Free in-home measure and quote - PGT, CGI and CWS impact lines compared on your actual openings, style by style
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AfterFast, Reliable Impact Windows & Doors Across San Francisco
Impact windows and doors in San Francisco do double duty: they protect against the next major storm and they have to satisfy one of the strictest historic preservation codes in the country. A typical impact-rated window replacement on a Victorian or Edwardian flat in San Francisco runs $1,400 to $3,800 per opening, and the job is rarely a simple sash swap. Most openings in the Castro, Noe Valley, or the Mission involve load-bearing bay assemblies with original wood frames that require custom millwork, structural repair, and flashing work before an impact unit ever gets set. That’s the work we do. Call (888) 635-0804 for a free estimate, and we’ll walk the job with you before anyone quotes a number that won’t hold.
Why TruePane Windows & Doors Is San Francisco’s Preferred Impact Windows & Doors Company
TruePane Windows & Doors was built by Dale Kessler on a rule that still governs every install: if the pane is not true, the job is not done. Our Impact Windows & Doors crews know San Francisco’s housing stock the way a carpenter knows his own bench. We’ve worked the protruding bay windows on Victorians in the Western Addition, the tight shared-wall lots in the Mission, and the fog-battered west-facing frames in the Outer Sunset and Outer Richmond. None of those jobs looked the same on paper, and none should have been quoted the same way.
San Francisco homeowners call us because we don’t quote over the phone without seeing the rough sill, the plan check status, and the access situation. A two-unit Edwardian with a shared wall and a steep sidewalk frontage is not the same job as a flat-wall replacement in a newer city. Our background-checked, uniformed technicians measure every opening twice, quote manufacturer lines side by side on paper, and register both warranty layers before the truck leaves the driveway.
Years of community service means something specific here. We hire local, train apprentices into journeymen, and act like a company that plans to be in San Francisco in thirty years. A live person answers every call, 24 hours a day. No voicemail tree.
Our Impact Windows & Doors Services in San Francisco
Hurricane Impact Windows
Impact-rated windows in San Francisco get complicated fast when the opening sits inside a historic district. The Planning Department’s Article 10 and 11 rules prohibit vinyl replacement windows in many designated historic districts, including large portions of the Castro, Noe Valley, and the Mission. That means a “standard” impact window swap is often illegal before it’s even quoted. We spec wood or wood-clad impact units from manufacturers like Marvin, PGT, and CGI, and we handle the plan check paperwork rather than leaving you holding a permit denial.
Impact Entry & French Doors
Entry doors on San Francisco’s older flats suffer from a specific failure pattern: the marine layer keeps the lower rail damp, the hinges sag, and the door binds by midsummer. An impact-rated entry or French door replacement in San Francisco typically runs $3,200 to $7,500 depending on the opening width, the frame condition, and whether we’re dealing with a shared-wall or street-facing entrance. We rebuild the jamb, flash the rough opening, and set the door to close square on the first try.
Impact Sliding Glass Doors
Sliding glass doors on fog-belt streets in the Outer Sunset and Outer Richmond take constant salt-laden moisture from both the Pacific and the Bay. The tracks corrode, the rollers chew themselves up, and compromised IGU seals fog from the inside. Impact-rated sliders from manufacturers like PGT and CGI hold up under the coastal corrosion cycle and give you the storm protection a standard patio door will not. We install them with properly sloped sill pans, because on a San Francisco lot water has to go somewhere other than your subfloor.
Impact Garage Doors
Garage doors on San Francisco’s narrow-lot homes often sit in a rear alley or a street-facing bay garage with barely enough clearance for the car door. Impact-rated garage doors require heavier track reinforcement and side jamb bracing, and on a tight lot that means the install has to be staged carefully. We’ve done these on 94101 blocks where the alley wouldn’t fit a second car, staging cut materials in the truck and keeping the right-of-way clear for neighbors.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in San Francisco
We are an authorized installer for more than a dozen manufacturer lines, including PGT, CGI. For homeowners in San Francisco, that matters in a specific way: no single manufacturer makes the right unit for every opening in this city. A protruding bay window on an Edwardian may call for a wood-clad Marvin or a custom-sized CGI unit, while a rear addition with a flat wall can take a PGT vinyl impact window without issue. We stock local parts and maintain direct relationships with manufacturers, which keeps turnaround fast when a piece needs reordering. Side-by-side quotes on paper, no brand loyalty we can’t defend.
