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 stock up, and the routine of hauling ladders to install panels. After twenty years defining, setting up, and repairing building envelopes from Secret Largo to Palm Beach, I've seen what holds up and what does not. When the goal is real defense with year-round convenience, Miami-Dade authorized, energy‑efficient effect windows surpass shutters in ways that exceed 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 faster than predicted.
This is a useful take a look at why many South Florida house owners are moving from shutters to cyclone impact-resistant windows, how to read the requirements behind "Miami-Dade approved," what materials matter, and how to get the installation right the very first time.
Miami-Dade County's Product Control Department sets among the toughest benchmarks in the nation for constructing parts exposed to windborne particles. Approval is not a marketing sticker label. It is earned through particular laboratory tests that replicate genuine cyclone conditions.
First comes large missile impact. A 9-pound 2x4 is contended the glass at roughly 34 miles per hour. That imitates roofing system tiles, branches, or pieces of fencing that fly in the eyewall. After the effect, the very same unit faces cyclic pressure loading, countless pressurization and depressurization cycles that imitate quick wind gusts over hours. If the glass remains in the frame without letting the envelope breach, it passes. The distinction between "meets Florida building regulations windows" and "Miami-Dade authorized windows" typically resides in these test limits. Miami-Dade is just stiffer, especially in High Speed Cyclone Zone requirements, which include Miami-Dade and Broward.
Wind ratings differ by opening size and design pressures, denoted as PSF values. On ocean-facing properties or high-rises, I frequently specify units rated at +60/ -80 PSF or higher. Inland or in more secured exposures, rankings in the +45/ -60 PSF variety can be adequate, but you size and specification based upon the site's wind map, constructing height, and surrounding structures. A professional knows that a corner exposure at the 2nd story needs different reinforcement than a protected window under a deep porch.
Hurricane shutters vs impact windows is not a one-to-one contrast. Shutters can meet code, and they're much better than nothing. But they ask you to do operate at the worst possible time. When a watch turns to a caution and the forecast track tightens up, the last thing you desire is a ladder, a dead cordless drill, and a missing wing nut.
Impact windows live in location. You get constant security, even if a pop-up storm surprises you while you're stuck on United States 1. You likewise get advantages every day of the year.
Noise control is the most underappreciated benefit. Laminated impact glass is essentially a sandwich: two panes of glass bonded by a durable interlayer, normally PVB interlayer glass or SentryGlas. That interlayer damps sound. On tasks along busy corridors like Biscayne Boulevard or near flight courses, I've measured interior sound drops in the 5 to 10 decibel range, in some cases more when paired with insulated glass units.
Security improves since laminated glass resists forced entry. An intruder can shatter the external lite with a hammer, however the interlayer holds the shards. They satisfy a sticky, persistent membrane rather of a quick course inside. Insurance coverage underwriters understand this, which is why policies often offer credits for effect windows and doors. In my projects, premiums generally drop 10 to 25 percent, depending on the provider and how many openings are protected.
Energy efficiency is the 3rd pillar. Energy-efficient impact windows with modern low-E impact glass and warm-edge spacers can cut solar heat gain while preserving noticeable light. That means less cooling need, especially 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 impact systems. Summertime afternoon peak load visited roughly a lots of cooling, and the home's annual electricity usage fell between 12 and 18 percent. Results vary with shading, attic insulation, and HVAC efficiency, but the direction is consistent.
Laminated impact glass is the heart of the system, however not all laminated products are equal.
Most domestic cyclone windows use a PVB interlayer glass stack, typically 0.030 to 0.090 inches thick in single or numerous plies. Thicker interlayers enhance effect 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 stronger than PVB, permitting thinner sections to accomplish higher design pressures. For noise-sensitive websites, acoustic PVB formulations tweak the polymer to much better absorb noise in the 1,000 to 3,000 Hz variety, where traffic and voices sit.
Tempered glass windows show up often in conversations because tempered glass is stronger in flexing than annealed glass. That's true, and tempered lites are typically used as the external or inner ply in an impact unit. But tempered alone is not impact-resistant in the typhoon 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. Many systems utilize a tempered outer lite laminated to an annealed inner lite, or both tempered, however always bonded through a PVB or ionoplast interlayer.
Low-E coatings matter for convenience. A soft-coat low-E tuned for South Florida normally targets a solar heat gain coefficient in the 0.25 to 0.35 variety while keeping noticeable light transmission around 50 percent or greater. Go too short on SHGC and the glass can look gray or green, particularly in bigger openings. The sweet spot depends on your exterior orientation and shading. On east and west elevations, I often tighten up SHGC and accept a slight tint to handle early morning and afternoon blasts. On north elevations, I lean toward higher visible transmittance for daylighting.
