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PGT Impact Windows in Fort Lauderdale: What to Know First
TruePane Windows & Doors installs, replaces, and services PGT impact windows throughout Fort Lauderdale as an independent PGT service provider. Most PGT repairs or single-unit replacements in the area are completed within three to five business days once parts arrive from our supplier network, and every quote is a line-item price on paper so you know what you’re paying before we start. We are not the cheapest bid in town, and we don’t try to be. Call (754) 310-3589 for a free estimate from a crew that has been setting glass in South Florida homes for over 42 years.
This page is written for the homeowner who already owns PGT windows or is considering them for a Fort Lauderdale property, and wants straight answers about failure modes, replacement costs, and what a proper install actually entails. No brochure talk. Just what we see in the field.
How PGT Products Fail - and How We Fix Them
PGT builds a solid impact product, but every window line has its habits after a decade of salt air and hurricane seasons. Here is what we encounter most on service calls from Las Olas Isles to Coral Ridge:
- WinGuard aluminum frames with weep-hole corrosion. The original WinGuard series, still common in homes built between 2005 and 2015, uses aluminum frames with small weep holes at the sill. In Fort Lauderdale, wind-driven rain carries salt that sits in those channels and slowly eats the frame from the inside out. You’ll see white crust around the sill or a window that drains onto the interior track. The fix is not caulk. We remove the sash, clean the channel, and replace the damaged frame section or the full unit depending on how far the corrosion has run.
- Sentinel series IG seal fogging after pressure washing. PGT’s Sentinel line (formerly part of the Custom Window line) uses insulated glass units that are tough, but the edge seal does not forgive a pressure washer held too close. We see fogged units on second-story windows where a neighbor’s cleaning crew aimed a 3000-psi wand at the frame from six inches away. The seal separates, moisture gets in, and the glass looks milky. PGT’s warranty covers seal failure from manufacturing defects, but pressure-washer damage is not a warranty item. We replace the IG unit and re-set the glazing bead, and we tell the customer to keep pressure washers off impact glass, period.
- Wingard casement operators that bind in the July heat. Crank-out PGT WinGuard casements have a small gear-and-arm operator mechanism that wears when the window is opened daily in a coastal climate. The arm flexes, the gear strips, and the crank spins without moving the sash. Some homeowners replace the entire window. Most of the time, the correct repair is a new operator assembly, which costs a fraction of a full unit and takes about an hour per window.
- Laminated glass delamination at the edges on older units. PGT impact glass is a sandwich of two glass panes with a polymer interlayer. After 15-plus years of direct sun exposure on an east-facing elevation, that interlayer can begin to separate at the edges, showing as a cloudy or silvered band around the perimeter. This is not a DIY project. The glass must be replaced as a unit, and the new glass has to match the frame’s glazing pocket exactly or the window will not seat correctly against the gasket.
- Roller wear on PGT sliding doors from the Custom Window and WinGuard lines. Sliding impact doors get heavy, especially the 2-panel configurations with laminated glass. The rollers underneath are steel wheels in a plastic housing, and after years of weight and salt exposure the housing cracks and the door grinds along the track. We replace the roller assemblies with the correct load-rated part for the panel weight, re-align the track, and check the keeper for slop. Done right, the door moves with two fingers again.
Our PGT Impact Windows Process
Here is how a PGT job runs at TruePane Windows & Doors, from the first call to the final walk-around:
- 1
We answer the phone, listen, and schedule a visit. A live person takes your call 24 hours a day. We ask what you’re seeing: fog, binding, a crank that spins, water on the sill. That tells us what to bring.
- 2
We measure every opening twice. Our technicians are background-checked and uniformed, and each one carries a tape and a notepad. We measure the rough opening, the frame pocket, and the existing unit’s glass thickness before we quote anything.
- 3
We specify the fix on paper. If a repair makes sense, we quote the repair. If the frame is gone, we quote a replacement unit and show you comparable lines side by side, PGT against CGI, CWS, or ES Windows, so you see exactly what each line costs and why.
- 4
We source parts the right way. For warranty-covered work, we source PGT OEM parts. For out-of-warranty units, we use OEM where the part affects weather sealing or structural integrity, and quality aftermarket hardware where it’s a direct match and saves real money. We tell you which is which before we order.
- 5
We set the window and test it. After installation, we check the reveal, the seal, the operation, and the drainage. Impact windows in Fort Lauderdale have to close the way a bank vault door closes: square, flush, and quiet.
- 6
We leave it clean and stand behind it. Every job is covered by our 90-Day Done Right Promise. Both manufacturer warranty layers get registered in writing before the truck leaves the driveway. If something isn’t right in those 90 days, we come back and make it right, no paperwork fights.
