Performance
Our exclusive PremierVue® products combine heavy-duty window frames with impact-resistant laminated glass to ensure flying debris does not enter your home in the event of a major storm. A special silicone glazing process is used to keep the glass from breaking away from its frame. Although wind-borne debris may crack the glass on impact, the interlayer keeps the overall window intact, preventing destructive wind from entering your home. PremierVue with vinyl frames meets or exceeds International Building Code standards for air/water/structural and small and large missile impact protection and has Florida State Product Approval and Miami-Dade approval.
What does all of this mean to you and your home? If you’re looking for hurricane protection, PremierVue can withstand impacts from flying debris, followed by hurricane-force winds and the glass will still remain in its frame.
Now there’s no need for inconvenient, unsightly panel, accordion or rolldown shutters, plywood or other hurricane protection devices. Even when you’re away, PremierVue Windows help guard your home effortlessly against hurricanes, improve energy efficiency and so much more.
Flying Debris Demo
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Click on photo to view an actual impact video |
Miami-Dade County has the strictest test protocols in the country for wind-borne debris, air and water tests. The Miami-Dade County Notice of Acceptance (NOA) for impact-resistant products is the best way to be sure that a window has been tested and meets all the requirements for hurricane protection in the High Velocity Hurricane Zone (Miami-Dade and Broward counties). The Florida Building Commission recognizes Miami-Dade NOAs as approved products. WinGuard with aluminum frames carries Miami-Dade approval on all products.
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The Process
Here’s how the Miami-Dade County product approval process works:
- Windows and doors send to an approved lab where each is tested for air and water leakage, structural pressure, forced entry and impact resistance.
- Two impacts are conducted on each window and three on each door. (Two out of three windows also get a structural impact.)
- Then with no repairs or adjustments, the impacted windows are subjected 9,000 cycles of positive and negative wind loads to certify that the product can still survive hurricane-force winds.
- This entire process is videotaped.
- The videotape, test report, drawings and accompanying engineering data are submitted to Miami-Dade Building Code Compliance Office, Product Control Divisions, for review by a licensed engineer.
- After approval, a recommendation is sent to the Building Code and Product Review Committee for final approval and a Notice of Acceptance is issued.
The Impact Test
The High Velocity Hurricane Zone section of the Florida Building Code requires that every exterior opening – residential or commercial – be provided with protection against wind-borne debris caused by hurricanes. Such protection could be shutters or impact-resistant products.
There are two types of impact-resistant products: large-missile resistant and small-missile resistant.
Large-missile resistant
A product is declared large-missile resistant after it has been exposed to various impacts with a piece of lumber weighing approximately 9 pounds, measuring 2” x 4” x 6’ in size, traveling at a speed of 50 feet per second (34 mph). The product must pass positive and negative wind loads for 9,000 cycles, with impact creating no hole larger than 1/16” x 5” in the interlayer of the glass.
Small-missile resistant
A product is declared small-missile resistant after it has been exposed to various impacts with 10 ball bearings traveling at a speed of 80 feet per second (50 mph). The product is then subjected to wind loads for 9,000 cycles.
Which Product is Required?
In a structure where doors and windows are located 30 feet or less from ground level, you must install products that are large-missile impact resistant. Where doors and windows are located more than 30 feet above ground level, you may install products that are either large-missile resistant or small-missile resistant. WinGuard Impact-Resistant Windows and Doors with aluminum frames have Miami-Dade County product approval for both large- and small-missile resistance.
Source: The Miami-Dade Building Code Compliance Office
WinGuard Impact-Resistant Windows and Doors with vinyl frames pass ASTM E1886/E1996 (Missile Class D) for large missile impact resistance.
NOTE: The Florida State Product Approval System accepts Miami-Dade and ASTM test protocols for its approval process. International Building Codes accepts ASTM test protocols for its approval process.
Testimonials
Peace of mind.
PGT
® WinGuard
® Impact-Resistant windows and doors are effortless, yet they meet the strictest codes in the nation. No wonder over 2 million units have been installed.
What some customers have to say about WinGuard’s hurricane protection.
“After 25 years of boarding up my home during storm threats, I was thrilled to learn that a product like WinGuard existed in the industry. You can be sure that my next home will use WinGuard and that we will encourage and specify PGT in our custom and spec homes. The WinGuard product immediately sets a beach house apart.”
Mickey Hayes, President
Kitty Hawk Land Development
Kitty Hawk, NC
“During the past year it was such a relief to know we didn’t have to worry about putting up shutters whenever there was a hurricane warning.”
Phil and Ilene Barocas
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
“We were hit bad with in excess of 130 mile-an-hour winds from Hurricane Ivan. But thanks to PGT, our two living levels remained high and dry, and there was no need to spend days wrestling with shutters or plywood. Thanks again for manufacturing such a wonderful, life-saving product.”
Terry and Jim Taylor, Homeowners
Navarre Beach, FL
Hurricane Ivan
“You can do all the laboratory tests you want, but does it work in the real world? The answer is yes! My house is living testimonial to the fact that PGT WinGuard windows do work and that they’re worry free.”
