| These
are the replacement window companies I deal with most regularly. Cost
and delivery are major factors, as are quality control.
All of these companies have positives and negatives
depending on type of replacement window and window manufacturers promotions.
All good products have a lifetime warranty. There are links
to the specific manufacturers on the links page, this
page contains my evaluation of the products they sell
and some personal experiences I've had with them.
These guys
are incredible. They just released a new vinyl line
that includes casements, single hungs, and double
hungs with matching profiles (that's unusual). They
are the supplier we use most often for thermo-break
aluminum windows. The thermo break is in the frame
and the sash, and they line up properly to provide
the best engineering of an aluminum product I've seen.
They are incredible with customer service also. A
service problem is usually addressed within two days
of being reported. That's peace of mind for me.
This is a local favorite. Produced here in Mansfield Texas by a 30 + year old company using Cardinal 366 Low-E glass with Argon from the Cardinal Plant in Waco Texas.
This is
the Energy Star Window Manufacturer of the year for
2000, 2001, and 2002. They were also a Consumers Digest Best Buy for 2007. They build some incredible vinyl replacement windows, vinyl doors, vinyl bay windows, bow windows and entry doors.
I use them for prefabricated Bow windows and Bay windows exclusively because they
build such an incredible product. Although not local,
they are very good with delivery and customer service
issues. The Excalibur series is the one I sell most
often, as it is very comparable to the most costly
of windows available, and yet, still very reasonably
priced and it has a narrower frame than do many other vinyl replacement windows.
Certainteed Vinyl Replacement Windows
Bryn Mawr Double hungs and Single hungs
I love these guys because they will build taller windows, great architectural windows and have excellent customer service. They are a national company with national standards but are assembled here locally and that minimizes shipping damage and delays.
Window
Connection Door Systems are provided by these manufacturers......
ProVia Exterior Doors and Entry Systems |
Two
of the lowest cost providers are the Lumber Stores.........let's
talk about them....
American
Craftsman (Home Depot)
I've hung
literally hundreds of these but this one is still
a struggle for me. I like the product construction
on the 8500 Double Hung, the single hung is pretty
cheesy, but the delivery method leaves alot of damaged
product issues.
Home
Depot and Lowe's are not very good at special ordered
items (in my opinion). Lack of training for their
shipping people, poor stacking of windows on pallets
(windows should be transported standing vertically
not horizontally), and forklift damage are all common
problems.
Home Depot
and Lowe's requires full payment in advance, which
is a problem for me as the delivery will most likely
be late or damaged or both. Seldom do customers like
having their project run into weeks of waiting on
product, and that is a fairly common problem.
At the
Lumber Stores roughly 35% to 50 % of all special ordered
products arrive damaged, wrong, or incomplete based
on our records. These suppliers are the cheap way
out, but it comes at a cost. These figures are based
on actual job reports from our 5 years installation
experience with these companies. During that period
of time we installed literally several million dollars
worth of product.
The Window
Connection will install these products, but the ordering
process is one that is left to the customer. We provide
sizes for product, and do the install, but you as
the homeowner have the burden of getting your materials
when dealing with Home Depot.
We do utilize
them for in stock patio doors and entry doors. They
are good at stocking a diverse selection of doors;
windows however, are their weak link. I've also had
a great deal of seal failure warranty claims on their
window products, as well as occasionally having the
Low-E coating glazed on the outside of the insulated
unit, exposing the coating to the elements and thereby
appearing foggy almost immediately.
Better
Built Windows (aka, X-ACT. Sold through Lowe's Home
Improvement Stores)
I've hung
more than 100 of these units and I guess they are
my least favorite product. Here are some pictures
I picked up on a 9-unit job in Late December. The
single hung unit has no trim or bay and bow mullions
available. That's a problem. There’s some pretty
poor quality control on the finished product. The
weep holes have no covers and are very poorly cut.
I'm starting to sound mean so I'll just put up some
pictures of the things I didn't like. Delivery issues
are similar to those of American Craftsman. Our records
show delivery failure 53% of the time. Color, size,
or product damage are the primary offenders. Here
too, we will install these products but you have to
place the order with the lumber store and deal with
them on delivery of product. Always allow your installer
to verify all ordered sizes so there are no problems
on install day.
Pictures
of Better Built Project |