Frames are the other half of the story. Aluminum frames dominate here because they manage large openings and won't swell. Thermal breaks and improved glazing gaskets have actually narrowed the energy gap with vinyl. Premium vinyl impact frames, when reinforced appropriately, can perform well for standard-sized openings and have better insulating values, but I avoid them for extremely large 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 destroys low-cost vinyl and chalks low-grade aluminum surfaces quickly. Look for powder-coated surfaces ranked for seaside direct exposure, and demand composed warranty information in salt-air environments.
Window setup can make or break performance. A pricey system set up 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 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 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 aesthetic. A correctly sized backer rod and high-quality polyurethane or silyl-modified polymer sealant create a long lasting, flexible seal that deals with thermal expansion. Too little a bead and it tears under motion. Too huge and it cures badly. On seaside jobs, I never match 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 window installation costs Boca Raton jambs and heads, and integration with the water-resistive barrier are vital. If you depend on sealant alone, water will discover its method. That moisture might not show up as a drip. It might rot a sill plate gradually, then betray itself as a buckling floor or a moldy smell 2 cyclone seasons later.
I have absolutely nothing versus properly designed shutters. Accordion shutters that are preserved and lubed, roll-down shutters with battery backups, and even removable panels saved carefully can secure homes effectively. They also assist in specific cases.
Second homes or seasonal rentals where spending plan is tight in some cases lean on shutters to satisfy the Florida building code windows requirement for protected openings. On specialized openings like a lanai that is hardly ever utilized in summer, a clean motorized roll-down can be sensible, specifically if coupling with effect windows and doors in other places worries the spending plan. For property owners who plan to move within a year, shutters can be a brief bridge to compliance before a sale.
But shutters bring trade-offs. They darken your home when released, and they require action at exactly the time you are handling insurance papers, gas cans, and family logistics. During Typhoon Irma, I watched a next-door 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 survived with stitches. His living-room window did not. Shutters also rattle and can vibrate under continual winds, in some cases loosening fasteners with time if not maintained.
For long-term owners who wish to set it and forget it, effect windows give cyclone proof windows coverage while maintaining daylight and view. The convenience grows important once you've experienced one storm season with zero preparation beyond locking the sash.
South Florida homes fight two fights: hidden load from humidity and reasonable load from direct solar heat gain. Impact glass upgrades can help both if defined intelligently.
Low-E effect glass utilizes microscopically thin metal layers to show infrared energy while letting visible light through. With the best coating stacks, you can block a big part of radiant heat and UV. UV clog in laminated units comes mainly from the interlayer itself, which normally filters 95 to 99 percent of UV, reducing fading of materials and floor covering. Include the low-E, and you suppress the solar heat that drives your AC crazy midafternoon.
I assess glass specs with 3 numbers: U-factor, SHGC, and VT. While U-factor matters more up north, it still assists here by lowering nighttime heat flow and keeping the interior glass temperature level closer to space temperature level, which reduces condensation danger. SHGC drives how much solar heat enters. VT influences how intense the interior feels. Balance is essential. Some property owners desire the crisp, clear appearance of higher VT, even if it means accepting a few degrees more heat in late afternoon, due to the fact that their landscaping and roof overhangs already do some shading. Others choose a stronger tint for glare control on waterfront lots that show harsh light.
In practical terms, going from clear single-pane sliders to modern-day low-E laminated double-glazed units can minimize peak solar gains by 30 to half on the most exposed sides. Couple that with tuned overhangs, light-colored outside surfaces, and an appropriately sized variable-speed heating and cooling, and you begin to construct durability. If the grid goes down and you change to a generator, a lower cooling load means a smaller sized generator and less gallons of fuel.
Miami-Dade Notice of Approval, or NOA, is the document you ask for. It information the approved configurations, sizes, anchors, and pressures tested. It is inadequate to hear "these are Miami-Dade authorized windows" in a display room. Validate the NOA matches the specific design and alternatives you are purchasing, including the glazing makeup and hardware. If you remain in Broward or Miami-Dade, your permitting workplace will desire this paper trail.
Statewide, the Florida Product Approval system offers FL numbers that reveal code compliance. In the rest of the state outside the High Speed Cyclone Zone, Florida building code windows can depend on Florida Product Approval without Miami-Dade specific NOAs. Numerous leading makers carry both. Where budget plans enable, I prefer NOA items even outside the zone due to the fact that the screening is stiffer.
NFRC labels handle energy metrics. They won't inform you impact performance, but they reveal U-factor, SHGC, VT, and air leakage. Go for air leak at or below 0.3 cfm/ft ². Tighter is better for humidity control, but make certain your home still has actually balanced ventilation. Sealing the envelope and disregarding fresh air is a recipe for indoor air quality complaints.
Impact windows cost more in advance than shutters. There's no spin around that. Installed costs vary with size, shape, finish, and access. On uncomplicated single-family homes, per-opening costs typically land in 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 worth:
If you plan to own the property for 5 years or more, the math often tilts in favor of effect windows, especially when you factor the intangible of comfort. If you plan to offer within a year and need to show compliance rapidly, shutters might make more short-term sense. Context matters.
