Tropical Enclosures by Master Screens

While other screen builders in Florida were chasing quick opportunity, the Nortons of Master Screens were building a reputation for commitment - to their town and to quality work.

The company provides custom-designed aluminum pool and patio enclosures. According to owner Scott Norton, pool enclosures and screened lanais were not all that common in Northeast Florida when we opened in 1989.

Norton was still in college at Jacksonville University when he joined his father servicing pools in 1989. His father had been in the fertilizer business, but with the decline of farming in the 1980s, he went to work for a pool company. After the company owner became dissatisfied with his enclosure specialist, he asked the Norton's to give it a try.

It became their niche. Then, when Hurricane Andrew struck in 1992, drawing many of their competitors to South Florida to make a quick dollar repairing damaged pools, Norton and his father stayed behind. They picked up the slack, working on several projects per week. When the other builders began trickling back after several months, the father-son team maintained its momentum, partly due to a difference in management style.

"Some of these guys worked out of bars or it was real hard to get in touch with them," Norton said. "Here we were with an office, and we actually answered our phones."

Norton took over the reins when his father retired in 2000 and has worked on hundreds of projects throughout Northeast Florida. While pool enclosures comprise the bulk of the business, the company repertoire also includes pool enclosures, screen enclosures, screen lanais, glass lanais, sunrooms, patio covers, replacement windows, pavers, stone work and much more. Norton recently has been involved in several construction projects at Jacksonville Naval Air Station, Mayport Naval Station and King's Bay Naval Base.

"All of the new base housing will have screened lanais," Norton said. "We've worked at all three bases here and now have expanded to some army bases."

In addition to military housing, Norton completed commercial applications of walkway covers and awnings as well as built a Quonset hut on the flight line at Jacksonville NAS. His team also traveled to Gulfport, Miss., as well as Charleston and Columbia, S.C., to work on similar projects.

In recent years, Norton has been active with the Aluminum Association. He served on the board about 10 years ago in an effort to help combat the federal government's proposed changes to building codes regarding the use of aluminum.

Norton also participated in last year's Jacksonville Dancing with the Stars event, a fundraiser to benefit the Boselli Foundation.

Enclosing your pool area can have many advantages, according to Norton's website. While an enclosure keeps out dirt, debris and insects, it also helps reflect sunlight and reduces pool chemical usage and evaporation, even as it increases the life of your deck and stucco. It also creates a safer pool and patio area and adds to your property value.