STS Impact Windows, Doors & Roofing is a veteran-owned company based in South Florida that specializes in premium hurricane protection solutions, including impact windows, doors, custom storefronts, and roofing. Combining over 25 years of industry experience with military precision, STS provides expert installation, full transparency, and outstanding customer service, backed by a leading 3-year installation warranty. Their comprehensive services ensure security and peace of mind for both residential and commercial clients, with a strong focus on quality, reliability, and efficiency.
View on Google MapsSTS Impact Windows and Doors specializes in hurricane protection solutions, offering high-quality impact windows, storm-resistant doors, custom storefronts, and professional roofing services. With expert installation, full transparency, and outstanding customer service, the company ensures homes and businesses stay secure and energy-efficient.
STS Impact Windows and Doors is located at 1000 Holland Dr Suite 10, Boca Raton, FL 33487, United States. The company proudly serves residential and commercial clients across Florida and throughout the United States, delivering reliable storm protection solutions. View their location on Google Maps.
Yes, STS Impact Windows and Doors is a veteran-owned company recognized for its dedication, integrity, and service to the community. This background adds an extra level of trust and reliability for homeowners and businesses seeking storm protection solutions.
STS Impact Windows and Doors provides a wide range of services including the installation of hurricane impact windows, impact doors, custom commercial storefronts, and roofing services. Each project is backed by expert craftsmanship, a 3-year installation warranty, and over 25 years of industry experience.
The company proudly serves both residential homeowners and commercial property owners. From protecting family homes to fortifying businesses with hurricane-rated storefronts, STS Impact Windows and Doors delivers customized solutions that ensure safety, durability, and efficiency.
Clients benefit from the company’s focus on quality, reliability, and efficiency. Their impact-resistant windows and doors not only enhance security and hurricane protection but also improve energy efficiency, reduce noise, and increase property value. With a 3-year installation warranty, customers can trust in long-term performance and peace of mind.
STS Impact Windows and Doors has been recognized with multiple industry honors, including the South Florida Veteran Owned Business Excellence Award, Best Hurricane Protection Provider 2023 Florida, and the Angi’s Super Service Award for Window Installation. These awards highlight their commitment to excellence, customer satisfaction, and industry leadership.
You can reach STS Impact Windows and Doors by phone at 561-600-1018 or visit their website at stswindows.com. They are open Monday through Friday from 8am to 5pm and are available on Facebook and Instagram for updates and project showcases.
Business Name: STS Impact Windows & Doors
Address: 1000 Holland Dr #10, Boca Raton, FL 33487, United States
Phone: (561)-600-1018
Hurricane season shapes life along Florida's coasts. You feel it in the method neighbors track tropical waves, the pre-storm rush to stockpile, and the ritual of carrying ladders to mount panels. After 20 years specifying, installing, and fixing structure envelopes from Secret Largo to Palm Beach, I've seen what holds up and what doesn't. When the objective is genuine protection with year-round comfort, Miami-Dade authorized, energy‑efficient impact windows outperform shutters in manner ins which surpass storm day. They change how a home feels in August, how peaceful your living room remains on a Saturday night, and how confident you are when a storm line spins up much faster than predicted.
This is a useful look at why lots of South Florida homeowners are moving from shutters to typhoon 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 Division sets among the toughest benchmarks in the country for constructing components exposed to windborne particles. Approval is not a marketing sticker. It is made through particular lab tests that imitate real hurricane conditions.
First comes big 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 very same unit deals with cyclic pressure loading, thousands of 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 distinction between "meets Florida building regulations windows" and "Miami-Dade authorized windows" frequently resides in these test thresholds. Miami-Dade is simply stiffer, particularly in High Velocity Typhoon Zone requirements, which include Miami-Dade and Broward.
Wind rankings vary by opening size and design pressures, denoted as PSF values. On ocean-facing homes or high-rises, I often specify systems rated at +60/ -80 PSF or higher. Inland or in more protected direct exposures, scores in the +45/ -60 PSF variety can be adequate, but you size and spec based on the site's wind map, building height, and surrounding structures. A professional knows that a corner direct 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 comparison. Shutters can satisfy code, and they're much better than absolutely nothing. But they ask you to do work at the worst possible time. When a watch turns to a warning and the projection track tightens, the last thing you want is a ladder, a dead cordless drill, and a missing wing nut.
