Doors & Windows
Impact doors and windows — ECO Window Systems, Mr. Glass, PGT, CGI, ES Windows and CWS product lines — supplied, permitted and installed, with the bucking and waterproofing detailed properly. Product approval numbers go on the permit, not into a conversation.
An impact opening is only as good as the hole it sits in. The buck, the anchors, the shim pattern and the waterproofing are what the inspection is actually about, and they are what an insurer's mitigation credit eventually rests on.
Product approval numbers go on the permit, where they can be checked.
- Bucking, anchoring and waterproofing detailed, not assumed
- Product approvals on the permit
- Done by our own team
The product lines we install
We install five impact product lines. The opening decides the product, not the other way round, and the approval number for the exact product goes on the permit.
ECO Window Systems
ECO Window Systems builds aluminum impact windows and doors in Miami-Dade County: single-hung, horizontal-rolling and fixed windows, sliding, outswing and pivot doors, and storefront systems for larger openings. Its impact glass is laminated, with a plastic interlayer bonded between two panes that holds the glass in the frame if it breaks, and its Florida Product Approvals include large- and small-missile ratings on series such as its single-hung window and its sliding door.
Mr. Glass
Mr. Glass also makes its windows and doors in Miami-Dade County: aluminum impact windows from single-hung to casement, sliding and pivot doors, and Low-E glass options to cut heat gain. It publishes a Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance and a Florida Product Approval for each series, and we check the one for the exact product against the county's and the state's records before it goes on the permit.
PGT
PGT makes impact windows and doors in both aluminum and vinyl frames, rated for large- and small-missile impact, and publishes Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance and Florida Product Approval numbers model by model. Its glass options (low-E coatings, tints and argon-filled insulating glass) are where energy performance is chosen. It also makes non-impact lines, for openings that will be protected another way.
CGI
CGI makes impact windows and doors in Hialeah, in aluminum and vinyl frames: single-hung, horizontal-rolling, project-out and fixed windows, and outswing doors. Its impact glass is laminated, with insulated laminated and low-E options, and it publishes Miami-Dade Notices of Acceptance in large- and small-missile versions. Approvals expire and lines change, so we check that the approval for the exact product is current before it goes on the permit.
ES Windows
ES Windows makes aluminum impact windows and doors in South Florida and processes its own aluminum and glass: casement, single-hung and horizontal-rolling windows, and sliding doors tested for large- and small-missile impact. Its glass is laminated, or insulated and laminated, and its published specifications give the solar heat gain for each product, which is the figure that matters for a cooling bill.
CWS
CWS, Custom Window Systems, builds impact-resistant windows and doors in vinyl and aluminum at its plant in Ocala, Florida, and has made windows and doors for hurricane zones since 1986. It is a Pella brand, sold through installing dealers, and its range includes custom-configured windows, doors and porch enclosures. Approvals expire and lines change, so we check that the approval for the exact product is current before it goes on the permit.
Which window for which house
Impact or not. Impact glass is laminated: when it breaks it stays in the frame and the opening stays closed, which is what South Florida's code asks of an opening in a hurricane. A non-impact window needs shutters or panels to meet the same requirement, and somebody has to put them up.
Aluminum or vinyl. Aluminum carries large openings in slim frames and is the usual choice for sliding doors and window walls; vinyl insulates better and is often chosen for windows where the cooling bill is the point. Either way, the frame is only as good as its approval for the size of the opening.
Block or frame. In a concrete-block house the window is anchored through a wood buck into the masonry; in a frame house it is anchored into the framing. The approval gives a different anchor schedule for each, and the one that matches the wall is the one that goes on the permit.
Replacing a damaged opening. The new window has to meet the code in force today, not the one the house was built under, so the replacement is specified to current code rather than copied from what was there.
ECO Window Systems, Mr. Glass, PGT, CGI, ES Windows and CWS are their makers' names and trademarks. The descriptions here are ours, written from each maker's published product information; no logo, photograph or sentence is taken from their sites.