What's a good, reliable, non-fancy national window brand?

[dr.girlfriend]

About 10 years ago we had our windows replaced, and we went with a local company.  They are terrible, the seals are all broken and they have awful brown stuff growing between the panes.  The manufacturer supposedly had a "lifetime guarantee" but the company went under, the installer also has a "lifetime guarantee" but says they are not liable, etc.

I've been so frustrated with the situation I've just avoided dealing with it, but I do want to do something about it, this time going with a national company that might stand behind their warranty.  I know some company names like Pella, Andersen, etc., but I know some companies can be really snobby about windows and I just want good, reliable vinyl windows like the ones I have except not broken.  Is there a good brand to look into for this?

[Susie]

I have no advice, but following.

We had Harvey windows at our last house. They were the kind that swing out so you can clean the outsides. That's a great feature, except that the plastic pieces for the mechanism seemed to break every time I tried to do it. So we just never did after that.

Our new house needs new windows throughout, and I'm not sure where to start. My dad swears by Anderson, but I need to do some looking into other options.

[dr.girlfriend]

Yikes, I just read some Andersen Renewal reviews on Yelp, and I know it's always the unhappy people who leave reviews, but people are talking about 3-hour high pressure sales presentations and quotes of $50k for a small number of windows or $26k for one door! That's exactly what I want to avoid. Not sure if Renewal is its own special thing or what.

[caddywompus]

I was Just talking to someone about this last night. She recommended Marvin windows, and said they were very good.

[dr.girlfriend]

ewall,It was very helpful!

[ewall]

Apr 2, 2022 15:42:27 GMT -5 dr.girlfriend said:

ewall,It was very helpful!

I feel like windows are such a scam. It’s 2022 and there are still no clear, reliable options! Surely window engineering and install has been figured about by this point.

[clairebear]

I replaced almost all the windows in my house (for a total of 20) in April of 2020 for $23,000. I got my quotes in December of 2019 prior to the material shortages and pricing spikes which really worked out in my favor. I don't even want to know what the project would cost now! I ended up with Simonton Brand Pro Finish Series. I did a lot of research, got multiple quotes and settled on Simonton. They seem like a good-quality mid-grade window. I didn't want anything fancy or super high quality, but I didn't want builder grade that was going to be falling apart in 5 years. The 3 independent window installers (they carried different brands and were not beholden to one brand) all agreed Simonton was a solid choice. Two years later I don't have any complaints.

[lessel]

Andersen are great windows, but that Renewal stuff is a complete ripoff. We got a few windows done on our old house and double sliding glass doors (so 4 panes of glass). Not cheap but less than HALF the Renewal quote. We went through a local contractor to order and install. We had to replace a French door set at our current house and did the same thing to get Andersen.

[Pilsy]

We bought our home in 2010, and the windows were original from 1963. We had Harvey replacements installed in 2013 and have been very happy with them. I've had to replace the screen in my kitchen door, but I know what caused the damage, and I don't think it had anything to do with the quality of the product.

[carmenere]

Apr 2, 2022 19:07:59 GMT -5 ewall said:

Apr 2, 2022 15:42:27 GMT -5 dr.girlfriend said:

ewall,It was very helpful!

I feel like windows are such a scam. It’s 2022 and there are still no clear, reliable options! Surely window engineering and install has been figured about by this point.

Windows are made to have a limited lifespan, because how else can they sustain an entire industry? We just replaced the original wood windows in our house and I miss them so much. They weren’t the most energy efficient but they lasted for 65 years.

[mrspez07]

I’d look for a local window company that sells a few different lines and call them. Better than having to fill out the online forms and then getting junk emails.
We’re actually getting ready to order 6 new fiberglass and 3 vinyl windows (vinyl are basement windows). We’re going with milgard, which is a long-term national brand that is available from a few companies around here. They also have different levels and costs. Going with a company that sells more than one brand also allows them to find one that fits your needs/budget.
I hope I’m this positive about the experience after they’re in!

[sparty04]

Ours are Sunrise but we also considered Marvin. We got a good deal on them right when
Covid started (but still pretty $$ because we were replacing our whole house). No complaints though

[freshsqueezed]

We are currently in the market for a window because we are redoing our kitchen and shortening a window. We have a place coming that installs Pella, Marvin, and/or Andersen. We also have a direct Pella guy coming because we went to a home show Friday and just really liked him. Every other window company at the show was worthless, sleezy sales vibey, or didn’t have a product that interested us.

