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 stock up, and the routine of transporting ladders to mount panels. After twenty years defining, installing, and troubleshooting building envelopes from Key Largo to Palm Beach, I've seen what holds up and what does not. When the objective is real security with year-round convenience, Miami-Dade authorized, energy‑efficient impact windows outshine shutters in ways that go beyond storm day. They change how a house feels in August, how quiet your living-room remains on a Saturday night, and how confident you are when a storm line spins up quicker than predicted.
This is a practical look at why lots of South Florida property owners are moving from shutters to hurricane impact-resistant windows, how to check out the requirements behind "Miami-Dade authorized," what materials matter, and how to get the setup right the first time.
Miami-Dade County's Item Control Division sets among the toughest standards in the country for building components exposed to windborne particles. Approval is not a marketing sticker. It is made through particular lab tests that replicate genuine cyclone conditions.
First comes big rocket impact. A 9-pound 2x4 is contended the glass at roughly 34 miles per hour. That simulates roofing tiles, branches, or pieces of fencing that fly in the eyewall. After the impact, the very same system faces cyclic pressure loading, countless pressurization and depressurization cycles that simulate quick wind gusts over hours. If the glass remains in the frame without letting the envelope breach, it passes. The difference between "meets Florida building code windows" and "Miami-Dade approved windows" typically resides in these test thresholds. Miami-Dade is merely stiffer, especially in High Velocity Hurricane Zone requirements, which include Miami-Dade and Broward.
Wind scores vary by opening size and style pressures, signified as PSF values. On ocean-facing properties or high-rises, I frequently specify systems rated at +60/ -80 PSF or greater. Inland or in more secured exposures, scores in the +45/ -60 PSF variety can suffice, but you size and specification based upon the site's wind map, developing height, and surrounding structures. A professional understands that a corner direct exposure at the second story demands various reinforcement than a protected window under a deep porch.
Hurricane shutters vs effect windows is not a one-to-one contrast. Shutters can satisfy code, and they're better than nothing. However 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 reside in place. You get continuous 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 effect 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 passages like Biscayne Boulevard or near flight paths, I have actually determined interior sound drops in the 5 to 10 decibel variety, often more when coupled with insulated glass units.
Security improves since laminated glass resists required entry. A burglar can shatter the outer lite with a hammer, however the interlayer holds the shards. They fulfill a sticky, persistent membrane instead of a quick path inside. Insurance coverage underwriters know this, which is why policies often use credits for effect doors and windows. In my jobs, premiums 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 effect windows with contemporary low-E impact glass and warm-edge spacers can cut solar heat gain while protecting noticeable light. That suggests less a/c need, specifically on west and south exposures where the afternoon sun penalizes interiors. In one Coral Gables retrofit, we changed 1980s single-pane sliders with laminated low-E effect systems. Summer season afternoon peak load stopped by approximately a ton of cooling, and the home's annual electricity use fell in between 12 and 18 percent. Results vary with shading, attic insulation, and heating and cooling efficiency, however the direction is consistent.
Laminated impact glass is the heart of the system, but not all laminated items are equal.
Most residential hurricane windows utilize a PVB interlayer glass stack, typically 0.030 to 0.090 inches thick in single or numerous plies. Thicker interlayers enhance impact resistance and sound control, however they add weight and expense. For oceanfront or high openings, you might see SGP (ionoplast) interlayers, which are stiffer and more powerful than PVB, allowing thinner areas to attain higher design pressures. For noise-sensitive websites, acoustic PVB solutions fine-tune the polymer to better absorb sound in the 1,000 to 3,000 Hz variety, where traffic and voices sit.
Tempered glass windows show up typically in conversations because tempered glass is more powerful in flexing than annealed glass. That's true, and tempered lites are typically used as the external or inner ply in an effect unit. But tempered alone is not impact-resistant in the hurricane sense. When it fails, it explodes into small cubes and falls out of the frame, which leaves the opening vulnerable. The impact efficiency originates from laminated building and construction, not tempering by itself. Many systems use a tempered outer lite laminated to a hardened inner lite, or both tempered, but always bonded through a PVB or ionoplast interlayer.
Low-E coverings matter for convenience. 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 higher. Go too short on SHGC and the glass can look gray or green, especially in bigger openings. The sweet spot depends on your exterior orientation and shading. On east and west elevations, I frequently tighten SHGC and accept a small tint to manage 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 since they manage large openings and won't swell. Thermal breaks and enhanced glazing gaskets have actually narrowed the energy gap with vinyl. Top quality vinyl effect frames, when enhanced effectively, can perform well for standard-sized openings and have much better insulating values, however I prevent them for really broad sliders or high storefront-style windows in high-wind zones. Wood-clad units look beautiful in older Mediterranean Revival homes, but they demand careful maintenance and wise flashing. The Florida sun destroys inexpensive vinyl and chalks low-grade aluminum finishes rapidly. Try to find powder-coated finishes ranked for seaside exposure, and request composed service warranty information in salt-air environments.
