Today was Day 1 of 2 of window installation. The windows we had were original to the house and 74 years old. That meant they were single paned steel casement windows. The windows had storms, but they were in bad shape. The windows themselves were not in the best shape.
We had a window restoration contractor come out to the house to take a look. He said they were not well maintained over the years. Paint had peeled and the steel had started to corrode. The windows didn't operate well, many didn't open, and at least one didn't even have hardware anymore. To restore them, the sashes could be removed and taken back to his shop to be stripped, refinished, and painted. The sidelights, which could not be removed would have to be restored on site. And, since our house is elderly, there was a 99.9% chance of lead paint and asbestos involved. So, the house would have to be taped off around each window so they could be restored, mitigation protocols would have to be used and paperwork would have to be filed with the EPA. After restoration we would need new storm windows. All at the low, low price of $2,500-$3,000 per window plus $500-$750 per window for new storms. We have 11 windows on the main floor.
So, we started looking into replacement windows. We didn't want white vinyl windows with our dark brick. A friend of mine who is a contractor mentioned fiberglass windows. There are quite a few companies that offer fiberglass type windows: Milgard, Renewal by Anderson, Pella, Marvin, etc. after some research, we chose Renewal by Anderson. They weren't the most expensive, they weren't the cheapest, they got good reviews on-line, great customer service, and most importantly, they employ their installation crews and have a transferable lifetime warranty.
All but 3 windows are in place and the crew has been great. They answered all my questions, have been super careful around the house, and we are really happy with how the windows look already, and they aren't even finished yet. No more cold air blowing on the backs of our heads while we watch TV and they look SO nice. We wish we would have done this sooner! Everything will wrap tomorrow.
3 comments:
Do you have someone installing for you?
That is the way to go!
Kim
What an improvement! This is tempting us to finally look into getting our windows replaced. We'll have to talk to you about your research.
Pam/Mom
It was the installation crews and lifetime warranty that really sealed the deal. From what I read, it really doesn't matter how good the windows are if they aren't installed properly. If you buy windows from Home Depot, for example, they subcontract out the installation, and the window vendor won't guarantee the work, and if you have an issue, they will always blame it on the install. We can talk more.
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