Replacement Windows: Advice

[Othello1939]

A acquaintance in the northeast of the USA, it contemplating replacement windows in her 40+ year old home. She is tempted by the many advertisements she reads, and I'm looking at them with a jaundiced eye. Can anyone out there care to provide some personal-experience advice on this subject? There are so many terms, i.e., vinyl, wood that is clad in vinyl, same for aluminum (I think) - "E" glass, double paned glass, etc. How does one quickly separate the wheat from all the chaff on this subject? The area of the residence is NW New Jersey.

Thank you very much for any helpful information that may come of this query.

Gary

reply to deltaorion39*no*spam*@sbcglobal.net (I think you can see what does not belong).

[LeNoXx]

I replaced mine with Traco I would stay away from them at all costs. The leak air around the edges there factory rep was no help at all in fact they made a joke out of it with the installer. There warranty isn't worth the paper it's wrote on.

[Buck Turgidson]

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That's a broad question. You might go to the library and lookup some Consumer Reports issues. They had a Window issue a few years back. They rated the Certainteed BrynMawr as a best value. It is a vinyl window. My neighbor has them, and he's happy with them. I would avoid clad aluminum, since alum. conducts cold very well. Vinyl or vinyl-clad wood are preferable, in my opinion. Andersen makes a composite resin windows called "Renewal", but they ain't cheap.

I replaced mine with Andersen Tilt-Wash. They are wood on the inside, and vinyl clad wood on the exterior side. I think they look better than vinyl, since you don't lose a lot of glass due to the frame. They are not replacement sashes, they're complete tear-outs, which new interior casing. Most replacement windows are sash replacements done in the original frame. That's not a bad thing, except you tend to lose some glass area.

Find a good installer, and get references, do drive-bys, etc. Look on DOE and HUD's website, too to educate yourself on the terminology. In NJ, I would think that you do want Low-E and Argon filled.

[Ralph Setzer]

I used M & W sash replacement kits for my 30 year old windows, got the vinyl clad outside and wood inside. They come with a new vinyl track and dual pane glass in many standard sizes and styles. The kits were simple to install and seal very well, we are very pleased with the results.

[rj]

Do you have a website for them ? I have a 100-yr old house (7-ft double hung windows) and am getting ready to make new sashes - - would rather buy than build in this case.