Recently received quotes from several manufacturers that I would like
to share with others out there who may be shopping, but would also
greatly appreciate feedback from those of you who have some of these
manufacturers windows installed in your home.. All the quotes include
windows, installation and taking away the old windows.

We live in Colorado where we get extremes from hot to cold. We started
by looking at Vinyl windows. Simonton is the manufacturer and Home
Depot is the dealer that gave us the quote. The warranty is a lifetime
(of the product) warranty on the install, seals, and glass breakage. In
round numbers 35 windows for $25k.

We then looked at Pella Architect series windows. Wood exterior with
aluminum cladding. Their warranty is 20-10-2 on glass, frames and
install. They look great in the showroom, but not sure if a cladded
wood product is the best for our environment or not - still debating...
The quote for 35 windows was $33k

Lastly we talked with Renewal by Andersen. Fibrex material (60% wood,
40% PVC) seems at first to be a better choice of material for our
climate, but my concern is it is so new. We actually went to a
neighbors house who has had them installed for almost 2 years and they
look great and have said that Andersen really took care of any issues
(kid shot a bebe through a window - andersen replaced it). Renewals
warranty is a "Asolutely, Positively, Worry-Free Performance Guarantee"
where (and I'm quoting now) "Your windows are guaranteed to perform as
well as the day they were installed for as long as they remain in your
home." Trim is not covered. Hold on to your hat - 35 windows for $38k.


Now these are the quotes and I did not do any negotiating with any of
them yet. What sayeth the people?? Sounds expensive to me regardless
of material. The only way I can justify it is if I know that the
Andersen windows will last twice as long as the Simonton Vinyl windows.
Back east in Jersey I have seen vinyl hold up for 20 years but that is
without the intense UV that Colorado has...

Any advice suggestions? Is Andersen really a marketing machine or do
they truley make a better product?

-Bill

Consumer Reports has rated windows so check them out at the library.

I have Andersen vinyl clad windows in my house originally (not Renewal) and
some cheap windows and sliding doors that were replaced with Pellas aluminum
clad windows. Here in NC on the south side of the house the vinyl cladding
of the Andersen has yellowed a bit and definitely gotten stiff. One sill
was damaged in a construction accident and I ordered the vinyl trim parts
from andersen and found doing a good job replacing them is just about
impossible. On the other hand the Pella aluminum sliding doors seem better
designed and one piece of trim was damaged during installation and Pella
replaced the part and you can't tell.



wrote in message
ps.com...
Recently received quotes from several manufacturers that I would like
to share with others out there who may be shopping, but would also
greatly appreciate feedback from those of you who have some of these
manufacturers windows installed in your home.. All the quotes include
windows, installation and taking away the old windows.

We live in Colorado where we get extremes from hot to cold. We started
by looking at Vinyl windows. Simonton is the manufacturer and Home
Depot is the dealer that gave us the quote. The warranty is a lifetime
(of the product) warranty on the install, seals, and glass breakage. In
round numbers 35 windows for $25k.

We then looked at Pella Architect series windows. Wood exterior with
aluminum cladding. Their warranty is 20-10-2 on glass, frames and
install. They look great in the showroom, but not sure if a cladded
wood product is the best for our environment or not - still debating...
The quote for 35 windows was $33k

Lastly we talked with Renewal by Andersen. Fibrex material (60% wood,
40% PVC) seems at first to be a better choice of material for our
climate, but my concern is it is so new. We actually went to a
neighbors house who has had them installed for almost 2 years and they
look great and have said that Andersen really took care of any issues
(kid shot a bebe through a window - andersen replaced it). Renewals
warranty is a "Asolutely, Positively, Worry-Free Performance Guarantee"
where (and I'm quoting now) "Your windows are guaranteed to perform as
well as the day they were installed for as long as they remain in your
home." Trim is not covered. Hold on to your hat - 35 windows for $38k.


Now these are the quotes and I did not do any negotiating with any of
them yet. What sayeth the people?? Sounds expensive to me regardless
of material. The only way I can justify it is if I know that the
Andersen windows will last twice as long as the Simonton Vinyl windows.
Back east in Jersey I have seen vinyl hold up for 20 years but that is
without the intense UV that Colorado has...

Any advice suggestions? Is Andersen really a marketing machine or do
they truley make a better product?

-Bill