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 stockpile, professional window installation Boca Raton and the ritual of carrying ladders to install panels. After twenty years defining, installing, and troubleshooting structure envelopes from Secret Largo to Palm Beach, I have actually seen what holds up and what doesn't. When the goal is real protection with year-round convenience, Miami-Dade approved, energy‑efficient impact windows outshine shutters in manner ins which surpass storm day. They alter how a house feels in August, how peaceful your living-room stays on a Saturday night, and how confident you are when a storm line spins up quicker than predicted.
This is a useful take a look at why numerous South Florida property owners are moving from shutters to hurricane impact-resistant windows, how to read the standards behind "Miami-Dade approved," what materials matter, and how to get the setup right the first time.
Miami-Dade County's Product Control Department sets one of the most difficult criteria in the nation for developing components exposed to windborne particles. Approval is not a marketing sticker label. It is earned through specific laboratory tests that mimic genuine cyclone conditions.
First comes large rocket impact. A 9-pound 2x4 is contended 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 same system deals with cyclic pressure loading, countless pressurization and depressurization cycles that mimic fast wind gusts over hours. If the glass remains in the frame without letting the envelope breach, it passes. The difference between "satisfies Florida building regulations windows" and "Miami-Dade approved windows" frequently lives in these test limits. Miami-Dade is just stiffer, especially in High Velocity Hurricane Zone requirements, which include Miami-Dade and Broward.
Wind ratings vary by opening size and design pressures, represented as PSF worths. On ocean-facing properties or high-rises, I often specify units rated at +60/ -80 PSF or higher. Inland or in more secured exposures, rankings in the +45/ -60 PSF variety can suffice, however you size and specification based upon the website's wind map, developing height, and surrounding structures. A professional knows that a corner direct exposure at the 2nd story demands various support than a protected window under a deep porch.
Hurricane shutters vs effect windows is not a one-to-one comparison. Shutters can meet 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 up, the last thing you want is a ladder, a dead cordless drill, and a missing wing nut.
Impact windows live in place. You get continuous defense, 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 impact glass is essentially a sandwich: 2 panes of glass bonded by a durable interlayer, typically PVB interlayer glass or SentryGlas. That interlayer damps sound. On tasks along hectic corridors like Biscayne Boulevard or near flight paths, I've determined interior noise drops in the 5 to 10 decibel variety, in some cases more when paired with insulated glass units.
Security improves due to the fact that laminated glass withstands required entry. A robber can shatter the external lite with a hammer, however the interlayer holds the fragments. They fulfill a sticky, persistent membrane rather of a fast path inside. Insurance underwriters know this, which is why policies typically provide credits for effect doors and windows. In my jobs, premiums usually drop 10 to 25 percent, depending upon the carrier and the number of openings are protected.
Energy performance is the third pillar. Energy-efficient effect windows with modern low-E impact glass and warm-edge spacers can cut solar heat gain while preserving visible 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 replaced 1980s single-pane sliders with laminated low-E impact systems. Summer season afternoon peak load dropped by approximately a ton of cooling, and the home's annual electricity usage fell between 12 and 18 percent. Outcomes vary with shading, attic insulation, and HVAC effectiveness, however the direction is consistent.
Laminated effect glass is the heart of the system, but not all laminated items are equal.
Most property typhoon windows utilize a PVB interlayer glass stack, typically 0.030 to 0.090 inches thick in single or multiple plies. Thicker interlayers improve impact resistance and sound control, however they add weight and cost. For oceanfront or tall openings, you may see SGP (ionoplast) interlayers, which are stiffer and stronger than PVB, allowing thinner areas to achieve higher style pressures. For noise-sensitive sites, acoustic PVB solutions fine-tune the polymer to better absorb noise in the 1,000 to 3,000 Hz range, where traffic and voices sit.
Tempered glass windows show up typically in conversations due to the fact that tempered glass is more powerful in bending than annealed glass. That holds true, and tempered lites are frequently utilized as the external or inner ply in an impact system. But tempered alone is not impact-resistant in the hurricane sense. When it fails, it takes off into small cubes and falls out of the frame, which leaves the opening susceptible. The effect efficiency comes from laminated building and construction, not tempering by itself. Lots of systems utilize a tempered outer lite laminated to a hardened inner lite, or both tempered, but constantly 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 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 area depends on your façade orientation and shading. On east and west elevations, I frequently tighten up SHGC and accept a minor tint to handle early morning and afternoon blasts. On north elevations, I favor higher visible transmittance for daylighting.
