Please help me sort through the sales crap!

For all those Replacement Window decisions - just read, review or post a question. You will be helped!
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TomJacobs31
Posts: 1
Joined: Sun Mar 26, 2006 10:02 pm

Please help me sort through the sales crap!

#1 Post by TomJacobs31 »

Hi, my wife and I have decided to have new vinyl siding and replacement windows. I've had several contractors to the house, and I am utterly and totally confused. The most recent was a gentleman from a local company dealing in "America's Window Authority" / Slocomb Industries windows. Showed a cutaway section of the "competitor's" windows, then their "Heat Mirror" window with the mylar film, and the insulated channels, etc. And the obligatory heat lamp presentation. I've searched on the internet and have found several negative comments, but nothing really substantive. How much of it is the window, and how much of it is the installation? They've got the NFRC logos on their brochures, but I could not find them listed on the website, so I'm beginning to grow concerned.

Any advice would be most appreciated, thanks!

wayside
Posts: 36
Joined: Tue Jan 10, 2006 11:11 pm
Location: Suburbs west of Boston

#2 Post by wayside »

My advice would be:

1) spend at least 6 hours on this board and it's sister (www.replacement-windows.com) reading old posts and using the search engine to find posts on any term or window product you don't understand

2) ask friends/family in your area for a window company they've used and felt they got a good value from

3) Use the "request a quote" feature available on this site to get in touch with a qualified contractor

4) after you get a few estimates, spend another 6+ hours persuing this site and any others you can find. After that you may be know enough to make a good decision.

Or, you can skip all this and take a chance that whoever you go with does a good job with a quality product at a fair price. Without doing the research it is very tough to know, though.

steelersfan
Posts: 41
Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2006 9:26 am

#3 Post by steelersfan »

TomJacobs,

I looked at the same window recently!. Americas Window Authority or Newtown Slocomb windows. I had a quote of 21K for 24 of the heat mirror windows and now am getting a much better window, Schuco, for quite a bit less then that.

My father in law has Newtown windows in his house put in in 1984 and they are still holding up quite well so take that for what its worth. I think it is a pretty good windows. The make a LowE argon window for quite a bit less then the heat mirror but if I were you I would check out the Schuco windows.

I know some people say this site leans towards or is biased towards Schuco but I saw about 6 different vinyl windows and Schuco was by far the prettest most sold of the bunch.

Here is a thread I started on the sister site of this about those windows:

http://www.replacement-windows.com/wind ... php?p=6312

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