"Mayayana" wrote:
| Another option is shopping where the contractors shop, like a
| Norandex-Reynolds location.
|

Norandex seems to be something that only has a spotty
presence and only in the midwest. I'm in NE and the closest
store listed to me is in Maryland.

Only in the Midwest? Did Maryland move since the last time I was there?

I don't know where you are in NE, but I bought my stuff at a Norandex in
Western NY. Isn't most of NE closer to Western NY than Maryland?

There is something
that is probably similar where I live -- Harvey Industries.
I find they're the best place for storm doors and windows,
vinyl siding, etc. But they cater to that type of contractor --
what might be called replacement contractors. They're not
usually carpenters or craftsmen. So the companies that
serve them carry almost nothing in wood. I only go to
Harvey when I need a storm door or storm window. Since HB
wants to cut a cat door, there's a good chance that nothing
at such a dealer would be relevant. They're likely to deal in
prehung steel and fiberglas doors.

(Many of the contractor dealers also only sell to contractors.
One has to show some evidence of a contractor's licence or
of being in the business. At least that's true at Harvey. It
looks like Norandex will sell to the general public.)

It also helps if you know someone in the business. At the time I was
looking for my windows I met a salesman that had just retired from
Norandex. He called his former coworkers and got me a bit of discount. Even
without it the prices were better than the big box stores.