds, often loosening up fasteners in time if not maintained.
For long-lasting owners who wish to set it and forget it, effect windows give typhoon proof windows protection while preserving daylight and view. The convenience grows valuable once you have actually experienced one storm season with absolutely no preparation beyond locking the sash.
South Florida homes battle 2 battles: hidden load from humidity and sensible load from direct solar heat gain. Impact glass upgrades can help both if defined intelligently.
Low-E impact glass uses microscopically thin metallic layers to reflect infrared energy while letting visible light through. With the right finishing stacks, you can block a big part of convected heat and UV. UV obstruction in laminated systems comes mainly from the interlayer itself, which normally filters 95 to 99 percent of UV, decreasing fading of materials and flooring. Include the low-E, and you suppress the solar heat that drives your AC insane midafternoon.
I assess glass specs with three numbers: U-factor, SHGC, and VT. While U-factor matters more up north, it still helps here by lowering nighttime heat circulation and keeping the interior glass temperature closer to room temperature level, which minimizes condensation risk. SHGC drives just how much solar heat goes into. VT affects how bright the interior feels. Balance is essential. Some house owners desire the crisp, clear appearance of higher VT, even if it means accepting a couple of degrees more heat in late afternoon, due to the fact that their landscaping and roofing overhangs already do some shading. Others prefer a stronger tint for glare control on waterside lots that reflect extreme light.
In useful terms, going from clear single-pane sliders to modern low-E laminated double-glazed units can lower peak solar gains by 30 to 50 percent on the most exposed sides. Couple that with tuned overhangs, light-colored outside surfaces, and a properly sized variable-speed HVAC, and you begin to construct durability. If cost of window installation the grid goes down and you switch to a generator, a lower cooling load indicates a smaller sized generator and fewer gallons of fuel.
Miami-Dade Notice of Approval, or NOA, is the file you request for. It information the authorized configurations, sizes, anchors, and pressures checked. It is inadequate to hear "these are Miami-Dade authorized windows" in a display room. Validate the NOA matches the exact design and choices you are purchasing, consisting of the glazing makeup and hardware. If you remain in Broward or Miami-Dade, your allowing office will desire this paper trail.
Statewide, the Florida Item Approval system supplies FL numbers that reveal code compliance. In the rest of the state outside the High Velocity Cyclone Zone, Florida building regulations windows can depend on Florida Product Approval without Miami-Dade particular NOAs. Lots of leading producers carry both. Where budget plans permit, I prefer NOA items even outside the zone since the screening is stiffer.
NFRC labels deal with energy metrics. They will not inform you impact performance, however they show U-factor, SHGC, VT, and air leakage. Aim for air leak at or below 0.3 cfm/ft TWO. Tighter is better for humidity control, but make sure your home still has stabilized ventilation. Sealing the envelope and ignoring fresh air is a dish for indoor air quality complaints.
Impact windows cost more in advance than shutters. There's no spin around that. Set up costs vary with size, shape, surface, and gain access to. On straightforward single-family homes, per-opening costs typically land between 1,200 and 3,000 dollars for basic 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 frequently tilts in favor of impact windows, particularly when you factor the intangible of assurance. If you plan to offer within a year and require to reveal compliance quickly, shutters might make more short-term laminated safety glass 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 move smoother and last longer on sandy outdoor patios. Take a look at the sill design on sliding doors. Weep systems need to be crafted to drain pipes 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 run afoul of neighborhood watch or produce mirror-like glare toward neighboring homes. In coastal communities, highly reflective glass can confuse birds or sea turtles in some jurisdictions. Regional pros know which coatings balance efficiency with compliance.
Color stability is a big offer. Dark bronze or black frames look great on modern-day homes, but in Florida sun cheap surfaces chalk and fade. AAMA 2605-rated coatings provide the very best color retention and chalk resistance. I specify them for seaside direct exposures whenever budgets allow.
