comparing some window companies.

I'm wondering if anyone has heard of or dealt with Clear Choice http://www.clearchoice-usa.com for windows. I know that I am looking at getting the basic double-hung window with the LowE / Argon fill upgrade. Also does anyone know how important it is to do a wrap around the window or if it is okay to go without doing a wrap? (The vinyl/metal wrap that they do around the brick mold etc. on the outside)

Clear Choice is a franchise. They carry several brands of windows. You would need to find out what window they are showing you before anyone can comment specifically. Wrapping the exterior with trim coil is very important. Not only does it eliminate the need for painting, it also protects the sills and brickmold from rotting. Most better companies include wrapping as part of the installation.

I would have to guess that the ones that are $185 installed are probably very low-quality windows and even lower-quality installation. At least it is very hard for me to see how they can put in a quality product for that price; to some extent, you do get what you pay for, or what you don't pay for, in this case.

We had a guy posting here a while back who owned a CC franchise. He said most of the windows customers ordered were in the $350-$400 range iirc. I doubt many people actually order the $189 window after seeing it. It's likely somewhere in the quality range of the Alside Centurion. (Junk for anyone new to these forums).

There's the rub. Those $189 window companies are getting about $350+ once you get the window installed the way it should be and with the options that you want. It is not so much of a bargain to compare those windows (with realistic costs) to a really good $450-550 window when you consider the fact that the more expensive window is light years ahead in quality.

Yes, I have looked at and researched a lot of different companies over the past several years. I replaced 9 windows (Entire front of my house) about 2-3 years ago. I went with the cheapest I could fine which ultimately ended up being around $400 / window which was double-hung, argon filled, LowE, and vinyl/aluminum wrap around the sills, etc. on the outside. That was the 189 /window upgraded to what it needed to be to be a good product. I have a house that is 30 years old and the windows are so bad that a $5 piece of plywood would be more energy efficient. (Okay maybe not quite, but the original windows are really horrible.)

From what I have seen I would say that there are often times that the more expensive windows are better, but in many cases they are just getting higher mark-ups in installation and higher profit margins. I don't plan on being in this house forever so I don't think I would recoup my costs on other companies that are considerably more per window.

My goal right now is to replace windows on the back side of the house and getting the best cost break point between the quality of the window and how much they cost. Some friends even suggested replacing windows myself, but the ones that the "Do-it-yourselfers" can buy from the local hardware stores seem like a lot lower quality.