The company that installs did our last house. They were great to work with. They installed Soft Lite vinyl however we knew we were not staying there so we didn’t look to install anything too fancy. They seemed good for the couple years we had them though.

[icedcoffee]

We went with Reliabilt brand through Lowes. It was our cheapest quote and they had amazing reviews through Consumer Reports at the time. We figured that for the price difference we could replace each window 4 times and it would still be cheaper than the quote we got from Anderson. It’s been about 6 years and we have no complaints. 1 window is doing a weird separating thing and we need to figure out what to do with it but I’m honestly not even sure it has anything to do with the window. The original window was installed weird to begin with.

[simpsongal]

Apr 3, 2022 20:07:30 GMT -5 mrspez07 said:

I’d look for a local window company that sells a few different lines and call them. Better than having to fill out the online forms and then getting junk emails.
We’re actually getting ready to order 6 new fiberglass and 3 vinyl windows (vinyl are basement windows). We’re going with milgard, which is a long-term national brand that is available from a few companies around here. They also have different levels and costs. Going with a company that sells more than one brand also allows them to find one that fits your needs/budget.
I hope I’m this positive about the experience after they’re in!

This - I've worked w/a reseller of various brands and lines for our window/door replacements (we've done piecemeal ones for our renovations and additions).

The Marvin windows we have were from their higher end line, but I didn't think they were crazy expensive (like $600-800 for a double hung window w/divided lights). We got a Jeldwen window for our bathroom (due to availability and it was double the cost of Marvin!). It's nice too, but for price and quality I would go w/Marvin. I've heard Anderssen are not what they used to be. But like most brands, they have various gradations of quality.

[lust2hart]

Our contractor recommended Gerkin, and we've been very happy with ours so far. Replaced some basement windows prior to moving in 10 years ago, and then in 2019 replaced our huge (10' wide) front window. We're replacing a couple more smaller ones (master bathroom and above the kitchen sink) in May. Including installation, replacing these two in May costs about $2300.

[lust2hart]

Oh, yes, I did want to reiterate what someone else said that there's a difference between Andersen, and Renewal by Andersen. I didn't realize that at the time we were getting quotes for our front window - we brought in Renewal, and I can't remember the quote but it was insane. And the guy was a total jerk. He pushed really hard for us to "get the deal" by financing to replace ALL of our windows and when we said we weren't going to do that because we're paying in cash, he literally started packing up and gave us the silent treatment until he walked out. It was really bizarre and uncomfortable. And when I looked online at other reviews, many people posted a similar experience.

[Susie]

We just did the Renewal by Andersen spiel a few days ago, happy to share my experience then and ongoing, since we signed a contract.

So Renewal is Andersen's full service replacement window arm.  We opted to use Renewal vs. just buying Andersen windows and having a contractor install because a) the turnaround time is way shorter (we're looking at September install, early Oct at latest, whereas contractors are telling us next spring, and b) that's how you get the install warranty in addition to the product warranty.  I was open to pricing other window brands, but I delegated the research to MH, and he decided he wanted to invest in Andersen.  I was ok with that.  The biggest difference between Andersen and many of the others is that the windows are actually composite rather than vinyl.

The spiel was kind of long, all in, maybe 2 hours (although it would've been shorter if we didn't commit and have to do all the paperwork).  The guy came, measured all our windows and doors of interest, we talked about our wants, grill pattern and style, color, hardware, in one case we're changing from crank windows to a slider (over the kitchen sink), etc.  We already had a good idea of what we wanted so that shortened things up.  We need 16 double hung windows, 1 gliding window, 1 sliding patio door.  The slider door and the kitchen sink glider window will be full installs, meaning all the trim comes off and everything gets replaced, the other 16 are inserts. Since our house is newer (1990s) and the insulation around the windows is fine, that reduces some complexity.  All the windows and doors will be white with grills between the panes for easy cleaning.

