Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

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Kennedy
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Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#1 Post by Kennedy »

Hi,

In the process of replacing my 31 year old windows (Soft Lite) that came with the house. I'm also having the house vinyl sided. First time I have ever done either.

I have spoken with 3 companies so far and here is what I've gotten to replace 14 Double Hung windows and 2 50"x50" picture windows. Al quotes are base models and add ons vary.

Window World 4000 $11,500

Okna 600 $9966 Adding triple pain is $95 a window. For the 800 it was an extra $50 per.

Polaris Thermal Weld Plus $7844 Same folks that would do the vinyl siding. Adding triple pane is $80 per window

I'm inclined to go with the Polaris and add some various upgrades and be out the door for under 9K.

Questions for the forum,

- The top of my house only has one HVAC vent so it gets cold in the winter and warm in the summer Is it worth while to go triple pane on the second floor? It's 4 windows. I 'd also like to gain some sound proofing from my neighbors driveway that is right by the bedroom window.

-Is there a big added value in having the siding guy do the windows?

-Is the Okna that much better of a window?

Thank you all in advance!

Ricknez
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#2 Post by Ricknez »

You are “ inclined to go with polaris” for only one reason; its the cheapest. I dont recommend choosing your surgeon that way.
No advantage by having a siding guy do the windows. Okna is the best of that bunch. As far as the ridiculous polaris quote, you have to wonder if the contractor uses heroin.

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HomeSealed
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#3 Post by HomeSealed »

Triple pane is generally recommended in cold climates and also even more so in areas/rooms that struggle to stay warm in winter or cool in summer.

On the siding, it can be nice to have the same contractor do both particularly when they are full frames, but that doesn't sound like the case here. The benefits wouldn't outweigh getting a superior product/install on either IMO.

As far as the choices, you have a couple of good windows there. You are in the fortunate situation where the worst window is your highest bid, but this is not because its overpriced. The other options just happen to be very cheap. The Okna 600 is the superior window and that is a very low price on that product. If you had no other choices, this would be a total no-brainer, assuming that the dealer is reputable. Given that Okna only sells dealer direct (no distribution), that's a reasonably safe bet. The Polaris model is also a good window, and $2100 is not chump change, but I'd highly recommend vetting these dealers. I won't be as harsh as Rickenz, but I would agree with him that the pricing for that option became unsustainable 5-10 years ago. That line is availble through distributors, and while that is not in and of itself a bad thing, it means that any dude with a tool belt can buy it, which is what that price would point to.

Feel free to dig deeper on that one if you want, but there are simply red flags along with flashing red lights and air horns saying CAUTION about that deal. Certainly you should check out the Okna dealer as well, but as long as that checks out, that deal is a gift, an unattainable price in most areas for that window.

Kennedy
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#4 Post by Kennedy »

Thanks for the feedback.

Both the Okna and Polaris contractor shave solid reviews online and have been in business for a long time. Perhaps the Polaris price is good since I'm getting vinyl done with him? I've read a lot of positive reviews and comments on the TheralWeld Plus so I was comfortable with that.

In Cleveland we only have one Okna dealer Windows Universe.

The Polaris contractor is long standing with employees that have been with him for a long time. I'm going to visit the showroom on Monday. Maybe I'll have him take a drug test? haha...Window Universe is not allowing showroom visits due to COVID. He has 45 reviews on Angies list with an A rating. Google reviews were positive. He has been very quick to respond to emails and calls as well. I cant say that for everyone I have talked to.

At the end of the day $2100 is a good chunk of change. My house is only worth about 140k.

Thanks again.

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HomeSealed
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#5 Post by HomeSealed »

Is the Polaris guy a roofer or general remodeler type? Often times those guys will give windows away as they don't know how to price them sustainably either.... I realize that $2100 is not insignificant, but be careful here. You may have seen this stated in other threads as well, but the reason that the home improvement industry is perennially top 2 or 3 in consumer complaints is not due to issues where folks paid too much, its where they took deals that were too good to be true. Frankly I think that Okna deal is not far from that, but the Polaris option has something wrong with it without question. There is no money in that deal even for a small contractor. You can spend time trying to figure out why, but none of the answers will justify it as wise. A quarter (give or take) of the work completed in the remodeling business is rework of incomplete or recently, poorly completed projects. Be careful that you don't become part of that statistic, as the odds are against you on that deal.

Kennedy
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#6 Post by Kennedy »

Homesealed,

They are a siding and window company first and foremost. I'll be going to the the showroom Friday to have a look around.

I went back and looked at the Okna quote again. $200 of that price was a "setup fee". The price also have the cost ($195) of tempered privacy glass for the bathroom which the Polaris quote did not. $200 setup fee is irritating.

Either way I go it sounds like I'll go with Triple Pane upstairs. say given your experience will i pick up much sound deadening qualities? My neighbors house is very close 14' away and keeping some of the noice down would be great and may make me consider adding more triple pane windows.


Thanks Homesealed!

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HomeSealed
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#7 Post by HomeSealed »

Triple pane can help a little bit on sound, but not as much as some sales guys will tell you. Without getting too technical, a larger airspace between the panes actually helps mitigate sound better, however the added mass of the third pane makes up for the smaller space in a triple unit, and probably ends up slightly better. An airtight window and install will help this out a bit as well. If sound is a MAJOR concern for you, you can consider laminated glass, although that gets rather pricey. That will make a measurable difference if again, that is a top priority for you.

As for the pricing, I wouldn't give much thought to the setup fee or any other consideration of how a price was reached. Just make sure that the options are apples to apples and look at the final numbers. One guy charges a setup fee, the other guy just builds that money into his window price. One guy could be at $10k with a 10% discount and the next could be at $10k with a 40% discount. Does that mean the second guy is a MUCH better deal because you are getting a 30% better discount? Generally no. It just means that they have a different pricing structure and a different means to achieving their desired margins. That "setup fee" could have been a quick and easy way for that company to accommodate a price increase in materials and/or labor without having to fully rework their pricing program, who knows.

Kennedy
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#8 Post by Kennedy »

Homesealed,

Can you educate me about why the Okna is a better window if the numbers (thermal, performance?) appear to relatively the same?

Much appreciated!

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Windows on Washington
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#9 Post by Windows on Washington »

Mil thickness on the vinyl, dual dam leg on the sill, lower air infiltration numbers, better performance grade (i.e. DP Rating), and generally a more robust profile.

Kennedy
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#10 Post by Kennedy »

Thanks WoW.

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HomeSealed
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Re: Cleveland Quote- Offer your opinion!

#11 Post by HomeSealed »

+1 to WoW's comments, not sure that I can add much to that objectively. The Okna may have a little more glass area as well (it definitely does over the UW, I forget on the TWP).

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