Replacement windows

Hi, My husband and I are looking to replace 16 windows in our house. The house is only 10 yrs old but some of the windows have the seal broken and they are aluminum.
My first question is it all seems very confusing to me after looking at several windows in stores. What is it we should get without spending a huge amount of money? We want vinyl, (we think) and Low E glass (we think). We've never loked into any thing this big before and have no idea how much is to much to spend.
Also I don't really understand what exactly happens because the seals are broken on some of our current windows, can someone explain that to me also? Thank you for all and any help! Have a good day!
Debbie

 

Vinyl is a good way to go.....aluminum isn't a great material to make windows out of, but it's done a lot. Transmitts to much heat/cold thru the frames, even with the "thermal breaks" they put in the newer ones. I personally think the movement of the aluminum with temp changes is what causes the seal failures that are so common in aluminum windows....but they are cheap and builders love 'em for that reason.

You should expect to pay in the $150-200 range for just the window with LowE glass.....get the LowE, it's GOOD stuff....and you should be able to get them installed for 50-75 more. The best way to do this is contact a place that sells windows and vinyl products >BUT< does not install them.....not a Champion or other sales/install place......Get the name of a couple of installers or small contractors that buy their windows and siding there and call them.

YOU buy the windows directly from the supplier and get just a labor install price from the installer. Have him/her do the measurements and buy the windows based on that size, then pay them for install on install day.

Doing it this way, you can expect to get your windows installed for about $250/window.......if you go the "window sales company" route, you will be $300-400/window.......and many times higher !! Even going something like HomeDepot isn't a good route.....they sell a cheap window ( IMHO ), and charge $90/window to install ( here ), of which the installer only gets $60.

I like Simonton "Reflections" windows personally.

 

Catzcar: Just a thought to ponder. You can save a good deal of dough replacing windows yourselves. If you are doing 16 windows at $75 each = $1200. I did 16 in my home on a weekend. A friend showed me the basic steps and it really is intuitive. I got to the point where I would remove the old wooden crappy one and install the new vinyl one in approx 35min each. Figure (2) 6-hour days for removal and install. They look great, don't leak, I used high quality caulk, and re-used 90% of the old molding. I am psyched it came out so nice. Plus saved a ton of moolah.

Maybe consider asking someone you know who has done this to look at yours and walk you through 1 or 2. Plus when you do it yourself, you know you used quality stuff, took your time, and the pride you have showing others. Peace: e3 - spamman

 

Hi again, My husband and I have looked into the vinyl replacement windows. We had considered doing it ourselves but decided against that for a number of reasons, one being its a 2 story house.
Anyway we thought about the route you suggested about going and buying the widows and having someone else install them. However we are worried about getting ripped off by the installer (that happened to us with our wood fence not to long ago) and the job not getting done right or at all because we don't have any experience in knowing if they are doing it right or not and with a small company they may not have a warranty.
We had 2 guys come out to measure and give us a price. One was from Dixie Home crafters (we are in GA)and we found them because of your suggesting Simonton windows, but they don't use those kind anymore, they use Gorell. Don't know if that is a good window or not. We also had Home Depot come out and they use Simonton window called Renovations. Have you heard of these? Now we just aren't sure what we should do. Or if we are being charged to much.
Thank s for your help again.

 

Not familiar with Gorell at all......nor the Renovation series.....but it may be the same window I'm using and just sold to HD under a different label......

Simonton's website doesn't show it either....I like the 5100 series "Reflections"

Simonton Home Page


As to the hiring a small guy, I guess I can understand your point.....but I think if you call a place like where I buy my windows and ask them for a GOOD installer, you probably won't get taken....but who knows....

What prices did you get from the two you had out ? and what are the approximate sizes of your windows ?

 

We have 15 double hung windows total and a sliding patio door.

Sizes are:
1- 35x43 (single window)
1- 35x59 (single)
1- 27x59 (single)
1- 47x35 (single)

1- 70x59 (double window)
3- 62x59 (double windows)

1-94x59 (triple window)

1- 72x80 (patio door)

Dixie Home just wrote down 2 prices on a piece of paper, we never saw how much each window cost, one was for sliders in all openings except where there was only a single window (he pushed the slider windows alot, even when we told him we didn't really want sliders)

Gorell windows: both of these had lifetime warrentys

Sliders- $8,995 without LowE2 or argon (he said they only have windows with both or none and didn't give us the price for the LowE2 and argon) thats also without pricing with grids

Double hung- $11,995 had sloped sill and what looked like styrofoam in the dead air spaces around the window...without LowE2 or argon or grids (like above)



Home Depot- Simonton Renovations 6100(we saw him get prices out of a home depot book)

Double Hung-$10,099 with LowE2, argon, grids with 3/4" insulating glass is including tax and labor charge (I'll explain what he said labor charge was for at the end)Lifetime warrenty but didn't cover accidental glass breakage..had sloped sill

OR we could upgrade to Simonton Renovations 6500


Double Hung-$11,050 with everything as in the 6100 only it has 7/8" insulating glass- Lifetime warrenty with accidental glass breakage..had triple stepped sill

Home depot said this is all done though a new dept. they started called AT-HOME SERVICES
The labor charge he said was because we have aluminum windows and they will have to build window stoppers for the vinyl windows..have you ever heard of that before?

Thank so much for all your help, we appreciate it so much, we are learning as we go.

 

I think I would just pay the higher electric bills
Thats more than 1/2 what I paid for my house

 

690.00 per window is outragous. a quality widow such as silverline (available in ga,) is worth approx 125.00 with low e
labor should not run over 100 to 125.00 per window for instulation. keep shoping
and you will find someone.

 

Wow.....I agree with Nelson, you're getting ripped.....

I take it you have siding up to the aluminum windows ? I charge a few bucks more if I have to mount wood on the outside after taking an aluminum window out and there was none. You have to do this because the replacement is slightly smaller than the aluminum window and doesn't quite meet the siding, and a piece of trim metal must be fashioned on the jobsite to cover this area. That metal has to have some sort of "brickmould" like would be on a normal wood window to fasten to, hence the new wood. Not a real big deal, but just slightly more expensive....on the order of 10-15 bucks/window.

The HD Simonton "Renovations" are either Reflection or Prizm with HD's name....the specs sound the same.....

My costs at a local aluminum/vinyl supply place for the 5100 Reflections ( mechanical frame, 3/4 glass, and a BETTER window than the all welded in my opinion) are:

United Inch ( add width + height to get)

0-71 $ 132.60
72-81 143.60
82-91 153.00
92-101 165.60
102-111 177.60
112-121 $189
122-131 201

This is for white, add about 12% for tan

Grid or LowE/argon adds $20/window......full screen + $10

Plus sales tax to the above.

Where you have "double windows", that would be 2 separate windows....for example, that 70x59 is actually 2-35x59 mulled together....so you would be buying 2 - 94UI double hungs @ $165 each ( $330 ) or 1 slider @ $201.......that's WHY the salesguy was pushing the slider .......>HE< would save a few bucks, but SURE wasn't passing it on to you


All the above are windows only........I normally charge $50/window to install, but I'd get say $65 with adding the wood in your case......and that's what both these guys would have in labor cost.......so you can see what their "profit" margin is.....think you have some room to negotiate ?????ahahahahahahaha