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swm7338

Replacement windows for SW Michigan

SWM7338
11 years ago

I'm a home owner and am looking at replacing my windows. I live in south west Michigan so it gets 90 and humid in the summer... and we have a ton of snow in the winter. I believe the original windows are still in the house from 1975 (single pain, with a split movable storm window). Most of them are hard to move up and down now or fall down once you open them. I'm pretty sure I want double hung vinyl windows with wraps, but I'm not sure. I've had an estimate from Lowes and from Erie Construction. Thoughts?

I guess I'm looking for a mid-grade window the works for my climate. Thanks in advance.

Comments (9)

  • mmarse1
    11 years ago

    Stay far away from Lowes, they sell junk. You are in Michigan, Sunrise is a manufacturer of high end windows, give them a call and ask for a dealer in your area.

  • toddinmn
    11 years ago

    The Ply-Gem Premium series would be a decent window from Lowes but expect to pay on the higher end of market scale from Lowes.

  • PRO
    Windows on Washington Ltd
    11 years ago

    You have quite a few nice options at your disposal in your region. I would encourage you to look at some of the brands that are regularly reviews on here and see how they stack up.

    Probably also makes sense to deal with a company that specializes in windows predominantly for ease.

  • Debbi Branka
    10 years ago

    We got Marvin Integrity replacement windows (fiberglass windows) in Oct 2012 from Laurence Windows & Doors. They have a showroom in Bloomfield Hills and in Bay City. Their price was less than the Sunrise vinyl quote. We are extremely pleased with them.

  • HomeSealed
    10 years ago

    Sounds like a good deal on a solid window deb, but just for the reference of others, the Integrity is typically a bit more costly than Sunrise or another premium vinyl choice. I'd also only recommend the wood/ultrex in that line, as the all ultrex is not anymore attractive than vinyl (most folks would say less), and the thermal and structural numbers won't stack up favorably either. The wood/ultrex is also not tops in that area, however most products with wood interior are not and that unit is a really nice bang for the buck as well-made, wood interiors go... I know that sounds somewhat contradictory, but the bottom line is that there is a generally a trade-off in performance vs beauty when it comes to vinyl vs wood.
    Regarding the previous recommendations: at the box store, the Plygem is the product that I'd recommend as todd mentioned (decent B level IMO), but even then , you are still running the risk on the installation side of things as box stores and "discount" window outfits typically pay less than the "going rate" to their installers in my experience.

  • Debbi Branka
    10 years ago

    HomeSealed - we got a quote on Sunrise and it was $2k higher than our Marvins were. Our Marvins are all ultrex though. I thought they were a great window after reading all the recommendations here. We wanted white interiors and brown exterior, so we didn't see any point in having a wood interior just to paint it white (we didn't even get quotes for that). That said, we paid $15k for our Marvins and the Sunrise quote was $17k. We didn't choose between those 2 based on the money - I just liked the Marvins better. We also had a quote of $24k for Inline, btw.

  • millworkman
    10 years ago

    The All-Ultrex window is a fine window, HS was speaking about it aesthetically and the fact that it is not the prettiest girl at the prom. Function wise there are no issues with it that I am aware of.

  • HomeSealed
    10 years ago

    MWM is correct. It is a soundly built unit, just hard to justify in most circumstances where premium vinyl will typically run cheaper given the difference in performance. It does offer some unique features though in the fact that the interior is paintable, etc.
    I love Marvin and their products, the point of my previous post was only that your situation is the exception rather than the rule, and generally speaking the trade-off in window choice is form vs function (performance ratings vs aesthetic considerations). You can feel confident that you have chosen a product that will serve you for many years, and a solid company that stands behind it :)

  • toddinmn
    10 years ago

    what are the air infiltration numbers on the Marvin integrity