I pay attention to hardware and accessories. Multi-point locks on casements and awnings improve seal compression and security. For sliders, robust tandem rollers in stainless real estates glide smoother and last longer on sandy patio areas. Look at the sill design on moving doors. Weep systems must be engineered to drain heavy rainfall 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 contravene of neighborhood associations or produce mirror-like glare towards neighboring residential or commercial properties. In seaside environments, extremely reflective glass can puzzle 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 wonderful on modern-day homes, but in Florida sun inexpensive surfaces chalk and fade. AAMA 2605-rated finishes provide the very best color retention and chalk resistance. I specify them for seaside exposures whenever spending plans allow.
Historic districts often require profiles that imitate old wood sash sightlines. There are impact-rated windows that fit these requirements, however lead times lengthen and costs climb. Expect additional review by architectural boards, and line up a specialist familiar with these submissions.
Condos have another layer of governance. Associations often specify a narrow list of authorized products for harmony. They likewise appreciate noise control in between units. If your structure sits directly on Collins Avenue or deals with a busy beach boardwalk, push for acoustic laminated options. 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 special attention in style pressure, deflection, and running hardware. Not every system that looks sturdy in a showroom satisfies the wind loads on a ninth-floor veranda. Do not depend on catalog maximum sizes. Utilize the NOA tables that correspond to your website's zone, favorable and unfavorable pressures, and mullion mixes if any.
The finest projects start with a measured survey and exposure analysis. You map each opening, keep in mind the substrate, and recognize any framing irregularities or settlement cracks. During proposition, the specialist reveals you the NOA and the Florida Item Approval, lists anchor types, and describes how each opening will be flashed and sealed. They plan 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 safe. They safeguard 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 authorization file, specifically if they will be hidden. After glazing, they water-test with a controlled spray to confirm drain paths and seals. The inspector sees a neat jobsite, clear labels, and documents in order.
Six months later on, your windows still close with two fingers, locks bite smoothly, and there is no mystery rattle throughout thunderstorms. You did not need to call for a roller change after the very first week. That is the standard.
Impact score does not equivalent breakproof. Laminated glass can split under extreme effects, but it should stay in the frame and hold together. After a storm that sends out particles into the glass, you may see star cracks or spidering. The window did its job. Replace the sash or IGU after the event.
Window movies do not convert non-impact windows into cyclone impact-resistant windows. They can add shatter resistance, however they do not replacement for an evaluated, anchored system. Your insurer and building department will not count movies as protected openings.
Interior humidity matters. Tight, energy-efficient effect windows reduce air leakage. That's fantastic, but it increases the importance of a properly sized HVAC with excellent dehumidification. If your system is oversized, the thermostat satisfies quickly and fails to pull enough moisture from the air. Ask your a/c pro to inspect reasonable heat ratio, air flow, and run time. You desire stable, longer cycles, not short bursts.
Maintenance is straightforward however not optional. Clean weep holes on sliders, wash salt spray from frames, and oil hardware each year with a silicone-based product that will not gum up in heat. Little routines extend lifespan.
There are legitimate reasons to blend services. A pair of hardly ever utilized garage windows can keep removable panels to shave budget. A deep-set porch with very little sun direct exposure may do fine with accordion shutters if you focus on other upgrades like a brand-new roofing deck attachment or a prepared garage door. Shutters can likewise protect outside cooking areas or cabana openings where grease and smoke would age fancy hardware prematurely.
If you choose shutters, buy quality. Stainless fasteners, smooth tracks, and motors with handbook bypasses for roll-downs make a difference. Designate duty for deployment and practice when beyond a storm watch. Inventory your hardware. The day you need 32 wing nuts is not the early morning you want to discover you have 29.
Impact windows are not just about making it through the big one. They reshape daily living. The living-room remains cooler and quieter. The air conditioner cycles calmly rather of racing at 4 p.m. You sleep without freight trains of wind noise when a squall line passes at 2 a.m. When a typhoon threatens, your preparation list gets much shorter. You lock the sashes, set storm mode on the alarm, and focus on individuals rather than panels.
For a number of my customers, that intangible is the choosing factor. They understand storms will come. They also know life in South Florida is too great to live inside a fortress that only gets up in August. Miami-Dade authorized windows offer you both: a clear view of Biscayne Bay on a breezy February early morning and quiet confidence when the spaghetti models point our method September.
If you are weighing the option, start with a site-specific evaluation. Match your exposures to develop pressures, pick the best laminated glass stack for wind and heat, choose frames that fit the architecture and conditions, and hire a crew that respects the load path. Done right, energy‑efficient effect windows deliver what shutters can not: security that never ever requests a ladder and a much better home every day of the year.