Frames are the other half of the story. Aluminum frames control here because they handle big openings and won't swell. Thermal breaks and improved glazing gaskets have actually narrowed the energy gap with vinyl. High-quality vinyl effect frames, when strengthened correctly, can perform well for standard-sized openings and have much better insulating worths, but I avoid them for extremely large sliders or high storefront-style windows in high-wind zones. Wood-clad systems look stunning in older Mediterranean Revival homes, but they require mindful maintenance and clever flashing. The Florida sun destroys cheap vinyl and chalks low-grade aluminum surfaces rapidly. Look for powder-coated finishes ranked for seaside exposure, and request written service warranty details in salt-air environments.
Window installation can make or break performance. A costly unit set up like a handyman swap-out will not pass a storm's stress test. The load path is the crux. Impact forces have to take a trip from the glass through the frame, to the anchors, into the substrate, and then into the structure's framing or masonry.
In concrete block building and construction, you desire stainless or hot-dipped galvanized anchors embedded into solid material. Hollow cells must be grouted or you need to hit the bond beam. Tapcons in soft, unfilled block are a failure waiting to happen. In wood-framed houses, structural screws must 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 simply visual. A properly sized backer rod and top quality polyurethane or silyl-modified polymer sealant create a durable, flexible seal that handles thermal growth. Too small a bead and it tears under motion. Too huge and it remedies improperly. On seaside jobs, I never ever match different metals without a barrier, and I always specify corrosion-resistant fasteners. Ten years later on, 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 rely on sealant alone, water will find its method. That moisture may not show up as a drip. It might rot a sill plate gradually, then betray itself as a hurricane proof window installation buckling floor or a moldy odor 2 typhoon seasons later.
I have nothing against well-designed shutters. Accordion shutters that are kept and lubed, roll-down shutters with battery backups, and even removable panels saved thoroughly can protect homes effectively. They likewise help in particular cases.
Second homes or seasonal leasings where budget is tight often lean on shutters to fulfill the Florida building code windows requirement for secured openings. On specialized openings like a lanai that is hardly ever used in summer, a clean motorized roll-down can be affordable, particularly if coupling with effect windows and doors in other places stresses the spending plan. For homeowners who prepare to move within a year, shutters can be a brief bridge to compliance before a sale.
But shutters bring trade-offs. They darken your house when deployed, and they require action at precisely the time you are juggling insurance papers, gas cans, and household logistics. During Cyclone Irma, I viewed a neighbor attempt 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 made it through with stitches. His living-room window did not. Shutters also rattle and can vibrate under continual winds, often loosening up fasteners over time if not maintained.

For long-term owners who wish to set it and forget it, effect windows give hurricane evidence windows coverage while protecting daytime and view. The convenience grows important once you have actually experienced one storm season with no preparation beyond locking the sash.
South Florida homes battle 2 fights: latent load from humidity and 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 reflect infrared energy while letting visible light through. With the best finishing stacks, you can obstruct a large part of radiant heat and UV. UV blockage in laminated units comes mainly from the interlayer itself, which usually filters 95 to 99 percent of UV, decreasing fading of materials and floor covering. Add the low-E, and you curb the solar heat that drives your air conditioning insane midafternoon.
I evaluate glass specifications 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 level closer to room temperature, which decreases condensation danger. SHGC drives just how much solar heat goes into. VT influences how bright the interior feels. Balance is crucial. Some property owners desire the crisp, clear look of greater VT, even if it indicates 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 choose a stronger tint for glare control on waterside lots that show extreme light.
In useful terms, going from clear single-pane sliders to contemporary 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 finishes, and commercial window installation a properly sized variable-speed HVAC, and you begin to build resilience. If the grid decreases and you switch to a generator, a lower cooling load indicates a smaller generator and less gallons of fuel.
Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance, or NOA, is the document you request for. It details the approved 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, consisting of the glazing makeup and hardware. If you are in Broward or Miami-Dade, your allowing office will desire this paper trail.
Statewide, the Florida Item Approval system provides FL numbers that reveal code compliance. In the remainder of the state outside the High Velocity Hurricane Zone, Florida building code windows can rely on Florida Item Approval without Miami-Dade particular NOAs. Numerous leading producers bring both. Where budget plans permit, I prefer NOA products even outside the zone due to the fact that the screening is stiffer.
NFRC labels manage energy metrics. They won't inform you impact efficiency, however they reveal U-factor, SHGC, VT, and air leak. Go for air leak at or below 0.3 cfm/ft TWO. Tighter is much better for humidity control, however make certain your home still has actually stabilized ventilation. Sealing the envelope and neglecting fresh air is a dish for indoor air quality complaints.
Impact windows cost more upfront than shutters. There's no spin around that. Set up costs vary with size, shape, surface, and access. On simple single-family homes, per-opening costs frequently land between 1,200 and 3,000 dollars for standard sizes. Big multi-panel sliders, customized arches, and coastal-grade finishes raise the numbers quickly.
