Can anyone recommend a good and reasonable hardwood double glazing supplier and fitter? With either south east or nationwide coverage?
I've so far had one quote for 15 average sized windows which comes in at 7 grand. Is that good, or is there room for improvement?
Please don't mention UPVC. Unless pigs are flying past over my dead body and hell has frozen over that is.
supplier and fitter? With either south east or nationwide coverage?
Ovation Windows in Rugby are very good. Not quite SE though.
grand. Is that good, or is there room for improvement?
It's about right.
and hell has frozen over that is.
Well said :-)
Is that good, or is there room for improvement?
That sounds very reasonable for "hardwood" - some big national chains would have started quoting at 1,000 per window for *plastic*, then offered you a special 33% discount and the salesman's daughter's hand in marriage if you also ordered a back door and signed this very minute.
There's certainly room for improvement, but if it's a good company and a good product it's not a total rip-off.
Owain
Thanks for that Owain.
We had Staybrite Windows people round here a few months ago and out of curiosity I relented into letting them give me a rough quote. I think they said that they'd do the back for free. So buy one get one free basically. If I recall, he was talking around the £4,500 mark.
By the way, how good looking is the salesman's daughter? :-)
Thanks for that. I've just checked their web site and they look worth a call.
Depends on who was shagging the salesman's missus!
Owain
Good point.
Knowing double glazing salesman's desperation to close a deal. They'd probably let me shag their missus as a deal breaker and if the comission was right.
fitter? With either south east or nationwide coverage?
that good, or is there room for improvement?
has frozen over that is.
I am hunting down a supplier for 16 windows for my house, your 7 grand quote sounds about right, especially if fitted. If however its some cheep softwood, its not a good price.
Its really hard to compare quotes, as there is much more quality variation between companines in wooden windows than in plastic.
Rick
The price of a window varies a lot. =A3500 is not expensive but you wouldn't ask 'How much does a car cost?' A more reasonable question would be how much does a small diesel hatchback with less than 50000 miles cost? 'Hardwood' could mean various things. Usually it means the destruction of a bit of rainforest. Sometimes it means the sustainable production of English oak. Does your 'average sized' window have glazing bars to divide the sashes into several lights? Do the sashes slide hoizontally or are they hung to slide vertically? Or is it a casement window? With uniform glazing lines? Will the timber be left untreated or oiled? Or will it be painted? Will cheap modern alkyd paint be used with the risk of moisture entrapment and subsequent timber deterioation and peeling paint or would you want a breathable linseed oil paint that allows the wood to stay dry and won't need repainting for many years? Will your double glazed units meet Part L of the building regs, with a U value less than 2? Isyour house listed or in a conservation area where using hand made cylinder glass rather than float glass is desired? If you can answer most of these questions I could give you a quote for the sort of windows I make - but you'll probably have to wait several months before you could have them.
Hopefully you have my e-mail
Rick
It's no to all your negative points and yes to all the positives with the companies i'm dealing with and that are submitting quotes to me.
The wood is hardwood.
Rather miraculously, one of the companies has just shaved 3 grand off their price today in order to come in at the cheapest. They're now quoting £7200 which includes replacing new front and back doors, fitting and VAT etc.
Their site...
I'd walk away from them, they have just admited they were happy to try and make a HUGE profit from you, so how do you know they havn't just found a new way to rip you off ?
Rick
In article , RedOnRed writes
Hope their windows are better quality than that appalling style-over- substance site .
Anyway, to the point, this caught my attention a little: "The laminated timber adds extra stability and durability as well as a superior quality finish thus reducing maintenance to a minimum and being more environmentally friendly than other methods of construction." Laminated, is that plywood then?
Good luck in your search btw, I haven't offered my supplier as they are local only, and in Scotland.
I must admit, they keep on harping on about the laminated wood and how superior it is. Apparently, it is solid wood (not plywood) but in sections, but no one else seems to mention it.
Don't worry, I won't be using this company. Although I have asked them to re-submit their written revised quote though for the main reason that it may well give me price leverage on the companies I really want to deal with.
However, they do seem genuinely nice people. Although I have been put off by them not always answering their phone and their Yahoo e-mail address bouncing back saying "no account found." They also seem to be finding it difficult to visit due to being based the other side of the country. Apparently, they specialise in supplying builders and architects. I found them because they sent a brochure to the architects office my wife works at.
Those are some factors that don't instill much confidence when it comes to handing over vast amounts of money.
I've just found another explanation for "laminated" wooden double glazing on another site...
"The use of multi-layer timber is long established in Britain for long span timber structures in demanding environments such as swimming pools and bridges. In common use on the continent, but very rare in Britain, is the use for window and door sections. This multi-layer structure is particularly effective in resisting warping and twisting as the opposing grains even out natural moisture movement. And It is the twisting of timber during wet weather, more than the swelling itself, which causes windows and doors to stick. Multi-layer timber sections are used as standard throughout our range."
That's a sound arguement in favour of multi-layer timber. I know an example of a Grade I listed windmill that had a rotten sail spar replaced with a laminated beam as it proved difficult to obtain a single timber of sufficient quality. For windows and doors the arguement is not so clear cut. The wood will be more stable and there will be less risk of things getting stuck or rattling from time to time but against that must be weighed the appearance of a factory made product against the quirkieness of handmade joinery using solid timber. They have different characteristics and it may come down to a matter of taste. A piece of solid oak may not stay straight and true for hundreds of years but that doesn't stop it forming a beautiful and servicable window or door for centuries. You pays your money and takes your choice.
In article , RedOnRed writes
I wonder if this is laminated up then cut & used as normal timber or are slats layered up & glued on a jig to form the desired article; sort of meaning that joints/corners would be interlocking fingers. The second would be very strong but I can see it being extra work and so not very popular. I'm curious but not enough to send me off tearing google apart to find the answer ;-).
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