Fixed Window Profiles massively affect the appearance of your architecture. Know your details! Has the homeowner and architect reviewed the product details being bid on their project BEFORE bids are awarded? Which fixed window system you choose is a major cost factor and may have sizing limitations.

Friday BAD INSTALLS - This is the #1 failure point in most window and door installations. If you see a sliding glass door (or any window or door) being installed without a solid poured sill you better stop them right there and get an expert. This is not only guaranteed to leak but the door isn't going to roll and function well.

There are a lot of reasons for glass to break and often not due to impacts. Thermal stress is a major cause but also can be due to stresses caused during handling or bending under wind pressure or potentially frame expansion and contraction pressures in larger assemblies.

Why are you using Commercial Doors in LUXURY HOMES?? Cheap? Can't do the size? Didn't realize it has exposed screws and bad weather seals? DETAILS MATTER! Do you even KNOW the details of the products your window dealer is bidding?

Hurricane Impact Interlayers - PVB or SGP? Did you know going from 120" tall to 122" may increase your cost by as much as 20%? PVB interlayers are less rigid and often limited to 40-50 SF but are significantly less expensive. Depending on the pressure chart on the hurricane product approvals PVB interlayer makeup will have maximum size cutoffs.

More BAD INSTALLS - This sill pan isn't going to do much good when everything around it is a mess. Most window installations are subbed out with minimal supervision and the subs are paid a piece rate by the opening to get the windows and doors in fast. Speed is the enemy of quality and once it's all covered with caulk the GC doesn't know what's behind it until they see leaks.

Understanding Hurricane Product Approvals: Anchored vs Unanchored Storefront Window Jambs. The anchoring detail pages will show all of the installation conditions the product has been tested and engineered for and sometimes the actual frame profiles may change.

Planning ahead for perfect door and window transitions to your finishes takes extraordinary attention to detail and expert understanding of the products being used, how they are installed AND your shell and finish construction. Most window dealers can sell you windows and doors and (hopefully!) put them in competently, but they are rarely going to take an active part in your construction planning and detailing.

I have always liked the look and feel of clad wood doors with warm wood interiors and weather resistant exteriors. There are many hurricane rated options up to 10' tall and they also have more weight to them than hollow aluminum. Luxury design should be more than one size fits all and there are dozens of manufacturers of Miami Dade hurricane rated windows and doors.

Incredible destruction in Houston in less than 1 hour of 105-113 mph hurricane force winds. Windows blown out, roofs blown off, trees down, limbs and debris blown everywhere. A Category 2-3 hurricane with no warning is so scary as storms become more frequent and more powerful.

Exterior Swing Door Schedules are MISLEADING!! Architects "generally" call out windows and sliding doors in frame sizes but then switch to panel sizes for swing doors because that's how INTERIOR doors are called out. Window and door schedules vary so much depending on who is writing them and it's often an assistant or intern because it's tedious work but it's also extremely critical.

How big do you want to design your hurricane rated window walls? 9' x 10' or 8' x 12' or 10' x 20' monster glass? How thin do you want your frames? 4" or 1" or 3/8" butt joint?

If your window manufacturer says they are hurricane resistant but does NOT have a registered Florida Product Approval (FPA) or Miami-Dade NOA, NO NOT TRUST THEM! This is the only trusted and certified process for independent laboratory testing for hurricane rated windows and doors.

Hurricane rated sliding door tracks and rollers are what really differentiate manufacturers and are often overlooked. From a distance most sliding doors look very similar on a house, but living in the home you are interacting with them every day. Are they a seamless transition or are they are wide series of channels collecting dirt and filling with water every time it rains?

Understanding Hurricane Product Approvals - Frame Reinforcing.

Doors designed to FAIL? This Central American wood pivot door company got a hurricane product approval, sold a bunch of doors cheap, went out of business and left wealthy homeowners with failing doors. Don't let this happen to you!

Visible Light Transmission vs Solar Heat Gain? Summer vs Winter U-Value, Exterior & Interior Visible Reflectance? SN68 vs SB70 vs LoE 366 or other Low E coatings? High performance glass has so many variables that affect the aesthetics, energy performance, comfort, and cost, how do you choose?

You can draw anything, it doesn't' mean it's right!

I see sliding door layouts drawn by architects incorrectly all the time and it creates mass confusion. Pocket sliding doors are one of the most complex window and door conditions with so many factors to consider that are often not detailed at all.

How would your design change if you had 7' x 15' hurricane rated windows?

This installation is WRONG! This is going to LEAK! I am touring Florida for meetings this week and I can't believe builders allow window companies to install this way. I see it all the time and it shocks me that people don't realize it can't be waterproofed.