Common Impact Windows & Doors Problems We See in San Francisco Homes
- Bay window rot hidden behind intact interior paint. The slow, cold fog-moisture cycle on west-facing sills in the Sunset and Richmond turns fir rough sills to powder while the interior face still looks fine. We probe every sill with an awl before quoting, because what looks like a simple impact window replacement becomes structural carpentry once the rot is exposed.
- Historic district plan check rejects a vinyl impact window. San Francisco’s Planning Department requires wood or wood-clad units in many designated historic districts. A rushed quote that doesn’t verify the address’s Article 10 or 11 status leaves the homeowner with a permit denial and extra design fees.
- Aluminum hardware corrosion from salt-laden air. Hardware on homes near the Pacific or the Bay corrodes faster than inland cities like Walnut Creek or Fremont. Hinges seize, locks fail, and IGU seals degrade from constant salt moisture. Impact-rated hardware with marine-grade finishes lasts longer.
- Shared-wall staging and noise complaints on dense blocks. Running a saw before 8 a.m. or after 5 p.m. on a San Francisco block draws neighbor complaints and can stall the job when the building inspector arrives. We pre-stage cut materials in the truck and work within the city’s noise ordinance hours.
Key Takeaways
- Impact windows in San Francisco are rarely a simple swap. Bay window assemblies, historic district rules, and fog-driven rot all affect the scope.
- Vinyl replacement windows are restricted in many designated historic districts. Wood or wood-clad impact units are often required.
- Fog-belt moisture testing (awl test on the rough sill) is essential before pricing any window job west of Twin Peaks.
- TruePane registers both manufacturer warranty layers in writing before the truck leaves the driveway. That’s The Keystone Standard.
- Call (888) 635-0804 for a free on-site estimate. A live person answers, any hour, any day.
Pricing for Impact Windows & Doors in San Francisco, CA
San Francisco is not the city where you trust a phone estimate. Here are realistic ranges for impact window and door work in this market:
- Impact-rated window replacement (standard flat-wall opening): $1,400 to $2,800 per window
- Impact-rated bay window assembly replacement (custom millwork, structural repair): $6,500 to $14,000 per assembly
- Impact entry door replacement: $3,200 to $7,500 depending on frame condition
- Impact sliding glass door: $4,800 to $9,500 including sill pan and track replacement
- Impact French door pair: $6,000 to $12,000 with jamb rebuild
- Wind mitigation and code compliance review (with plan check coordination): $400 to $1,200
What drives cost in San Francisco more than anything is what’s behind the opening: rotted rough sills, lead paint abatement on pre-1978 frames, historic district plan check fees, and tight-lot staging. We quote those in writing before we start, and the price doesn’t change once the job is underway. No change orders, no surprise line items. Our Done Right Promise covers the workmanship, and both manufacturer warranty layers are registered in writing before we leave. Call (888) 635-0804 to schedule a free estimate and get a real number for your specific openings.
The Field Experience: A Mission District Edwardian
On a two-unit Edwardian in the Mission, we replaced a pair of outward-swinging casement windows in a protruding bay assembly with impact-rated glazing from Marvin. Before quoting, we ran an awl test on the original fir sills. The exterior faces were punky from fog-driven moisture, so the job included cutting back the rough sill and sistering new wood, then flashing tape over the rebuilt jambs before setting the new sash. Because we were on a tight lot with a shared wall, we pre-staged all cut materials in the truck and kept the sidewalk clear for the neighbor’s trash bins. That’s how a constrained site gets worked clean, and it’s why the quote included the carpentry, not just the glazing. A phone estimate would have missed it, and the job would have bled into structural work nobody budgeted for.