Impact windows reside in location. You get constant protection, even if a pop-up storm surprises you while you're stuck on US 1. You also 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 resilient interlayer, typically PVB interlayer glass or SentryGlas. That interlayer damps noise. On jobs along busy corridors like Biscayne Boulevard or near flight paths, I've determined interior sound drops in the 5 to 10 decibel range, sometimes more when paired with insulated glass units.
Security improves because 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, stubborn membrane rather of a fast path inside. Insurance underwriters know this, which is why policies frequently use credits for effect doors and windows. In my jobs, premiums generally drop 10 to 25 percent, depending on the provider and how many openings are protected.
Energy performance is the third pillar. Energy-efficient impact windows with modern low-E impact glass and warm-edge spacers can cut solar heat gain while maintaining noticeable light. That suggests less air conditioning demand, specifically on west and south direct exposures where the afternoon sun penalizes interiors. In one Coral Gables retrofit, we replaced 1980s single-pane sliders with laminated low-E effect units. Summertime afternoon peak load visited approximately a ton of cooling, and the home's annual electrical power use fell between 12 and 18 percent. Results differ with shading, attic insulation, and HVAC effectiveness, however the direction is consistent.
Laminated impact glass is the heart of the system, but not all laminated products are equal.
Most domestic typhoon windows use a PVB interlayer glass stack, typically 0.030 to 0.090 inches thick in single or multiple plies. Thicker interlayers enhance impact resistance and sound control, but they include weight and cost. For oceanfront or tall openings, you may see SGP (ionoplast) interlayers, which are stiffer and stronger than PVB, permitting thinner areas to attain greater style pressures. For noise-sensitive websites, acoustic PVB formulations modify the polymer to much better absorb sound in the 1,000 to 3,000 Hz variety, where traffic and voices sit.
Tempered glass windows turn up often 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 used as the external or inner ply in an effect unit. However tempered alone is not impact-resistant in the cyclone sense. When it stops working, it blows up into little cubes and falls out of the frame, which leaves the opening vulnerable. The impact performance comes from laminated building and construction, not tempering by itself. Numerous systems utilize a tempered external lite laminated to a hardened inner lite, or both tempered, but constantly bonded through a PVB or ionoplast interlayer.
Low-E finishings matter for convenience. A soft-coat low-E tuned for South Florida generally 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 larger openings. The sweet spot depends upon your exterior orientation and shading. On east and west elevations, I typically tighten SHGC and accept a minor tint to manage morning and afternoon blasts. On north elevations, I lean toward greater visible transmittance for daylighting.
Frames are the other half of the story. Aluminum frames dominate here since they handle big openings and will not swell. Thermal breaks and improved glazing gaskets have actually narrowed the energy gap with vinyl. Top quality vinyl effect frames, when reinforced effectively, can perform well for standard-sized openings and have much better insulating worths, window installation costs but I avoid them for extremely large sliders or high storefront-style windows in high-wind zones. Wood-clad units look gorgeous in older Mediterranean Revival homes, but they require careful upkeep and smart flashing. The Florida sun destroys low-cost vinyl and chalks custom window installation Boca Raton low-grade aluminum finishes rapidly. Search for powder-coated finishes ranked for coastal direct exposure, and request written warranty details in salt-air environments.
Window installation can make or break efficiency. An expensive unit set up like a handyman swap-out will not pass a storm's tension test. The load course is the crux. 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 concrete block building, you want 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 happen. In wood-framed houses, structural screws need to bite into strong trimmers, not just sheathing. Shimming and plumb positioning matter so the locks engage cleanly and the weatherstripping compresses evenly.
 
The sealant joint is not simply aesthetic. A correctly sized backer rod and premium polyurethane or silyl-modified polymer sealant create a resilient, versatile seal that manages thermal growth. Too little a bead and it tears under movement. Too big and it cures improperly. On coastal jobs, I never ever pair dissimilar metals without a barrier, and I always define 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 essential. If you depend on sealant alone, water will discover its way in. That wetness may disappoint up as a drip. It may rot a sill plate gradually, then betray itself as a buckling floor or a moldy smell 2 hurricane seasons later.