I wouldn't say it was super high pressure, but there was some.  I just kind of gritted my teeth through it.  First they give you the sticker price.  For 17 windows and a patio door, and the sticker price was like $60k.  OMG.  Then oh, we're running a buy one, get one 40% off promotion, which takes off $10k.  Now I can add my consultant discount to get you another $2k off.  Then if you sign tonight we can give you a "presentation discount" of another $2400.  Sigh.  It's like buying a car.  In the end it's going to be around $46k.  Still an outrageous amount of money, but we're 1 year into a house where we have significant financial incentive to stay (1 year into 2.75% for 30 years) in addition to intending it to be "the house" for the foreseeable future.  Now is the time to spend that money and gain that efficiency.  Our current windows are terrible.

Payment is half up front, and half at the time of install.  They expect our job to take 2-3 days, in late Sept or early Oct.  I basically treated it like I treat car dealers, I was noncommittal as to financing and said we hadn't decided whether we were going to finance with them, do a HEL, or just write a check.  We could pay cash, I just prefer not to because I'm concurrently negotiating purchase of additional equity in my law firm and want the flexibility.  We opted to do 0% financing for 1 year through them, and although the loan now has a balance of $23k for the first half, the year doesn't start ticking until the 2nd half hits at install. So really we will have about 15 months. My plan is to have it paid in full by then, although we could then take out a HEL or HELOC if we had to. 

The next step is technical measurements, where they will do really precise measurements (rather than to like the nearest half inch for pricing) and the windows will be made to measure.  That's part of how they're able to warranty the install.  The windows conform to the individual openings as they are, rather than retrofitting.  Then they're made in MN, and when they're ready and they have availability, they'll do install.  

Happy to share as we go.  It is sort of mind blowingly expensive for something I never gave all THAT much thought to!  But I am really looking forward to really nice windows.

[dr.girlfriend]

Jun 7, 2022 10:47:29 GMT -5 Susie said:

We just did the Renewal by Andersen spiel a few days ago, happy to share my experience then and ongoing, since we signed a contract.

So Renewal is Andersen's full service replacement window arm.  We opted to use Renewal vs. just buying Andersen windows and having a contractor install because a) the turnaround time is way shorter (we're looking at September install, early Oct at latest, whereas contractors are telling us next spring, and b) that's how you get the install warranty in addition to the product warranty.  I was open to pricing other window brands, but I delegated the research to MH, and he decided he wanted to invest in Andersen.  I was ok with that.  The biggest difference between Andersen and many of the others is that the windows are actually composite rather than vinyl.

The spiel was kind of long, all in, maybe 2 hours (although it would've been shorter if we didn't commit and have to do all the paperwork).  The guy came, measured all our windows and doors of interest, we talked about our wants, grill pattern and style, color, hardware, in one case we're changing from crank windows to a slider (over the kitchen sink), etc.  We already had a good idea of what we wanted so that shortened things up.  We need 16 double hung windows, 1 gliding window, 1 sliding patio door.  The slider door and the kitchen sink glider window will be full installs, meaning all the trim comes off and everything gets replaced, the other 16 are inserts. Since our house is newer (1990s) and the insulation around the windows is fine, that reduces some complexity.  All the windows and doors will be white with grills between the panes for easy cleaning.

I wouldn't say it was super high pressure, but there was some.  I just kind of gritted my teeth through it.  First they give you the sticker price.  For 17 windows and a patio door, and the sticker price was like $60k.  OMG.  Then oh, we're running a buy one, get one 40% off promotion, which takes off $10k.  Now I can add my consultant discount to get you another $2k off.  Then if you sign tonight we can give you a "presentation discount" of another $2400.  Sigh.  It's like buying a car.  In the end it's going to be around $46k.  Still an outrageous amount of money, but we're 1 year into a house where we have significant financial incentive to stay (1 year into 2.75% for 30 years) in addition to intending it to be "the house" for the foreseeable future.  Now is the time to spend that money and gain that efficiency.  Our current windows are terrible.

Payment is half up front, and half at the time of install.  They expect our job to take 2-3 days, in late Sept or early Oct.  I basically treated it like I treat car dealers, I was noncommittal as to financing and said we hadn't decided whether we were going to finance with them, do a HEL, or just write a check.  We could pay cash, I just prefer not to because I'm concurrently negotiating purchase of additional equity in my law firm and want the flexibility.  We opted to do 0% financing for 1 year through them, and although the loan now has a balance of $23k for the first half, the year doesn't start ticking until the 2nd half hits at install. So really we will have about 15 months. My plan is to have it paid in full by then, although we could then take out a HEL or HELOC if we had to. 

