Me again vikigncrown, don't know much of Gorell, but Atruim has never made a good product as far as the 20 odd years i have seen them around going back to when the only thing they made were Patio Doors most of which rotted within 5 years.

Well, the Kolbe (sash kit and replacement) and Atrium (silent guard) quotes came in too high just like i thought, so i'm going with the Gorell 5300 with Armor Glass Plus. Manufacturer says STC of 35 but they don't have OITC ratings. The install is in 3-4 weeks and we are doing 5 windows upstairs. I'll report back on how it goes!

You will be very satisfied with the Gorell 5300 series. I have some in my home. They look great and operate very smoothly.

I agree. Gorell 5300 with the Armor Glass Plus would be my choice. You will be extremely happy with them if you get a good install. Please let us know how it goes.

I am wondering if you went with Gorell windows. We had our whole house done in them 2 years ago. Most of the sashes have had to be replaced because of sealing strips falling out of them and into the bottom of the enclosed double panes.

Our installer is VERY unhappy with Gorell and is not selling for them anymore. They are honoring our 50 year guarantee, however, and just keep replacing them. I wonder why they don't actually try to find out what is causing the problem?

a disappointed Gorell purchaser,
Greenville NC

Pfmastin:

To let you know up front, I am the VP sales/marketing at Gorell (Tyson Schwartz). I saw your post on the dessicant seal dropping in your windows. I did want to address this. We found a production run limited to 2 weeks (2 years ago) where we had some defective dessicant bead (in lay man's terms, the stuff that fell inside your window).

We actually have gone back and replaced most of those windows as both a matter of warranty and courtesy. Once we realized the issue, we did get in front of it and be proactive.

As you know firsthand, we do honor our warranty. We know it is an inconvenience for you and an added expense for us so it was important for us to not only figure out the issue but be proactive in taking care of it as well.

I did want to mention, all of our dealers in the Greenville, NC area are still very much Gorell customers and doing very well with us. I am not disputing what you say about your installer, but maybe it was limited to one particular person or installer.

Thank you for your business and helping us become a better company. We also have developed more user friendly tools on our website for you the consumer @ www.gorell.com.

Thank you again.

Question for Tyson Schwartz:

What type of balances do your windows have? I've noticed that some Pella and Anderson windows have block and tackle balances.
My 30+ year old windows are constructed with this type of balance and have been a thorn in my side for over 20 years now. The springs get weak or break completely and finding a replacement for them is like pulling teeth and very costly. IÂve also cut myself numerous times just trying to install them as the cord must be stretch, under load, and hooked on a notch in the side jam. When it slips out of your fingers and that metal hook flies through your hand, it can really do damage.
IÂve put out well over $300 in replacement balances alone.
So once again, what type of balances do your windows have?

Gorell uses constant force type balance systems.

I find it refreshing that a manufacturer will stand up and admit they had a problem with a run of windows and that they are doing everything to make it right instead of blaming it on the installer.

Gorell just moved to the top of my list. Now all I have to worry about is the cost.

This is what the Pros on here are talking about when we tell consumers about certain companies we like because the have great products and great customer service. Compare that to the posts you read where the consumer is getting jerked around by the manufacturer.

I am very impressed with Mr. Schwartz' s post. What a striking contrast to Pella's response to anything which is: deny, deny, deny. And also, "huh?" from many Pella reps who evidently haven't been trained in their own product. Mr. Schwartz sounds both customer-oriented and very knowledgeable.

Mr Schwartz

Very good.
I know from experience that Gorell stands behind their products 100%.
If you read other posts here, and on other Forums, Gorell is HIGHLY regarded in both products and customer satisfaction.

Bobsyouruncle:

I will have to make it habit to check out this forum more regularly. I appreciate the nice things you have all said about our company and myself.

Mr. Gorell has a real easy philosophy, 'If you wouldn't put it in your mother's house, don't ship it.' It is real simple and if you would ever tour our factory, our workers would tell you this if you ever asked how we measure quality. Why over complicate something that is so simple - great quality.

But to your question, we use a constant force balance system. It is based on a coil system and really has no moving parts to break. We have had tremendous success with this balance over the years, and seriously, if we get over 20 balance failures per year out the hundreds of thousands of windows we make per year, it is a lot.

The balance has a teleflon coating (not being 'salesy' here - we get the balance from Caldwell - you can check them out and the description) to it, and we have had great success with it. Also, in the really tough areas along the coastal (salty air) areas, the constant force has held up tremendously.

The great thing about the constant force balance is it is very easy operating the window up and down.

With a block and tackle, which is still a fine balance, many times it is easy pushing the sash up or down, but not both. I am not sure why that is. I am not knocking the block and tackle - its been around for a long time.

But the constant force has just been so terrific for us and I could not imagine using anything else.

Hope that helps and I apologize for the delay in responding.

This link to our website, shows what the constant force looks like and how it operates...

http://www.gorell.com/pages/window_anatomy.htm

Gorell makes a great vinyl window -- maybe as they claim "the best" vinyl window in the U.S. Certainly none of the majors -- Anderson, Pella, Marvin -- can touch it for quality/price. Others may sell a cheaper window, but I don't think anyone sells a better window.

But for almost as good a window, most often at a lower price, look at Lang out of Chicago. Not a friendly company to do business with. Their attitude seems to be "show us why we should bother to sell you one of our fine windows". But the product is an excellent, heavy duty vinyl window, and the price (usually) is right. We have never had a post-sale problem or warranty claim, so I cannot speak to how well those are handled. Or maybe the fact we have never had a problem speaks for itself.

I am not, by the way, in any way connected with Gorell or Lang. I'm just a customer who buys a lot of windows.

I don't mean to bump this post, but I used it as well as a lot of other information around this site to purchase some Gorell 5300 series windows. These windows were installed about a week ago and they have been great so far. The installer did a great job and all of my neighbors are wanting to get replacement windows now. I'm not sure what everyone's average window cost is for these, but I'd say from the two bedroom's that I replaced them in that they are definitely worth it.

I'll be sure to keep this post in mind as everything I've read and asked about Gorell says that any issue with the window they will fix/repair/address.

I just ordered Gorell windows for my home on October 19, 2011. The first window company that came out to give me an estimate only installed Silverline 2100 Series. After reading several message boards, I was wondering if I should investigate some of the companies that posters were recommending. So, I have another company who carried the Gorell product. They gave me an estimate for the Silverline, and I asked to see another brand. They showed me the Gorell 5300, but the price was double what the first company quoted for the Silverline. It was $1100 over what I wanted to spend, but I decided to go ahead and spend the money for the Gorell.

I'm still reading the message boards, and it is threads such as this that make me happy that I decided to spend the extra money for the Gorell brand of window.

Silver line is a low quality window..pure garbage..gorell on the other hand,is a high end window that is very well designed and made for those who want something that will last . You made a great choice and in the end, gorell will turn out to be much cheaper than silver line. Why? Because with silver line you would of needed to do the job a second time..

The Gorell is a great window and you did well.

looking for current address for Gorell windows & Doors ? As a new widow in 2009 I had 4 windows & 1 door replaced for $9k
all 4 of the bottom half of windows have failed seals & they have run away from Florida So what is a fancy 50 yr warranty worth now ?

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.gardenweb.com/auth/nph-logincheck.cgi?action=public_profile&user=moeyt