Would I be better off replacing my miami windows with reflective coating with double pane windows?

Question

I live in FL and I have been told that the double pane windows are not impact resistant which poses a problem. The reflective coating on the miami windows does give you some saftey from shattering.

Answer 1

Double pane windows are good for insulation against

air to air heat transmission. In Florida, you're probably

also concerned with solar heat from sunlight.

Both for shatter resistance and heat rejection, you'd

be well advised to have the reflective coating installed

on the new double pane units.

Answer 2

they make impact resistant double pane windows and as long as you get dade county approved windows and they are installed properly you will likely never have any problems the problem with the windows and doors during Andrew was that they were not attached properly so the entire window would fall out in heavy winds the wind would come inside the house and lift the roof off the house which was also not properly attached hence new codes and better inspections

Answer 3

You need to check with the local building code inspector. I believe after Hurricane Andrew the code on windows in Miami were changed in a big way for safety.

tcw