Window setup can make or break efficiency. A costly system installed like a handyman swap-out will not pass a storm's tension test. The load path is the core. Effect forces have 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 want stainless or hot-dipped galvanized anchors embedded into solid product. Hollow cells need to be grouted or you require to strike the bond beam. Tapcons in soft, unfilled block are a failure waiting to take place. In wood-framed homes, structural screws should bite into solid trimmers, not just sheathing. Shimming and plumb positioning matter so the locks engage easily and the weatherstripping compresses evenly.
The sealant joint is not just visual. A correctly sized backer rod and high-quality polyurethane or silyl-modified polymer sealant produce a durable, versatile seal that manages thermal expansion. Too little a bead and it tears under movement. Too huge and it treatments inadequately. On coastal jobs, I never ever match dissimilar metals without a barrier, and I constantly define 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 count on sealant alone, water will discover its way in. That moisture might disappoint up as a drip. It might rot a sill plate slowly, then betray itself as a buckling flooring or a musty smell 2 hurricane seasons later.
I have nothing versus properly designed shutters. Accordion shutters that are maintained and lubricated, roll-down shutters with battery backups, and even detachable panels saved thoroughly can protect homes efficiently. They likewise help in certain cases.
Second homes or seasonal leasings where budget plan is tight in some cases lean on shutters to satisfy the Florida building code windows requirement for safeguarded openings. On specialized openings like a lanai that is hardly ever utilized in summer, a tidy motorized roll-down can be affordable, specifically if coupling with impact windows and doors somewhere else worries the budget plan. For house owners who plan to move within a year, shutters can be a brief bridge to compliance before a sale.
But shutters bring compromises. They darken your home when released, and they require action at precisely the time you are juggling insurance coverage papers, gas cans, and household logistics. Throughout Cyclone Irma, I viewed a neighbor try to install 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 room. He made it through with stitches. His living-room window did not. Shutters also rattle and can vibrate under continual winds, sometimes loosening up fasteners over time if not maintained.
For long-lasting owners who wish to set it and forget it, impact windows give hurricane evidence windows protection while protecting daylight and view. The convenience grows valuable once you have actually experienced one storm season with absolutely no prep beyond locking the sash.
South Florida homes fight two battles: hidden load from humidity and practical load from direct solar heat gain. Effect glass upgrades can help both if defined intelligently.
Low-E impact glass utilizes microscopically thin metal layers to show infrared energy while letting noticeable light through. With the right finishing stacks, you can block a large portion of convected heat and UV. UV blockage in laminated units comes mostly from the interlayer itself, which normally filters 95 to 99 percent of UV, lowering fading of fabrics and floor covering. Add the low-E, and you suppress the solar heat that drives your air conditioning insane midafternoon.
I examine glass specs with three numbers: U-factor, SHGC, and VT. While U-factor matters more up north, it still assists here by minimizing nighttime heat flow and keeping the interior glass temperature closer to room temperature, which lowers condensation threat. SHGC drives how much solar heat goes into. VT influences how brilliant the interior feels. Balance is key. Some house owners want the crisp, clear look of higher VT, even if it implies accepting a few degrees more heat in late afternoon, because their landscaping and roofing overhangs already do some shading. Others choose a stronger tint for glare control on waterside lots that reflect harsh light.
In practical terms, going from clear single-pane sliders to modern low-E laminated double-glazed units can decrease peak solar gains by 30 to 50 percent on the most exposed sides. Couple that with tuned overhangs, light-colored exterior surfaces, and an appropriately sized variable-speed heating and cooling, and you start to build durability. If the grid goes down and you switch to a generator, a lower cooling load indicates a smaller generator and fewer gallons of fuel.
Miami-Dade Notification of Acceptance, or NOA, is the file you request. It information the authorized setups, sizes, anchors, and pressures checked. It is insufficient to hear "these are Miami-Dade approved windows" in a showroom. Verify the NOA matches the exact model and choices you are purchasing, consisting of the glazing makeup and hardware. If you are in Broward or Miami-Dade, your permitting office will desire this paper trail.
Statewide, the Florida Product Approval system supplies FL numbers that show code compliance. In the rest of the state outside the High Velocity Cyclone Zone, Florida building regulations windows can count on Florida Item Approval without Miami-Dade particular NOAs. Lots of leading producers bring both. Where spending plans enable, I prefer NOA products even outside the zone since the screening is stiffer.
NFRC labels manage energy metrics. They won't inform you impact performance, however they show U-factor, SHGC, VT, and air leak. Aim for air leakage at or below 0.3 cfm/ft ². Tighter is better for humidity control, but ensure your home still has stabilized ventilation. Sealing the envelope and neglecting fresh air is a dish for indoor Boca Raton window upgrades air quality complaints.
