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AfterCustom Windows & Doors in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, FL: Cost, HVHZ Rules, and What Replacement Actually Involves
Custom window and door replacement in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea typically runs $850-$2,400 per opening for impact-rated units installed, depending on size, frame material, and what we find when the old unit comes out. A whole-home conversion on a 1950s CBS cottage usually lands between $14,000 and $38,000. The single biggest variable is not the glass. It is what sits behind the old frame: corroded jambs, missing flashing tape, or water damage that Broward County code requires us to fix before the new unit goes in. Call (850) 303-7739 for a written estimate. We measure twice, quote manufacturer lines side by side on paper, and register both warranty layers before the truck leaves the driveway.
Why TruePane Windows & Doors Is Lauderdale-by-the-Sea’s Preferred Custom Windows & Doors Company
We have spent years opening walls in South Florida beach towns, and Lauderdale-by-the-Sea genuinely earns its reputation as one of the toughest environments for windows anywhere in Broward. It is not just the oceanfront. The entire town is less than a mile wide, so salt spray reaches every single property. Our crews know what that means at the sill, the weep hole, and the hinge. Quietly, we route regular visits through Lauderdale-by-the-Sea every week, because the work is steady and we know the housing stock.
Our Custom Windows & Doors team has handled dozens of jalousie-to-impact conversions in town, and the reviews from Lauderdale-by-the-Sea homeowners reflect the same themes: the crew showed up when we said, the old unit came out without cracking the CBS wall, and the new window is true. Dale Kessler founded this company in 2008 on a rule written on his whiteboard: if the pane is not true, the job is not done. Our techs are background-checked and uniformed, and they treat a customer’s home the way they would treat their own mother’s. We also answer the phone live, 24/7. No voicemail tree, no regional call center. You call (850) 303-7739, a person answers.
Our Custom Windows & Doors Services in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea
Custom Shape Windows
Lauderdale-by-the-Sea cottages from the 1950s and 60s often have eyebrow windows, porthole windows, and oddly angled transoms that were shaped to match the era’s beach aesthetic. Big-box replacements do not fit these openings, and a square retrofit looks wrong. We order radius, trapezoid, and elliptical units built to the exact rough opening. Every custom shape we install in LBTS is impact-rated to HVHZ standards and ordered with stainless hardware, because a round window a block from the ocean will corrode if we spec ordinary zinc fasteners.
Architectural Grilles & SDLs
Simulated divided lites give a cottage the look of original wood muntins without the maintenance headache of wood in salt air. We quote Marvin, Milgard, and Simonton SDL configurations side by side so you see exactly what each manufacturer charges for the grille pattern, the spacer bar, and the finish. In Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, we strongly recommend a factory-applied grille rather than a snap-in, because snap-in grilles collect salt film at the edges and become brittle within a few years.
Oversized Glass Panels
Low-rise condos along El Mar Drive and the side streets off Commercial Boulevard often have sliding glass walls facing the ocean. When those openings get reglazed, the panel has to handle both HVHZ wind load and a salt environment that eats standard aluminum. We measure these openings in person, twice. Then we order fusion-welded or mechanically fastened frames with heavy-gauge stainless hardware. Oversized panel work in LBTS is not a catalog order. It is a custom fabrication job, and we treat it that way.
Commercial Storefront Glazing
The storefronts along Commercial Boulevard, from the pier west to the bridge, sit in the same salt corridor as the homes. Aluminum storefront frames powder at the mullions and the glass stops bind. We handle storefront reglazing and replacement for the small businesses in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, usually scheduling the work early morning or late evening so the store stays open during business hours. Impact-rated storefront systems with stainless fasteners are the standard for us here. Nothing less survives five years.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea
We are an authorized installer for more than a dozen manufacturer lines, and we quote them side by side on paper so you see exactly what each line costs before you commit. For Lauderdale-by-the-Sea specifically, the brands we most often recommend are Marvin for cottage-style wood interiors, Milgard for mid-century aluminum replacements, and Simonton for impact-rated sliders and casements at a fair price. We keep common hardware, weatherstripping, and operator parts for these lines stocked locally, so we are not waiting on a shipment from the manufacturer every time a hinge fails or a lock set strips.
Common Custom Windows & Doors Problems We See in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea Homes
- Aluminum jalousie frames corroding to white powder at the sill. Jalousies are everywhere in LBTS’s 1950s-70s stock. We regularly see weep holes plugged with crystalline corrosion and hinge hardware snapped. There is no repair path to HVHZ compliance. The fix is full replacement.