Where you recoup value:
If you plan to own the home 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 offer within a year and need to show compliance quickly, shutters may make more short-term sense. Context matters.
I focus on hardware and accessories. Multi-point locks on sashes 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 style. Reflective movies can run afoul of neighborhood associations or produce mirror-like glare towards neighboring homes. In seaside environments, highly reflective glass can puzzle birds or sea turtles in some jurisdictions. Local pros know which coverings balance efficiency with compliance.
Color stability is a big deal. Dark bronze or black frames look fantastic on modern homes, however in Florida sun cheap surfaces chalk and fade. AAMA 2605-rated finishes offer the very best color retention and chalk resistance. I define them for coastal direct exposures whenever budgets allow.
Historic districts often need profiles that simulate old wood sash sightlines. There are impact-rated windows that fit these requirements, but lead times extend and costs climb. Expect additional review by architectural boards, and line up a contractor knowledgeable about these submissions.
Condos have another layer of governance. Associations in some cases specify a narrow list of approved items for uniformity. They also appreciate noise control between systems. If your structure sits directly on Collins Avenue or deals with a busy beach boardwalk, push for acoustic laminated alternatives. Deal with building management on staging and lift access. Weekend work windows and minimal parking can add days and dollars.
Large openings, like a 16-foot-wide slider, need special attention in style pressure, deflection, and running hardware. Not every unit that looks strong in a showroom meets the wind loads on a ninth-floor balcony. Do not depend on brochure optimum sizes. Use the NOA tables that correspond to your website's zone, favorable and unfavorable pressures, and mullion combinations if any.
The best jobs start with a determined survey and exposure analysis. You map each opening, keep in mind the substrate, and determine any framing irregularities or settlement cracks. During proposition, the professional shows you the NOA and the Florida Item Approval, notes anchor types, and explains how each opening will be flashed and sealed. They plan for stucco Boca Raton impact resistant windows or drywall repair work, not pretend no damage will occur.
On install day, they get rid of one opening at a time to keep your home safe. They protect floors, pull back window treatments, and cap sprinklers. Old frames bring out care to preserve interior surfaces. New units 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, specifically if they will be concealed. After glazing, they water-test with a controlled spray to validate drainage paths and seals. The inspector sees a neat jobsite, clear labels, and documentation in order.
Six months later, your windows still close with two fingers, locks bite efficiently, and there is no secret rattle during thunderstorms. You did not have to require a roller adjustment after the very first week. That is the standard.
Impact rating does not equivalent breakproof. Laminated glass can break under severe effects, but it should stay 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. Replace the sash or IGU after the event.
Window films do not convert non-impact windows into typhoon impact-resistant windows. They can include shatter resistance, but they do not substitute for a checked, anchored system. Your insurance provider and structure department will not count films as protected openings.
Interior humidity matters. Tight, energy-efficient effect windows minimize air leakage. That's fantastic, but it increases the significance of an appropriately sized a/c with good dehumidification. If your system is large, the thermostat pleases quickly and fails to pull enough moisture from the air. Ask your HVAC pro to examine sensible heat ratio, air flow, and run time. You desire stable, longer cycles, not brief bursts.
Maintenance is straightforward but not optional. Clean weep holes on sliders, wash salt spray from frames, and lube hardware each year with a silicone-based product that will not gum up in heat. Little habits extend lifespan.
There are legitimate factors to mix solutions. A set of rarely utilized garage windows can keep removable panels to shave spending plan. A deep-set deck with very little sun exposure may do fine with accordion shutters if you focus on other upgrades like a brand-new roofing system deck attachment or a fortified garage door. Shutters can likewise secure outside cooking areas or cabana openings where grease and smoke would age elegant hardware prematurely.
If you choose shutters, purchase quality. Stainless fasteners, smooth tracks, and motors with manual overrides for roll-downs make a difference. Designate obligation for release 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 enduring the huge one. They reshape 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 hurricane threatens, your preparation list gets shorter. You lock the sashes, set storm mode on the alarm, and focus on individuals rather than panels.
For a lot of my customers, that intangible is the deciding factor. They know storms will come. They likewise understand life in South Florida is too great to live inside a fortress that just awakens in August. Miami-Dade approved windows provide you both: a clear view of Biscayne Bay on a breezy February morning and peaceful self-confidence when the spaghetti models point our way in September.
If you are weighing the option, begin with a site-specific evaluation. Match your direct exposures to develop pressures, choose the right laminated glass stack for wind and heat, choose frames that fit the architecture and conditions, and hire a team that respects the load path. Done right, energy‑efficient impact windows provide what shutters can not: defense that never requests for a ladder and a much better home every best window installation options Boca Raton day of the year.