Impact windows cost more upfront than shutters. There's no spin around that. Installed expenses differ with size, shape, surface, and gain access to. On straightforward single-family homes, per-opening costs typically land in between 1,200 and 3,000 dollars for standard sizes. Large multi-panel sliders, custom-made arches, and coastal-grade finishes raise the numbers quickly.
Where you recoup worth:
If you prepare to own the home for five years or more, the math often tilts in favor of impact windows, particularly when you factor the intangible of assurance. If you plan to offer within a year and need to reveal compliance quickly, shutters may make more short-term sense. Context matters.
I take notice of hardware and devices. Multi-point locks on sashes and awnings improve seal compression and security. For sliders, robust tandem rollers in stainless real estates move smoother and last longer on sandy patio areas. Take a look at the sill design on sliding doors. Weep systems should 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 movies can contravene of neighborhood associations or produce mirror-like glare toward neighboring homes. In coastal communities, extremely reflective glass can confuse birds or sea turtles in some jurisdictions. Local pros know which finishes balance efficiency with compliance.
Color stability is a big offer. Dark bronze or black frames look fantastic on contemporary homes, but in Florida sun inexpensive surfaces chalk and fade. AAMA 2605-rated coatings offer the very best color retention and chalk resistance. I define them for seaside direct exposures whenever spending plans allow.
Historic districts frequently require profiles that imitate old wood sash sightlines. There are impact-rated windows that fit these requirements, however lead times lengthen and costs climb. Anticipate additional review by architectural boards, and line up a professional knowledgeable about these submissions.
Condos have another layer of governance. Associations often specify a narrow list of approved items for harmony. They also care about noise control in between units. If your structure sits straight on Collins Avenue or deals with a hectic beach boardwalk, push for acoustic laminated choices. Deal with structure management on staging and lift gain access to. Weekend work windows and minimal parking can include days and dollars.
Large openings, like a 16-foot-wide slider, require unique attention in design pressure, deflection, and operating hardware. Not every unit that looks durable in a display room satisfies the wind loads on a ninth-floor balcony. Do not depend on catalog optimum sizes. Use the NOA tables that correspond to your site's zone, positive and negative pressures, and mullion combinations if any.
The best tasks begin with a measured survey and direct exposure analysis. You map each opening, keep in mind the substrate, and determine any framing abnormalities or settlement fractures. Throughout proposal, the specialist reveals 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 get rid of one opening at a time to keep your home secure. They safeguard floors, draw 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 photo anchors for the authorization file, particularly if they will be concealed. After glazing, they water-test with a controlled spray to verify drain paths and seals. The inspector sees a cool jobsite, clear labels, and paperwork in order.
Six months later on, your windows still close with 2 fingers, locks bite smoothly, and there is no mystery rattle during thunderstorms. You did not need to require a roller change after the first week. That is the standard.
Impact ranking does not equivalent breakproof. Laminated glass can split under severe effects, however it needs to remain in the frame and hold together. After a storm that sends debris into the glass, you may 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 typhoon impact-resistant windows. They can add shatter resistance, however they do not replacement for an evaluated, anchored system. Your insurance provider and building department will not count movies as secured openings.
Interior humidity matters. Tight, energy-efficient effect windows minimize air leak. That's terrific, but it increases the importance of an effectively sized a/c with great dehumidification. If your system is extra-large, the thermostat pleases rapidly and stops working to pull enough moisture from the air. Ask your heating and cooling pro to examine practical heat ratio, air flow, and run time. You desire constant, longer cycles, not brief bursts.
Maintenance is straightforward but 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. Small habits extend lifespan.
 
There are legitimate reasons to blend services. A pair of hardly ever utilized garage windows can keep removable panels to shave spending plan. A deep-set deck with very little sun exposure might do fine with accordion shutters if you focus on other residential window installation upgrades like a new roofing deck accessory or a prepared garage door. Shutters can likewise secure outside kitchen areas or cabana openings where grease and smoke would age fancy hardware prematurely.
If you pick shutters, purchase quality. Stainless fasteners, smooth tracks, and motors with handbook overrides for roll-downs make a difference. Appoint obligation for deployment and practice as soon as beyond a storm watch. Inventory your hardware. The day you need 32 wing nuts is not the early morning you wish to find you have 29.
Impact windows are not just about enduring the big one. They reshape daily living. The living room stays cooler and quieter. The a/c 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 cyclone 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 much of my clients, that intangible is the choosing aspect. They know storms will come. They also know life in South Florida is too great to live inside a fortress that only wakes up in August. Miami-Dade approved windows give you both: a clear view of Biscayne Bay on a breezy February early morning and peaceful confidence when the spaghetti models point our way in September.
If you are weighing the option, start with a site-specific evaluation. Match your direct exposures to develop pressures, select the ideal laminated glass stack for wind and heat, select frames that fit the architecture and conditions, and work with a team that appreciates the load course. Done right, energy‑efficient effect windows deliver what shutters can not: protection that never ever requests a ladder and a better home every day of the year.