 
I have nothing against well-designed shutters. Accordion shutters that are preserved and lubricated, roll-down shutters with battery backups, and even detachable panels saved carefully can secure homes effectively. They also help in certain cases.
 
Second homes or seasonal rentals where budget plan is tight sometimes lean on shutters to satisfy the Florida building regulations windows requirement for secured openings. On specialized openings like a lanai that is rarely utilized in summertime, a clean motorized roll-down can be affordable, especially if coupling with effect windows and doors in other places stresses the spending plan. For homeowners who plan to move within a year, shutters can be a short bridge to compliance before a sale.
But shutters bring trade-offs. They darken the house when released, and they require action at precisely the time you are managing insurance coverage documents, gas cans, and household logistics. During Cyclone Irma, I enjoyed a next-door neighbor attempt to install steel panels hours before landfall. The ladder sank in saturated soil, a panel slipped, and we invested the next hour in the urgent care waiting space. He survived with stitches. His living-room window did not. Shutters also rattle and can vibrate under sustained winds, in some cases loosening fasteners over time if not maintained.
For long-lasting owners who wish to set it and forget it, effect windows provide cyclone proof windows coverage while preserving daylight and view. The convenience grows valuable once you have actually experienced one storm season with no prep beyond locking the sash.
South Florida homes battle two fights: hidden load from humidity and practical 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 reflect infrared energy while letting visible light through. With the ideal coating stacks, you can obstruct a big portion of convected heat and UV. UV blockage in laminated systems comes largely from the interlayer itself, which usually filters 95 to 99 percent of UV, minimizing fading of fabrics and flooring. Add the low-E, and you curb the solar heat that drives your air conditioner crazy 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, which minimizes condensation danger. SHGC drives how much solar heat gets in. VT affects how intense the interior feels. Balance is essential. Some homeowners want the crisp, clear appearance of higher VT, even if it implies accepting a few degrees more heat in late afternoon, because their landscaping and roofing system overhangs already do some shading. Others choose a more powerful tint for glare control on waterside lots that show severe light.
In practical terms, going from clear single-pane sliders to contemporary low-E laminated double-glazed units can lower peak solar gains by 30 to half on the most exposed sides. Couple that with tuned overhangs, light-colored exterior surfaces, and an appropriately sized variable-speed HVAC, and you begin to develop resilience. If the grid goes down and you switch to a generator, a lower cooling load means a smaller generator and fewer gallons of fuel.
Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance, or NOA, is the document you ask for. It details the approved configurations, sizes, anchors, and pressures checked. It is inadequate to hear "these are Miami-Dade approved windows" in a showroom. Validate the NOA matches the precise model and choices you are purchasing, consisting of the glazing makeup and hardware. If you remain in Broward or Miami-Dade, your permitting office will want 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 Speed Cyclone Zone, Florida building code windows can rely on Florida Product Approval without Miami-Dade specific NOAs. Lots of top producers bring both. Where budget plans permit, I prefer NOA products even outside the zone because the testing is stiffer.
NFRC labels handle energy metrics. They won't tell you effect efficiency, but they show U-factor, SHGC, VT, and air leakage. Aim for air leak at or listed below 0.3 cfm/ft TWO. Tighter is much better for humidity control, but make sure your home still has actually balanced ventilation. Sealing the envelope and ignoring fresh air is a dish for indoor air quality complaints.
Impact windows cost more upfront than shutters. There's no spin around that. Installed expenses vary with size, shape, finish, and gain access to. On straightforward single-family homes, per-opening costs often land in between 1,200 and 3,000 dollars for basic sizes. Large multi-panel sliders, custom-made arches, and coastal-grade finishes raise the numbers quickly.
Where you recover value:
If you plan to own the home for five years or more, the math typically tilts in favor of impact windows, particularly when you factor the intangible of comfort. If you prepare to offer within a year and require to show compliance rapidly, shutters might make more short-term sense. Context matters.
I pay attention to hardware and devices. Multi-point locks on casements and awnings improve seal compression and security. For sliders, robust tandem rollers in stainless housings move smoother and last longer on sandy patios. Look at the sill design on sliding doors. Weep systems must be engineered to drain pipes 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 fashion. Reflective films can run afoul of neighborhood associations or produce mirror-like glare towards neighboring properties. In seaside communities, highly reflective glass can confuse birds or sea turtles in some jurisdictions. Local pros understand which finishes balance performance with compliance.