Nelsen Leidel, Homeowner
Punta Gorda, FL
Hurricane Charley
“My WinGuard windows and doors withstood the eye of Category 4 Hurricane Charley. I was also impressed with the customer service provided by PGT after the storm.”
Gustavo Herrera, Homeowner
Port Charlotte, FL
Hurricane Charley
“Punta Gorda looked like a war zone but I had no worries because I knew that I had WinGuard.”
Nelson Leidel, Homeowner
Punta Gorda, FL
Hurricane Charley
“90% of Grand Cayman was destroyed, but our home held up very well and the best news is that NONE of the windows broke!”
George Crockett, Homeowner
Grand Cayman Island
Hurricane Ivan
“All of the buildings in the resort had received a lot of damage but this building looked like it came through untouched. We attributed that to the new building codes that Florida has, along with the windows and roofing material that were used. We used PGT WinGuard windows and doors.”
Art Schuller
Benchmark General Contractors
Ft. Myers, FL
Hurricane Charley
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Florida homeowner and hurricane survivor Nelson Leidel
of Punta Gorda talks about PGT WinGuard.
Click here to hear his story. |
What some customers have to say about WinGuard burglary protection.
“I wish I could have seen the point where they threw up their hands and said, ‘The heck with this house. I’m never coming back,’” said Martha Thomas, who was arriving home when she and her husband discovered several windows and doors had been battered by would-be burglars using a propane gas tank, a concrete pillar and even a crow bar.
“I was mad and angry that somebody tried to break in, but when I realized they did not gain entry into my house, I was elated!”
Martha Thomas
Palm Beach County, FL
“If they had gotten in, I may have had to shut down my restaurant. Because of the protection, I didn’t lose even one day of business.”
Chris Makrodimitras, Restaurant Owner
Florida
PGT® WinGuard® withstood an attempted break-in with a crowbar at a vacation home in North Carolina. Now, homeowner Robert Frank jokes that he plans to install an alarm not to keep burglars out, but just to help him make sure all of the windows are shut.
“As long as our windows are closed and locked, no one should be able to get in.”
Robert Frank, Homeowner
North Carolina
What some customers have to say about WinGuard sound reduction.
Speaking about a model home located less than 100 feet from a major highway, Real Estate Broker Doug Bradford of Kitty Hawk Land Company said:
“I do not believe we could have sold that house if it did not have the significant sound reduction offered by WinGuard. Visitors were shocked at how quiet the home was.”
Doug Bradford, Real Estate Broker
South Carolina
Greg Feagans, retired Chief of Emergency Management for Sarasota County, FL, knew installing WinGuard in his home would provide him with peace of mind during hurricane season, but he didn’t know that his dogs would sleep better at night also.
“Now they only bark if someone is right outside of the house.”
Gregg Feagans, Homeowner
Florida
“With WinGuard installed, outside noise from car traffic, kids playing and barking dogs is blocked. Noise is drastically reduced. Customers appreciate having a quiet, pleasant living space inside of their home.”
Berkley White, Builder
Classic Homes
South Carolina
And finally, what some customers have to say about WinGuard UV protection.
“WinGuard is protecting my investment in all new furnishings. The sun had bleached out all of my old furniture. It’s a relief to not have to worry about that happening again.”
Margaret O’Brien Diaz, Homeowner
Puerto Rico
“Before the installation of WinGuard, the strong Caribbean sun had faded my artwork, rugs and fabrics in the house, in some cases to the point that I had to replace them. Now with WinGuard, there is no discernible fading or deterioration of those items.”
Patricia Anne Rice, Homeowner
Cayman Islands
Energy Efficiency
The right windows and doors can make a tremendous difference in how comfortable a home will be. In warm regions, finding energy-saving windows that keep out the heat of the sun goes a long way towards lowering your cooling costs, reducing fading of your carpets, paint and furniture, and keeping you more comfortable. You can tell a lot about how a window or door will perform by looking for the NFRC and ENERGY STAR® labels. There you can find information about a windows U-factor, Solar Heat Gain, Visible Light, and how they can make a difference in the comfort and lifestyle of your home.
PGT is a proud partner of the US Department of Energy’s ENERGY STAR program and offers ENERGY STAR qualified window and door configurations. Performance criteria for windows and doors vary depending on what region of the country the window is being sold. The ENERGY STAR criteria for residential windows and doors are tailored to four climate zones as shown below. A product’s energy efficiency for a given climate is based on its impact on heat gain and loss in cold weather and heat gain in warm weather. So windows that are part of an energy efficient home improvement plan in Florida would not necessarily be energy efficient windows in New York and vice-versa.
ENERGY STAR windows and doors are an easy way to identify window products that utilize the latest window technology. To qualify for the ENERGY STAR label, windows must be certified by the National Fenestration and Rating Council (NFRC). ENERGY STAR uses the U-factors and Solar Heat Gain Coefficients (SHGC) to label windows and doors that qualify for your climate.
Performance criteria for windows and patio doors are based on these climate zones.
