Impact Windows in Satellite Beach, FL

Satellite Beach is a good place to talk about impact windows versus hurricane shutters, because so many homes here were built in a single wave. The city was incorporated in 1957, led by Percy L. Hedgecock and his family, and Brevard's population surged through the 1960s as the aerospace program grew. Plenty of homes still carry windows from that building wave. Today the city has 11,226 residents and 5,116 housing units on a barrier island directly south of Patrick Space Force Base.

Canal-front living

Several canals connect Satellite Beach to the Indian River Lagoon, and the city has 7.7 miles of shoreline in all. Canal homes usually face the water with a wall of sliders or windows across the back. Those rear openings get wind across open water during a storm, and they are often the hardest to cover with panels because a pool cage or dock is in the way.

Shutters or impact glass?

Both meet code when they are approved products installed to their approval. The choice comes down to how you live:

• Impact windows protect the opening all the time. No one has to be home to close anything, and they cut street noise and help with security.
• Accordion shutters fold into a stack beside the window and close in minutes. They suit a back wall of sliders where you want a lower first cost.
• Roll-down or storm-panel hurricane shutters cover large openings fully, but someone has to deploy them.

Some owners in Satellite Beach mix the two: impact glass on the front and sides, shutters on the long rear wall.

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Storm history

Satellite Beach residents reported a 10-minute average wind of 63 knots during Hurricane Jeanne in 2004, and the city's beaches took enough damage that year that it later announced a large beach and dune restoration project. Direct hits on this stretch of coast are not frequent, but 2004 showed what a near miss can do, and that is why owners plan ahead.

Salt, sun and the 1960s opening

Original 1960s windows were often set into masonry with a small wood buck. Over sixty years those bucks can rot from the bottom up. We check each one with an awl when the old window comes out, replace soft wood, and use the anchors and spacing the product approval requires.

Patrick next door

Satellite Beach sits directly south of Patrick Space Force Base, and the two share the same stretch of exposed barrier island. When we plan a house here we look at which walls face the open ocean, which face the canals, and which are sheltered by neighboring homes. That tells us where higher-rated windows matter most. On many canal homes the answer is the rear wall, and on oceanside streets it is the east face. Mapping that out lets you spend on the openings that carry the most risk.

Next step

Tell us whether you lean toward glass, shutters or both, and we will price it that way. Call (321) 321-4730 or send the form with your street and the number of openings.