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? on vinyl window replacements

L

Liz Wolf-Spada

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
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Does anyone have the new dual or triple pane windows with lowE and argon gas? Is the triple pane seriously better than the double pane? What kind of prices should I expect to pay? We had one quote from American Vision windows. The three pane are Great Lake, the dual are Amblin. For 7 windows, sliding and 2 picture window size, they quoted us about $5000 for triple pane and about $4500 for dual pane. We are getting another estimate tomorrow from a local builder.
Thanks,
Liz
 
Hi. Can't comment on price, but we did have the double pane with argon gas and they were worth the money. We noticed a huge difference on the inside in regards to heat and cold transfer compared to the regular double-paned windows. I think they're worth the money, especially if you have a lot of direct sun on your wondows.
 
I see you live in Canada, so you have cold winters. We have snow and cold winters, too, even though we're in Southern California. Did it cut your heating and cooling bills?
thanks
Liz
 
I'm pretty sure we exchanged info off line previously. We paid roughly $600/window for dual pane, "low e" windows with the argon gas made by Atrium.

We've been very happy with them and the neighborhood noise dropped dramatically inside the house with the new windows.
 
There are a couple of different quality levels to replacement windows beyond the options you can get (argon, low e, double - triple pane). Do you want just white or beige (not wood grained interior)? I replaced 25 windows including two huge ones with vinyl wrap of exterior trim, white with no grill, double pane with argon and Low E for $6,500. The key to getting a better sealing window is the prep work and caulking that the installer does. High dollar windows only guarantee that like developer sold, will cost you a lot more upfront money and only sometimes get you better quality.

Have quotes by the company coming to your house and bringing a sample window. Then you will get familar with window quality. Go with a seller who has been around a while. If you go with high dollar windows go with a window company that has been around a while. If you go with lower cost windows only worry about the installer. Window companies are like PCC's, here today, gone tomorrow. Warranties are not worth much but the install warranty is the important thing.

I am very happy with my purchase. I could have had yours at $1700'ish.
 
In the pecking order for windows, vinyl is at the bottom of the scale. It has little or no lateral strength and is susceptible to ultraviolet discoloration. Pella makes a fiberglass wrapped design that is very strong compared to vinyl. There are other designs that a made of acrylic resin which is not harmed by UV and have internal metal rods which provide good strength.

Another issue is the type of separator which fits beteen the glass panels at the outer edge of the glass. A bad material selection will increase the radiative heat loss.

The whole key is to have an installer who has been around a long time. In the event of failure, the manufacturer will blame the installer and vice-versa. End result is no warrantee relief.

In any case, I would definitely ignore the triple glazed windows as you are just adding on another potential problem area. Stick with the time-tested double glazed design.
 
Liz, we never really crunched numbers on that but changing the windows must have contributed somewhat to heating & cooling bills.
 
Well, we met with our second person today and decided to go with him. He owns a small company and has been in business locally for many years, previously working for Sears. He seemed really knowledgeable and my friend has been very satisfied with his work and windows. He will be using Dynasty by Atrium dual paned windows with triple lowE and argon gas. The cost was about $4600 for 8 windows, some very large picture windows, some medium and some small. We're also having insulation added and/or replaced in the attic and in the crawl space. It's an expense now, but hopefully, will cut our energy costs and keep our house warmer and more comfortable in winter and using less AC in summer.
Liz
 
Liz, we were told that unless you have horribly cold winters, that triple pane is overkill. We just finished doing ours, and did it ourselves. I found them online, had several rooms shipped at a time (free shipping if you do that) and hubby (who is pretty handy) did them. He got to where it took about 30 minutes to do one from start to finish. We saved about 50% over our lowest bid. We then paid a company to come wrap the outside trim.

Let me know if you want the name of the company. We couldn't windows anywhere in town - I think the installers have the market cornered. Actually, this place also sells on eBay. Started the process about 3 years ago & have had no trouble with any of them. And our monthly electrical usage went from about 2300 in the summer to 1500. :clap:
 
My husband doesn't want to do them so we'll stay with what we chose, but thanks for the advice and reassurance on not needing triple windows.
Liz
 
We had our whole house done last summer. Roof, siding, garage & front door, and double pane argon windows. Our oil consumption was cut in half, and our electric about a third.:clap: Good move!! :whoopie:

Sue
 
We install many replacement windows and like the quality of Atrium Vinyl Windows over most other brands. In a colder climate you could benefit from upgraded glass in the vinyl frame. Triple pane is used in very cold climates or to help reduce noise. Here is a link from a discussion about u-values where we discussed triple pane and many other upgrades.
www.contractortalk.com/showthread.php?t=40058
 
Kal said:
In the pecking order for windows, vinyl is at the bottom of the scale. It has little or no lateral strength and is susceptible to ultraviolet discoloration. Pella makes a fiberglass wrapped design that is very strong compared to vinyl. There are other designs that a made of acrylic resin which is not harmed by UV and have internal metal rods which provide good strength.

Another issue is the type of separator which fits beteen the glass panels at the outer edge of the glass. A bad material selection will increase the radiative heat loss.

The whole key is to have an installer who has been around a long time. In the event of failure, the manufacturer will blame the installer and vice-versa. End result is no warrantee relief.

In any case, I would definitely ignore the triple glazed windows as you are just adding on another potential problem area. Stick with the time-tested double glazed design.
Click to expand...


A quality vinyl frame made with mircron extrusion, such as the Atrium brand, has a lifetime manufacturers waranty on the frame and insulated glass. Atrium has their own waranty crew. Vinyl frames account for 80% or more of all window frames used in replacement projects.

Fiberglass frames have their own set of issuses and are very expensive compared to vinyl frames. The metal spacer bar has little to do with how the window performs and some non metalic spacer bars will shrink causing the window seal to fail.

Pella was bought out for their name and is now a massed produced window that Lowes sells. Upper end Pella, Anderson and some other brands are used mainly for new constuction.
 
easyrider said:
...Fiberglass frames have their own set of issuses and are very expensive compared to vinyl frames. The metal spacer bar has little to do with how the window performs and some non metalic spacer bars will shrink causing the window seal to fail.

Pella was bought out for their name and is now a massed produced window that Lowes sells. Upper end Pella, Anderson and some other brands are used mainly for new constuction.
Click to expand...

The reason I mentioned Pella's fiberglass is that a friend has selected that design for a set of 6 large windows and a sliding door. Fiberglass has significantly more strength than vinyl. What are some of the issues you mention about fiberglass?

The Pella vinyl windows sold at Lowe's is a low-end product.
 
Fiberglass framed windows require a lot more work to install into an existing opening. The fiberglass is just a thin skin over a wood frame that needs to be either painted or stained. The interior jambs and trim need to be finished as well. Windows made of wood require maintenance. Vinyl frames are solid color with no maintenance issues.

Other issues with skins over wood include delamination and cracking. A metal skin is more durable than fiberglass with these types of windows.
 
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