Historic Districts, Shared Walls, and The Quote
Most window and door jobs in San Francisco involve load-bearing, ornate bay window assemblies on Victorian and Edwardian flats. You cannot swap one of those for a standard vinyl impact unit. The city’s historic preservation rules, enforced by the San Francisco Planning Department, prohibit vinyl replacement windows in many designated historic districts in favor of wood or wood-clad units. That makes impact window work in much of San Francisco a custom millwork and flashing job far more than a glazing swap. Skip that reality in the quote and you wind up with a permit denial, extra design fees, and a window that never gets ordered.
We verify the address’s Article 10 or 11 status before we quote. We check whether the opening is in a designated historic district. We look at the access: shared walls, narrow sidewalks, steep frontages, stair-only entry. All of that changes the price and the schedule. On a Mission block with a shared wall, we pre-stage cut materials in the truck and keep the walkway clear. On a Noe Valley hillside with no street parking, we coordinate a loading zone. The neighbors stay onside, and the site stays clean. That’s part of a square deal in San Francisco.
We Also Serve Cities Near San Francisco
Our crews work across the Bay Area. If you’re in San Francisco proper, parts of Daly City, Sausalito, South San Francisco, or Alameda, we can usually schedule a free estimate within a few days. The same standards apply: measured twice, quoted in writing, warranties registered before the truck leaves.
Serving San Francisco, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the San Francisco area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Impact Windows & Doors in San Francisco
Yes, but with restrictions. The San Francisco Planning Department prohibits vinyl replacement windows in many designated historic districts under Article 10 and 11 rules. You can typically install impact-rated windows if the frames are wood or wood-clad, which means the opening often requires custom millwork rather than an off-the-shelf vinyl unit. We verify your address’s status before quoting. Call (888) 635-0804 and we’ll check it while you’re on the phone.
Yes, in most cases. Window replacement in a multi-unit Edwardian requires a building permit, and if the building is in a designated historic district or over 50 years old, the project may also trigger historic preservation review. We handle the plan check paperwork and pull permits when we do the job, so you don’t get stuck mid-project with a stop-work order from the building inspector.
Rotted rough sills. The fog belt keeps exterior fir faces damp for months at a time, and a sill can look perfectly intact from inside while being completely punky on the exterior face. We probe every sill with an awl before quoting so the rot is caught before the job starts, not after. That’s why we never quote a Sunset or Richmond window job without getting eyes and a probe on the rough opening.
Yes, partly. Impact-rated units typically have double or triple-pane construction with better thermal breaks than the original single-pane wood double-hungs on most San Francisco homes from 1880 to 1915. That reduces interior condensation, especially on foggy mornings in the Sunset and Richmond. But if the rough sill is already water-damaged, condensation isn’t your only problem. We check the framing as part of the quote. Call (888) 635-0804 for a free estimate and we’ll look at the whole assembly.
Most single-window or single-door impact installations on a standard lot take one day, including cleanup. A bay window assembly with rot repair and custom millwork usually runs two to four days. On a tight lot with shared walls and narrow sidewalk access, we pre-stage cut materials in the truck and work within the city’s noise ordinance hours, which keeps the job moving without making enemies of the neighbors. We’ll give you a schedule in writing before we start.
Call for a Free Impact Windows & Doors Estimate in San Francisco
The fastest way to know what impact windows and doors will cost in San Francisco is to have someone look at the actual openings. No phone estimate survives contact with a rotted bay sill or a historic district plan check. Call (888) 635-0804 any time. A live person answers. We’ll schedule a free on-site estimate, measure every opening twice, and put the numbers in writing before anyone orders a single unit. That’s a square deal, and we stand behind it.
Written by Dale Kessler, Owner at TruePane Windows & Doors, serving San Francisco and the Bay Area since 2008.