CGI Door Installation Nationwide | Sightline Windows & Doors Tamiami

CGI Door Installation: The Tamiami Owner’s Guide

CGI door installation in Tamiami typically runs $1,800-$4,200 for a standard single entry unit, depending on impact rating, frame material, and whether the rough opening needs reframing. We stock CGI frames, sills, and hardware for same-day installation on most common series, and every job ships with a written price before work starts and a documented photo record when it finishes. Most Tamiami homeowners discover their CGI door needs replacement when the sweep gaps, the multi-point lock won’t engage, or they feel air pushing through the jamb during a summer storm - signs that the door’s Miami-Dade NOA seal is compromised.

Call (786) 321-9118

Which CGI Models This Applies To

CGI manufactures three primary door series we install across Tamiami: the Estate Collection (aluminum impact-rated), the Sentinel Series (vinyl impact-rated), and the commercial-grade Targa line. The Estate 7000 and Sentinel 5000 series account for roughly 80 percent of the replacement volume we see west of Tamiami Trail, where the 1980s-2000s housing stock was built to pre-Hurricane Andrew standards and owners are now upgrading to current Miami-Dade NOA ratings.

To identify your exact model, check the etched mark on the glass lite or the sticker on the hinge jamb - CGI stamps the series number, NOA reference, and manufacturing date there. The critical compatibility gotcha: Estate and Sentinel use different frame depths (4 9/16-inch vs. 6 9/16-inch), and mixing hardware kits between them will leave the multi-point lock misaligned by a quarter-inch. We stock both OEM CGI hardware and Florida-tested aftermarket equivalents from Truth Hardware and Hoppe; for impact-rated units, we specify OEM on the lock mechanism and allow aftermarket on the sweep and hinge, where the performance spec is easier to match.

Sonia Raman checks every rough opening personally before ordering - she has seen too many Tamiami jobs delayed by a frame depth mismatch that a quick sightline measurement would have caught.

Signs Your CGI Door Installation Is Failing

• Visible daylight under the sweep or at the corners. The compression seal on CGI’s adjustable sweep wears flat after 7-10 years in South Florida’s UV cycle. Once the bulb seal loses memory, wind-driven rain pushes straight through during summer storms.
• The multi-point lock handle turns but the bolts don’t throw. CGI’s gearboxes use a zinc alloy housing that corrodes slowly from salt air; Tamiami’s proximity to the Everglades watershed means higher ambient humidity than coastal Miami, and we’ve found internal oxidation binding the mechanism even without direct salt exposure.
• The door drags or sticks seasonally. Aluminum frames expand 0.12 inches per 10 feet of frame per 100 degrees Fahrenheit. In Tamiami, that seasonal swing is enough to shift a poorly shimmed unit out of square, stressing the hinges and distorting the weatherstrip compression.
• Condensation between glass lites on a dual-pane unit. This indicates seal failure, not door failure, but on CGI doors the IGU is bonded to the sash and requires full lite replacement - a separate part number from the door slab itself.
• Cracking or delamination at the sill nose. CGI’s composite sill cap degrades with repeated wet-dry cycling; we’ve replaced sills on Tamiami homes where the drainage holes were painted shut, trapping standing water that accelerated the rot.

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After

Replacement Cost & What’s Included

The range driver is almost always the rough opening condition. A plumb, square frame in a 2005 Tamiami tract home takes two hours; a 1978 cinder-block opening with corroded fasteners and no moisture barrier takes six. Haven Clause 1 means the measured survey we leave with you is the written price - no change orders once work starts. Every installation carries the 365-Day Done Right Promise and a documented photo record of the finished condition.

DIY or Call Us?

There is one thing a Tamiami homeowner can safely check: open the door, crouch at the sill, and look for the two weep holes at the exterior edge. If they’re clogged with paint or debris, clear them with a paper clip - standing water is what destroys sills, and this costs nothing. Everything else, we recommend against.

CGI impact-rated doors weigh 85-140 pounds depending on size and glass package. Removing one without proper support risks frame distortion, glass breakage, or personal injury. The multi-point lock requires precise three-axis alignment - jamb, header, and sill must be shimmed to within 1/16 inch or the bolts won’t seat, and you’ll discover this only after the trim is back on. We’ve been called to three Tamiami jobs in the past year where a homeowner’s self-install passed the eyeball test but failed the pressure test at final inspection, requiring full removal and reinstallation.

We stock CGI-compatible frames, sills, and hardware on our trucks. Call (786) 321-9118 and we’ll schedule a measured survey - the written price comes before any tool is lifted.

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