The next step is technical measurements, where they will do really precise measurements (rather than to like the nearest half inch for pricing) and the windows will be made to measure.  That's part of how they're able to warranty the install.  The windows conform to the individual openings as they are, rather than retrofitting.  Then they're made in MN, and when they're ready and they have availability, they'll do install.  

Happy to share as we go.  It is sort of mind blowingly expensive for something I never gave all THAT much thought to!  But I am really looking forward to really nice windows.

SO appreciate you taking the time to share your experience!

[Velar Fricative]

I’m just seeing this now but we had a fantastic experience with Renewal by Andersen. We are replacing additional windows (we did a few them with a few years back), but we also got other quotes and they are all very similar. Renewal isn’t the cheapest of all but since we know their work and have been really happy with it, that’s who we will go with. It does help that we live in a rowhouse so we don’t have as many windows overall, and because of that I think it’s more important that they’re really great windows instead of the cheap stuff.

[majesty318]

Apr 2, 2022 13:21:58 GMT -5 dr.girlfriend said:

Yikes, I just read some Andersen Renewal reviews on Yelp, and I know it's always the unhappy people who leave reviews, but people are talking about 3-hour high pressure sales presentations and quotes of $50k for a small number of windows or $26k for one door! That's exactly what I want to avoid. Not sure if Renewal is its own special thing or what.

Yes - when I had them come in fall 2020, I really wish I had read first. He was in my house for definitely 3 hours and smooth talking/ insincerely complimenting my whole house. I had no experience with this before so thought it was normal. Then came the pricing - our normal contractor had quoted us about $11K. The Renewal guy quoted over $70K! BUT BUT BUT if I sign "right now!!!" they can give me a "special deal!" that dropped it to about $50k.

I really didn't know what I was doing and wanted to ask my dad for his advice, but they get you with the "right now!" so I signed (as it was cancellable) and they right away pull your credit and assign you a loan number and everything.

After talking to my dad, he agreed this was crazy and I cancelled but I was pissed that they pulled my credit.

We did go with our local guy and so far all is fine with the windows. Our gas/ electric bills went down. I will try to remember the name of the brand.

Anyway I will never give business to the slick salesmen of Renewal by Andersen.

[munkii]

I know I'm posting super late to this, but Marvin has different levels of options from $ to $$$$. I did have a Renewal by Anderson person to my old house before I decided to go with Marvin, and the sales guy was kind of a douche. I'm happy I decided to go with Marvin in the end, but I know this may vary based on the vendor and contractor.

[libbygrl109]

We had our front bay window and dining room windows done in Feb 2020, just before the pandemic started. Both my brother and parents had recently had them installed in their homes, and were very happy with them. Our experience was similar to Susie with regards to the sales pitch, but we seemed to hit it lucky in that the salesperson was not particularly "salesy", and didn't bat an eyelash when we told him that we had no intention of doing the whole house. We did get a discount for it being a winter install. The technical measurement was done by one of their master installers, and he was also on-site the entire day for the installation. I was home for the install - they closed off the hallway to our bedrooms with a thick plastic tarp to keep the cold out. They were super neat during and after - you'd never know they were there, the area was so clean. They still look brand new, and hold the heat and cold well, though the front window has gotten scratched up thanks to my dog's need to protect us from delivery men  . I don't know if we will go with them if we ever have the bedroom windows replaced (we had those done in 2013). It will depend on the state of windows and what other options are out there at that point. 

[tommygirl03]

You are local to me - I would suggest Guida windows and doors. We’ve replaced 3 sets of doors with them, and my next door neighbor had done doors and windows with them. We always work with Steve - he’s amazing. They are just off rt 322 in Chichester/Boothwyn.

www.goguida.com/

[fryjack2]

Not sure if you are still looking but we also went with Marvin for our sunroom- replaced all the sliders with new sliders and also replaced a slider with a picture window.

Anderson salesperson was super annoying and didn’t stop contacting us for over a year even though we told him our needs had been met.