Historic districts typically need profiles that mimic old wood sash sightlines. There are impact-rated windows that fit these requirements, however lead times extend and costs climb. Anticipate extra evaluation by architectural boards, and line up a specialist acquainted with these submissions.
Condos have another layer of governance. Associations sometimes specify a narrow list of approved products for harmony. They also appreciate sound control in between units. If your structure sits straight on Collins Avenue or faces a busy beach boardwalk, push for acoustic laminated alternatives. 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 design pressure, deflection, and running hardware. Not every system that looks durable in a display room meets the wind loads on a ninth-floor balcony. Do not depend on catalog optimum sizes. Utilize the NOA tables that correspond to your website's zone, favorable and negative pressures, and mullion mixes if any.
The finest tasks begin with a determined survey and exposure analysis. You map each opening, note the substrate, and identify any framing abnormalities or settlement fractures. During proposition, the contractor reveals you the NOA and the Florida Product Approval, lists anchor types, and discusses how each opening will be flashed and sealed. They plan for stucco or drywall repairs, not pretend no damage will occur.
On set up day, they get rid of one opening at a time to keep your house secure. They protect floorings, pull back window treatments, and cap sprinklers. Old frames bring out care to maintain interior surfaces. New units 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 hidden. After glazing, they water-test with a controlled spray to validate drainage paths and seals. The inspector sees a neat jobsite, clear labels, and documents in order.
Six months later on, your windows still close with 2 fingers, locks bite efficiently, and there is no mystery rattle throughout thunderstorms. You did not need to call for a roller change after the first week. That is the standard.
Impact ranking does not equivalent breakproof. Laminated glass can crack under extreme effects, but it must remain in the frame and hold together. After a storm that sends out particles into the glass, you might see star cracks or spidering. The window did its task. Change the sash or IGU after the event.
Window films do not convert non-impact windows into hurricane impact-resistant windows. They can include shatter resistance, but they do not alternative to a checked, anchored system. Your insurance company and structure department will not count films as protected openings.
Interior humidity matters. Tight, energy-efficient impact windows decrease air leakage. That's great, but it increases the significance of an effectively sized HVAC with excellent dehumidification. If your system is oversized, the thermostat pleases rapidly and stops working to pull enough moisture from the air. Ask your a/c pro to check practical heat ratio, air flow, and run time. You want stable, longer cycles, not brief bursts.
Maintenance is straightforward but not optional. Tidy weep holes on sliders, wash salt spray from frames, and lube hardware yearly with a silicone-based item that will not gum up in heat. Little practices extend lifespan.
There are genuine reasons to blend services. A set of seldom used garage windows can keep removable panels to shave budget plan. A deep-set patio with very little sun exposure may do fine with accordion shutters if you focus on other upgrades like a new roofing deck attachment or a fortified garage door. Shutters can also protect outdoor kitchens or cabana openings where grease and smoke would age elegant hardware prematurely.
If you pick shutters, buy quality. Stainless fasteners, smooth tracks, and motors with handbook bypasses for roll-downs make a difference. Appoint duty for deployment and practice once beyond a storm watch. Inventory your hardware. The day you need 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 stays cooler and quieter. The air conditioning cycles calmly instead 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 hurricane threatens, your preparation list gets much shorter. You lock the sashes, set storm mode on the alarm, and concentrate on people instead of panels.
For a lot of my customers, that intangible is the deciding factor. They know storms will come. They also know life in South Florida is too good to live inside a fortress that just wakes up in August. Miami-Dade approved windows offer you both: a clear view of Biscayne Bay on a breezy February morning and peaceful self-confidence when the spaghetti designs point our way in September.
If you are weighing the choice, begin with a site-specific assessment. Match your direct exposures to design pressures, choose the right tempered glass strength rating laminated glass stack for wind and heat, choose frames that fit the architecture and conditions, and hire a team that respects the load course. Done right, energy‑efficient impact windows provide what shutters can not: security that never ever requests a ladder and a better home every day of the year.