- Fogged insulated glass in original single-pane sliders. Constant salt air and thermal cycling cause seals to fail early here. The fog you see inside the glass means the unit has lost its gas fill and its insulating value. On a home this close to the Atlantic, replacement is not cosmetic. It is a structural requirement.
- Rotted wood bucks behind older retrofits. Many LBTS homes were retrofitted years ago without full perimeter flashing tape. Wind-driven rain at the jamb gets behind the frame, rots the wood buck, and floods the sill during even minor storms. When we open the wall, we fix it right with fresh framing and flashing, not caulk.
- Corroded door hardware on ocean-facing entry doors. Locksets, hinges, and threshold caps within a few blocks of the water accumulate salt film. We replace standard hardware with marine-grade stainless and adjust the door to swing true in the frame. A door that binds in July is a door the salt has already started to work on.
Pricing for Custom Windows & Doors in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, FL
Here are the ranges we actually see on Lauderdale-by-the-Sea jobs in 2026. A standard impact-rated casement or single-hung runs $850-$1,900 per opening installed. An impact-rated sliding glass door runs $2,400-$5,800. Custom shape windows start around $1,200 and go up with size and radius complexity. Oversized oceanfront panels often exceed $6,000 per opening because of the engineering and crane or two-man lift work required. Architectural grilles and SDLs add $150-$400 per sash depending on the pattern and manufacturer. Full jalousie-to-impact conversions on a 1,200-square-foot cottage typically run $18,000-$32,000. Every quote is a written, line-item price. No allowances hiding in a footnote. Call (850) 303-7739 to schedule a free estimate.
We Also Serve Cities Near Lauderdale-by-the-Sea
Our crews cover Lauderdale-by-the-Sea plus the nearby communities of Lauderhill, Lauderdale Lakes, Sunrise, and Tamarac. If you have custom window or door work in one of those cities, call (850) 303-7739 and we will schedule the same way we do for our LBTS customers: measured twice, quoted on paper, installed true.
Serving Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, FL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Lauderdale-by-the-Sea area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Custom Windows & Doors in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea
Jalousie windows are explicitly prohibited under current Florida HVHZ impact standards, so there is no repair path that brings a jalousie into compliance. The only lawful option is full replacement with impact-rated units. In Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, this is complicated by the age and geometry of the original openings, but we handle it every week. Call (850) 303-7739 for an exact quote. Estimates are free.
We inspect every opening before quoting, and we write an allowance into the contract for what we expect to find. If we open the wall and discover rotted wood, missing flashing, or undersized framing, we price the fix right there in writing and get your approval before we touch it. Nothing gets added to the bill that we did not show you first. That policy is part of the Done Right Promise. Call (850) 303-7739 with questions.
Yes. Lauderdale-by-the-Sea sits entirely within Broward County’s High Velocity Hurricane Zone, and any new window or door must carry HVHZ product approval. That is not an upsell. It is the law, and we will not install a non-compliant unit even if a homeowner asks. We order only impact-rated glass with the proper approval stickers, and we register the manufacturer’s warranty on every opening. Call (850) 303-7739 for a free estimate.
Yes, but the bigger benefit in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea is not the energy savings. It is the air sealing. The town’s salt air works on your windows year-round, but so does the humidity. Impact-rated units with insulated glass cut the constant infiltration that makes your air conditioner run longer and your interiors feel sticky within a few blocks of the water. The energy savings are real, but the comfort difference is what homeowners mention first. Call (850) 303-7739 to discuss your specific cottage.
Because Lauderdale-by-the-Sea is less than a mile wide from the Atlantic to its western boundary. Every property in town sits in constant salt-laden air. In Fort Lauderdale, inland neighborhoods get a natural buffer from the ocean breeze, but in LBTS there is no inland. The entire town is a coastal zone. That is why we specify stainless hardware and marine-grade finishes as the default here, not an upgrade. Call (850) 303-7739 for a quote on replacement units that are built for this specific environment.
Written by Dale Kessler, Owner at TruePane Windows & Doors, serving Lauderdale-by-the-Sea and surrounding Broward communities since 2008.
Six Reasons Homeowners Choose TruePane Windows & Doors
Impact systems engineered to design pressures up to +/-100, matched to your wind zone - your openings hold when the storm arrives.
Low-E insulated impact glass from our manufacturer lines commonly cuts monthly cooling bills 20-30%.
Laminated impact glass shuts out up to 40% of outside noise - traffic, neighbors, weather.
Monitoring services run $30-90 a month. Laminated impact glass resists forced entry around the clock, with no subscription.
Florida homeowners average around 25% savings on the windstorm portion of their policy after protecting every opening - some homes qualify for more.
A full impact package upgrades curb appeal, buyer confidence and appraised value in one project.