What PGT Impact Windows Costs in Fort Lauderdale
Straight numbers, based on what we quote in Fort Lauderdale today:
- Single PGT WinGuard replacement window (standard 36″ x 60″ opening, aluminum frame, laminated glass): $950 - $1,400 installed.
- Single PGT Sentinel or EnergyVue replacement (vinyl frame, standard size): $1,100 - $1,600 installed.
- IG unit seal replacement (fogged glass only, frame in good shape): $350 - $600 per unit.
- Casement or sliding door operator/roller repair (parts and labor): $180 - $420 per window or door.
- Full-home PGT retrofit (8-12 openings, mix of fixed and operating units): $18,000 - $45,000 depending on sizes, frame material, and elevation exposure.
What moves the price is size, whether the existing frame can be saved, and how exposed the elevation is to the Intracoastal. A second-story unit on the water costs more to set than a first-floor window on a protected lot. We quote the job line by line, and the price on the paper is the price on the bill. Call (754) 310-3589 to schedule a free estimate with exact numbers for your openings.
Why Fort Lauderdale Homeowners Call TruePane Windows & Doors for PGT Work
Dale Kessler founded TruePane in 2008 on a simple rule: if the pane is not true, the job is not done. Dale grew up working in his father’s glass shop in Columbus, Ohio, measuring rough openings and cutting lites before he could drive, and he trained in the building trades program at Columbus State Community College. That background is why our crew reads a structure’s existing framing before we quote a PGT replacement. Fort Lauderdale homes settle, salt air eats aluminum, and the opening that was square in 2006 may not be square today. We account for that.
We’ve served Fort Lauderdale and the surrounding communities for years, handling everything from barrier replacements in Flagler Village townhouses to full impact-unit retrofits on Intracoastal properties. When a PGT unit is not the right call, we quote CGI, CWS, ES Windows, or ECO Window Systems side by side on paper so the homeowner can decide with their eyes open. Every job is backed by the 90-Day Done Right Promise and The Keystone Standard: both warranty layers registered in writing, durations stated, before we leave the driveway. A live person answers every call, 24/7. We also offer a permanent 5% discount for seniors and veterans, $50 off any repair over $250, and an $89 seasonal tune-up. That’s the square deal.
FAQs
We service PGT windows as an independent provider, which means we do not file warranty claims on your behalf through PGT’s factory channel. What we do is identify whether the failure is a manufacturing defect that PGT’s warranty covers, and we’ll provide the documentation and photos you need to submit the claim. If the warranty path works, great. If it doesn’t, we quote the repair honestly and move on. Call (754) 310-3589 and we’ll walk through what you’re seeing.
If the laminated glass is intact and the new IG unit we set carries the same rating and thickness as the original glazing schedule, the performance is unchanged. We verify the glass marking and match the interlayer configuration to the opening. If a frame is compromised, we tell you that a full replacement is the only way to keep the window’s structural rating honest. In Fort Lauderdale, where a Cat 4 can sit offshore for 36 hours, we don’t fudge that call.
We use PGT OEM parts whenever the component affects weather sealing, structural attachment, or the impact rating: gaskets, glazing beads, laminated IG units, and frame sections. For hardware like operators, locks, and rollers on out-of-warranty windows, we’ll offer a directly matched aftermarket part when it is less expensive and equally durable. You’ll know which is which before we order. Call (754) 310-3589 for a quote with the exact part breakdown.
Most single-unit replacements are installed within three to five business days of parts arriving from our supplier network. Custom-size laminate units or unusual frame colors add lead time, usually one to two weeks. We’ll give you a written schedule when we quote the job, and we’ll be there when we say. Call (754) 310-3589 to check current lead times for your specific opening sizes.
If the frame is straight and the glass is intact, a repair usually makes sense and costs 60 to 80 percent less than a new unit. If the frame shows corrosion at the weep holes, the sealing surfaces are pitted, or the glass has delaminated, replacement is the honest call. A patched window in a Fort Lauderdale hurricane season is not a savings. Call (754) 310-3589 and we’ll inspect it and give you the repair and replacement numbers side by side, free.
Ready to get your PGT windows done right? Call TruePane Windows & Doors at (754) 310-3589 for a free estimate. A live person answers, we measure every opening twice, and the price we quote is the price you pay. Serving Fort Lauderdale and nearby areas with over 42 years of glass experience.
Written by Dale Kessler, Owner, TruePane Windows & Doors, serving Fort Lauderdale and nearby areas.
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.










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