Before & After Gallery - Sightline Windows & Doors South Miami Heights

Windows & Doors Before & After in South Miami Heights, FL

We’ve installed more than 18,000 windows and doors since 2012, and every job leaves a documented photo record. This page shows what that evidence looks like: the condition we found, the product we specified, and the finished opening. No renderings, no stock photography - these are actual South Miami Heights installations with measured surveys, written scopes, and signed completion records.

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Recent Transformations

Impact Window Replacement - Single-Hung to PGT WinGuard in a 1987 CBS Home

The homeowner’s original aluminum single-hungs had lost their glazing seals sometime after Hurricane Irma, and the west-facing frames were showing white corrosion bloom typical of CBS homes in South Miami Heights that catch afternoon salt air off the Everglades edge. We measured every rough opening - three came back 1/4 inch out of square, which we noted on the survey the customer kept. We specified PGT WinGuard single-hungs with a 0.30 U-factor and 0.23 SHGC for that exposure, pulled the HVHZ permit, and installed with 3/8-inch Tapcon anchors at 8-inch centers per the engineer’s detail. The photo record shows the anchor pattern, the shimming, and the finished interior trim. Written price before work started: $8,400 for eleven openings. No change order.

Sliding Glass Door Replacement - Rusted Rollers to CGI Sentinel Impact Slider

This was a 1994 slider on a home near Quail Roost Drive where the aluminum track had corroded through and the rollers had ground flat against the sub-sill. The door hadn’t opened in four months, and the homeowner was using a dowel in the track as a security measure. We found 3/8-inch of sill rot beneath the track once we pulled the unit - documented in the photo record before we touched it. We specified a CGI Sentinel Series impact slider with stainless steel tandem rollers and a composite sill cap, installed over a new pressure-treated sill pan sloped to the exterior per Florida Building Code R612.5. The multi-point lock engages at three points instead of one. The measured survey showed the rough opening was actually 96-1/4 inches by 80 inches, not the 96 by 80 the homeowner had been quoted by another company - that 1/4 inch would have meant a custom order and a six-week delay. We caught it during measurement, specified the standard size, and saved three weeks. Written price: $3,850. Completed in one day.

Energy-Efficient Window Upgrade - Clear Glass to ECO Window Systems Low-E Vinyl

A homeowner near SW 112th Avenue called after their July FPL bill hit $340 for a 1,450-square-foot home. The south-facing master bedroom and kitchen were unusable after 2 PM. We used a laser thermometer during the survey: 118°F surface temperature on the clear glass at 3:30 PM, 94°F on the interior sill. The existing vinyl frames were structurally sound but the glazing was doing nothing for solar heat gain. We specified ECO Window Systems double-hung replacements with a 0.26 U-factor, 0.18 SHGC, and argon fill - the SHGC number matters more than U-factor in South Miami Heights because cooling load dominates here, not heating. We kept the existing frames where they were square and replaced the sashes and insulated glass units, which cut the installed price by 30% versus full-frame replacement. The photo record includes the laser readings before and after. Written price: $6,200 for fourteen sashes. The homeowner’s August bill came in at $218; we didn’t ask for it, they sent the screenshot.

Impact Garage Door Installation - Non-Rated to Mr-Glass Impact-Rated Sectional

This was a 2009 home near SW 157th Avenue where the original garage door had no wind-load rating at all - pre-2010 installations in Miami-Dade often don’t. The homeowner’s insurance renewal was denied until they provided a Florida Product Approval number for the garage door. We found the existing door was a 25-gauge non-reinforced section on 16-gauge track with a standard torsion spring sized for 8-10 PSF wind load; South Miami Heights requires design pressure of +37.5/-37.5 PSF for that exposure category. We specified a Mr-Glass impact-rated sectional with 24-gauge reinforced sections, 14-gauge galvanized track, and a spring system rated for 100,000 cycles at the higher door weight. The photo record shows the old spring tension measurement (we unwound it with winding bars, documented), the new track anchor pattern into the CMU header with 1/2-inch wedge anchors at 12-inch centers, and the Florida Product Approval sticker on the completed door. We pulled the permit and scheduled inspection. Written price: $4,100 including permit and inspection. Insurance reinstated.

Custom Geometric Window - Rectangular Opening to ViewLux Polygon

A homeowner in the Heights wanted natural light in a stairwell that had been drywalled over during a previous owner’s remodel. The rough opening was 48 by 48, but the ceiling pitch meant a standard rectangle would look wrong - the top of the window needed to follow the 6:12 roof slope. We measured the sightlines from three positions on the stairs, then worked with ViewLux on a trapezoid with a 26.5-degree top angle, impact-rated laminated glass, and an integrated nailing flange because the opening was sheathed with no existing brickmold. The factory turn time was four weeks; we built the temporary weather barrier and scheduled the install the day the unit arrived. The photo record shows the templated cardboard mockup we left with the homeowner for approval, the factory crate with the ViewLux serial number, and the finished interior trim with the sightline measurement from the landing - 14 feet 3 inches to the center of the glass, exactly as specified. Written price: $2,850 for the custom unit, $480 for the trim integration. No surprises.

Front Door Replacement - Hollow-Core to Therma-Tru Fiberglass with Impact Sidelite

The homeowner near SW 184th Street had a front door that leaked during every summer storm and rattled in anything over 20 mph. We found the steel skin was delaminating from the core - common on 1990s hollow-core units in South Miami Heights where the afternoon rain hits the door directly - and the sidelite was single-pane annealed glass with a crack propagating from the corner. The threshold was original aluminum with the compression seal worn to nothing. We specified a Therma-Tru Fiber-Classic fiberglass door with a mahogany grain, impact-rated sidelite with laminated glass and a .090 interlayer, and a multi-point lock with three deadbolts. The adjustable composite threshold has five height settings; we set it at 3/8-inch compression against the door bottom based on the measured gap. The photo record shows the delamination documented before removal, the rough opening moisture reading (14% - acceptable, no rot), and the finished door with the lock engagement sequence. Written price: $3,400. The homeowner noted the hallway stopped smelling musty after the first hard rain.

Before

After

Want Results Like These?

Every job starts with a measured survey you keep, a written price that doesn’t change, and a crew identified by license number before they arrive. Call (786) 481-0414 to schedule your free estimate. We’ll review your openings, name the product and the price in writing, and show you documented examples from South Miami Heights jobs we’ve completed under the Haven Standard. If you have a written estimate from another company, we’ll give you a free second opinion - Haven Clause 1 means the measurement and the quote are the same document, and we’re happy to show you how that works.

Written by Sonia Raman, Owner at Sightline Windows & Doors South Miami Heights, serving South Miami Heights since 2012.