New Windows for whole house....cost? Tips?

[mookie]

Our house is only 8 years old, but has some of the worst windows I've ever seen. We have already had leaking water damage for years, and I think the time has come to replace them. Anyone done this before? Tips/Tricks? Did you go with a private company or a big box like Home Depot? I'm so confused!

We have a lot of windows...probably around 20-24 windows that need to be replaced, all of various sizes. I don't even know what to expect as far as cost. Some have told me you can get deals and get it done for under $8,000. On the flip side, I've also heard it could cost us $30,000!!!

Would love to get some more info on cost and your experiences. Thanks!

 

[GenieCat]

Sorry to not be of any real help, except to offer sympathy. This sounds like a big project.

When we were considering new windows a couple of years ago, we attended a local home and garden show, and requested quotes from several of the vendors. One of them sent out this goofy, overly aggressive salesman. Those kind of pushy sales tactics should raise a red "caution" flag.

Depending on where you live, the industry may not be regulated. Be sure to check out any company you are considering using with The Better Business Bureau or your local builders association. Good luck!

 

[Snappy in OK]

We were pretty unhappy with the windows in our house, which is almost 9 years old now. We started looking around last fall and checked out the big box stores and window "stores" (or whatever you want to call them). We went with Thermal windows in the end (I hope I can say the company), and we have been very happy so far. We decided to go with them for several reasons - the main reason being quality. They were more expensive than the big box stores, but the quality was a whole lot higher and we felt that the increased quality was worth the increased cost. Plus, we went with windows that qualified for the tax rebate.

The cost of your windows will vary with the size of the windows and the quality. The big box stores generally only have standard size windows - or they charge a whole lot more for "odd" sizes.

I would check numerous places for the diffences in quality, price, warranties, etc. It is a lot of work, but it will be well worth it in the end. Good luck!

 

[Pigeon]

I would go for quality. If it's too much money, I'd do a few at a time adn get good ones over getting the whole house done with mediocre quality ones. We've had great luck with Anderson and Pella.

If you are moderately handy, it's not that hard to do them yourself.

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

When we lived in CT we had a wonderful house built in 1919. Needless to say we replaced the old windows.

We went with Home Depot (there wasn't a Lowe's in our area so couldn't compare). And got really good Anderson windows. I want to say it was around 10 k for 22 windows. Our house was an unusual shape - built for someone very tall so our windows weren't standard size by any stretch of the imagination. Also we had a couple of windows that had to be tempered glass due to their position (that's more naturally!)

I would suggest shop around a bit and make sure you get what you want. Now we're in NC and our windows are fine but I miss those Anderson windows (they were great weatherwise but also had some great features)

 

[Markiesgirl]

Just wanted to share our experience with window replacement... Last summer we sold the house we built in 2001 and all the windows on the back of our home had blown thermal seals and were leaking. On the advice of our realtor we checked with the window manufacturer and sure enough we had a 10 year warranty on the windows. We had 14 windows replaced at ZERO cost to us.

So I would definitely check with your builder's warranty dept or the window company and see if you have any recourse. The paperwork was sort of a pain but it saved us several thousand dollars.

Good luck!

 

[Darcy03231]

We just replaced (last month) 13 windows and added two more. We went with Harvey new construction rather than replacement windows because we had quite a bit of rot on the sills. Total cost installed was about $7k.

 

[Cindy B]

Please check your warranty.. we had our Andersen windows replaced for FREE! They have a 20 year warranty-- ours were put in in 1988 and we got them replaced in 2007/2008.

It was all windows but ONE! It did take a bit of doing- phone calls and paperwork but we did get 18 windows at no cost.

We wound up paying for new windows in the kitchen (two) and the bathroom (one).. These windows were part of an addition in the house and were not Andersen.

 

[kymmyk13]

We bought a HUD foreclosed home in November and replaced all 28 windows before we moved in. We live in a small town and went through a local hardware and building supply store to get the windows, they were 110 each and then we paid 1500 to get them installed. But we got a deal on the installation because my husband has dealt with the installer before. I love my windows, they are the kind that you can open and then flip to clean.

 

[Muushka]

Does anyone know if you have vinyl siding, will it make installing new windows more difficult?

 

[SaraJayne]

Does anyone know if you have vinyl siding, will it make installing new windows more difficult?

We just had all of our windows replaced and they didn't touch the siding.

But we also had replacement windows put in, not "new". He told me that if our sills had been rotted and they would have to re-build the opening, it would have been a pain in the butt as far as the siding goes.

He was very happy they didn't have to do that. lol

 

[Muushka]

We just had all of our windows replaced and they didn't touch the siding.

But we also had replacement windows put in, not "new". He told me that if our sills had been rotted and they would have to re-build the opening, it would have been a pain in the butt as far as the siding goes.

He was very happy they didn't have to do that. lol

Thanks!

Just to clarify, if the 'bones' so to speak (everything but the actual window) are still good, they can just replace the part of the window that goes up and down, right?

I really really really want double hung windows. I hate that I can't get to the outside from the inside.

 

[abmitch01]

there is an article about this in the latest issue of Kiplinger's magazine

 

[Muushka]

Thank you! It is a great article. Here is the link

http://www.kiplinger.com/magazine/archives/everything-you-need-to-know-about-replacement.html

 

[mjhd]

DH sells premium windows for a local company - what I have learned from him is to make sure the company you choose has an excellent reputation, if you are going to be in your house for a long time you will want to consider premium windows - the ones he sells are expensive but guarantee a 40% reduction in your energy bill. Also, the company that provides you with an education and not just a sales pitch will give you an idea about what kind of company they are. Make sure you get ones with a lifetime guarantee (including glass breakage) and that it will not be prorated. Also, DH said that most windows sold at "Window World" and similar window stores aren't even good enough to qualify for the tax credit even though they claim they do (lawsuit waiting to happen?). Oh, one more thing, many companies go out of business (leaving customers without a valid warranty) and open with a new name - do some research before you decide! Good luck OP!

Wanted to add that the premium windows will probably cost you close to the $30k but will be more than worth it in the long run! The 8k ones will probably need to be replaced as quickly as your current ones!