Color stability is a big deal. Dark bronze or black frames look great on contemporary homes, but in Florida sun cheap surfaces chalk and fade. AAMA 2605-rated finishes offer the best color retention and chalk resistance. I specify them for coastal Boca Raton window installers exposures whenever spending plans allow.
Historic districts often need profiles that imitate old wood sash sightlines. There are impact-rated windows that fit these requirements, but lead times lengthen 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 often define a narrow list of authorized products for uniformity. They also care about sound control in between systems. If your building 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 add days and dollars.
Large openings, like a 16-foot-wide slider, require unique attention in design pressure, deflection, and running hardware. Not every system that looks sturdy in a showroom meets the wind loads on a ninth-floor balcony. Do not count on catalog optimum sizes. Use the NOA tables that correspond to your website's zone, positive and negative pressures, and mullion combinations if any.
The best projects begin with a measured survey and direct exposure analysis. You map each opening, note the substrate, and recognize any framing irregularities or settlement fractures. Throughout proposal, the professional reveals you the NOA and the Florida Item Approval, notes anchor types, and describes how each opening will be flashed and sealed. They prepare for stucco or drywall repair work, not pretend no damage will occur.
On install day, they remove one opening at a time to keep the house safe. They protect floorings, pull back window treatments, and cap sprinklers. Old frames bring out care to maintain interior finishes. New systems get dry-fit, shimmed, and anchored per the schedule. The team checks squareness and diagonals before setting sealant. They photograph anchors for the authorization file, particularly if they will be hidden. After glazing, they water-test with a controlled spray to verify drain paths and seals. The inspector sees a neat jobsite, clear labels, and documentation in order.
Six months later on, your windows still close with two fingers, locks bite efficiently, and there is no secret rattle throughout thunderstorms. You did not have to require a roller adjustment after the first week. That is the standard.
Impact ranking does not equal breakproof. Laminated glass can crack under extreme impacts, but it should stay in the frame and hold together. After a storm that sends out debris into the glass, you may see star fractures or spidering. The window did its task. Change the sash or IGU after the event.
Window films do not transform non-impact windows into hurricane impact-resistant windows. They can add shatter resistance, but they do not replacement for an evaluated, anchored system. Your insurer and building department will not count movies as safeguarded openings.
Interior humidity matters. Tight, energy-efficient effect windows lower air leak. That's great, however it increases the value of a correctly sized a/c with good dehumidification. If your system is large, the thermostat pleases rapidly and fails to pull enough moisture from the air. Ask your a/c pro to check sensible heat ratio, air flow, and run time. You want stable, longer cycles, not brief bursts.
Maintenance is simple but not optional. Tidy weep holes on sliders, wash salt spray from frames, and lubricate hardware annually with a silicone-based product that will not gum up in heat. Small habits extend lifespan.
There are genuine reasons to blend services. A pair of hardly ever utilized garage windows can keep removable panels to shave budget plan. A deep-set patio with minimal sun direct exposure may do great with accordion shutters if you prioritize other upgrades like a new roofing system deck attachment or a prepared garage door. Shutters can likewise protect outside kitchen areas or cabana openings where grease and smoke would age expensive hardware prematurely.
If you pick shutters, purchase quality. Stainless fasteners, smooth tracks, and motors with handbook bypasses for roll-downs make a difference. Designate obligation for release and practice as soon as beyond a storm watch. Inventory your hardware. The day you require 32 wing nuts is not the morning you want to discover you have 29.
Impact windows are not just about making it through the huge one. They reshape daily living. The living-room stays cooler and quieter. The a/c 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 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 element. They know storms will come. They also know life in South Florida is too good to live inside a fortress that only gets up in August. Miami-Dade authorized windows give you both: a clear view of Biscayne Bay on a breezy February early morning and quiet confidence when the spaghetti designs point our method September.
If you are weighing the option, begin with a site-specific evaluation. Match your exposures to design pressures, select the ideal laminated glass stack for wind and heat, select frames that fit the architecture and conditions, and employ a crew that respects the load path. Done right, energy‑efficient effect windows deliver what shutters can not: protection that never requests for a ladder and a better home every day of the year.