Pella 20, Alside Excalibur, Wincore 7700

Post or read through reviews of replacement windows and fenestration products.
Message
Author
monkeylizard
Posts: 10
Joined: Wed Jun 02, 2010 6:43 pm

Re: Pella 20, Alside Excalibur, Wincore 7700

#16 Post by monkeylizard »

The Sunrise windows are all in. I have to say that I'm pleased with them. I can tell a difference when the hot Nashville sun is hitting them and when it's on my deck door, which is made exactly like the old windows. The heat is noticably different. The corner welds are all tight and consistent, unlike the Excaliburs on my neighbor's house.

The install was a different story. I think a 3-year old can caulk better than these guys. I got my wish and we had a good blowing storm on Monday night. 3 of the 7 had leaks. I removed the insulation from around all of the windows and found that 2 of them had not been foamed at all. The ones that had been foamed, had the fiberglass insualtion shoved in too soon after foaming, so the foam was all flattened out. There were lots of gaps in the silicon/caulk. With the insulation out, I could see directly through to the outside in some spots. Erm....I think I found the leaks.... And the nice white caulk isn't in a nice straight line. It's all ragged and smeared on my brick work.

I called the sales guy and he said "hmm. That's strange. We've never had problems with that installer before. He always does good work. Have him check them when he comes back on Wednesday to put in the last window." Hello? No apology? And I'm supposed to just let the guy that screwed it up before come back and do it again? No thanks. My FiL and I went back over them (he's got crazy mad skills with a caulk gun) and they look great now. I re-foamed them* and have waited for it to setup good. I'll trim the excess this evening and put in the fiberglass where I can. I took photos of it all before and after. I told the installer about the problems when he arrived Wed am to do the last window ("first thing in the morning" apparently means about 9:00am to some people). He said "hmm.." Nice customer service there.

So he finished up the last window and I had to leave as soon as he was done, so I didn't have time to inspect it really well. The sales guy called me about an hour before I When I got home Wed. afternoon. He said he was at the house and they all look great. I told him that they do now, now that I fixed them. He must not have been looking at them very closely, because when I got home and checked out the final window, it was the same as the others. Gaps all in the silicone. My FiL resealed it for me and it's good. I'll be doing some leak testing with the garden hose tonight.

All in all, not a satisfying experience with the installer, but they're the only Sunrise dealer in my area. I don't know what to do about my 2nd floor windows. I want Sunrise so they'l all match, but I really don't want these guys to put them in. Any ideas on that predicament? And is it OK to name the company I got them from on these forums?


*Anyone know a good solvent for removing that foam from your hands? Now I know why the can says to wear gloves.

Jvcmbc
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Sep 17, 2010 7:40 pm

Re: Pella 20, Alside Excalibur, Wincore 7700

#17 Post by Jvcmbc »

What is the difference between the Alside EXCALIBUR and Alside EXCALIBUR 2 windows??

monkeylizard
Posts: 10
Joined: Wed Jun 02, 2010 6:43 pm

Re: Pella 20, Alside Excalibur, Wincore 7700

#18 Post by monkeylizard »

Nice hijacking.


The Excalibur II is designed for stucco walls, primarily in the western states.

julina
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Sep 08, 2010 9:51 am

Re: Pella 20, Alside Excalibur, Wincore 7700

#19 Post by julina »

I appreciate all the comments on this person's questions. Especially liked the comments on what is not good about a certain product as I also had the same questions and answers are way better then just negative general comments about a product.

Post Reply