Energy Efficient vinyl windows in Oklahoma heat

Does anyone know the ranking of window products in Oklahoma heat? Looking at Sargus, Simonton Prism, Heartland, Reliabilt, EnviroView and ViWinTech

What do you mean by "ranking"?

+1

Most standard Low-e/Argon windows will do a fine job of cutting radiant heat gain in half over what most customers have in place. Orientation, climate zone, and building dynamics all have weighted consideration as to what window should be chosen.

"Ranking" a window for any area is subjective, but of the manufacturers you listed Simonton is the most respected. I would look for a glass package with a hi shgc, to help block radiant heat.

If your Primary concern is the summer heat, you should actually look for a low SHGC, in the .19 - .21 range. I agree with Buddy, that of the brands mentioned, Simonton is the most highly regarded manufacturer.

Thank you for your comments. I saw mixed reviews for Simonton. Proposals all refer to a rating of or below .3. I understand most windows are made by the same manufacturerof glass.
You are right "ranking" is subjective yet there are lists out there. Simonton is the only one I saw on the one list I found. Did find your discussion on Lowe's. Most of your discussions seem to be centered in other states than Oklahoma so I thought I would ask.
I appreciate your responses.
tg

Tg, it is true that there are only a few glass manufacturers that supply most of the window manufacturers, but don't take that to mean that the windows are all the same. You will find profound differences in the quality and performance of a quality window vs a cheapo that may have the very same glass. I'm not familiar with some of those brands that you've mentioned, but Simonton is the only one that I can say is solid.

As randy indicated, you probably are going to want a lower shgc for optimum efficiency, so you'll want that number to be closer to .2 than .3. On the u- value, lower is always better.

thank you. I did learn that! The lower the better.
I also learned about "virgin" vinyl.
I appreciate anything else you might think I need to ask about.
tg

I wouldn't concern myself with too much about "virgin" vinyl. Every good manufacturer that I know of uses virgin vinyl. It is actually cheaper than recycled content so that makes sense.

You need to figure out the right glazing for the right elevations.

You still spend more money (historical) to heat your homes in OK than you do cooling them. As a result, you want to make sure that you get all the free heat in the winter months that you can while negating the summer heat.

You will see countless threads discussing this principle on here but the quick and dirty of it is, make sure you have a high solar heat gain on the South facing elevation if you have good winter sun and low solar heat gain on the rest.

Most 2 coat low-e coating will more than cut the sun's radiant heat down by 2X fold right off the bat. Going with a lower solar heat gain range will more than 3X fold down.

Again, I am learning more!

Thank you for your suggestions. We are close to making a decision.

Blessings.
tg