I know the Harvey Classic product well. I do agree, its cheap looking and not made very well. The walls are very thin compromising any structural integrity and their energy efficiency numbers are very poor.
They also have what they call their high end window called tribute but that is mid grade at best and also has thin walls and poorly designed spacer system( tin plated).
Lots of guys around here use harvey because they are cheap but thats not in the best interest of their customers. They will say how they installed alot of them with no complaints bla bla bla...once they are installed and a customer paid a cheap price, who is really going to complain in a few years...
Dont get me wrong, harvey is not horrible, its basically a contractor window but still better than silverline or MI windows. Remember, harvey is a building products company who make all kinds of building material which means they DONT have a focus on windows.
The quantum 2 is very solid as is are the Okna, Affinity Ultra Series,and Soft Lite. sunrise vanguard or restorations is another solid choice. Stay away from the low end stuff, you will be doung your project twice.

This post was edited by mmarse1 on Mon, Sep 30, 13 at 18:25

I agree with you, i do not want to purchase a window just because its cheap.
Its cheap for a reason. Harvey is scratched off my list.
Its now between soft lite elements and okna 800.
Thanks

Those are two really good ones there.

They probably split pot about 50/50 when people see them.

I prefer the aesthetics on the 800 but I am neither the majority or the minority in that.

Great selections so far though!!!

Although the soft lite elements is a great looking window and built extremely well, we chose the okna 800 with the antique brass hardware. The okna 800 is just a great looking window especially with the upgraded hardware.

Great choice! I agree with the above posters and your reasoning as well!

Agree. The Okna is at a much higher level than anything Harvey produces.
The okna 800 is a beautiful looking window.

My last landlord replaced the older Harvey Windows, that would not let you locked them, with newer Harvey windows. I'm don't know which models, but they were great for about 3/4 yrs and then it started to get colder each yr since. In my opinion I would never get them if I owed a home. Also a couple of the windows have started to fog up inside the double paned glass. I think he got the cheapest windows you offer. I am not pleased with them.

Harvey is what it is. The harvey classic is barely average. The tribute is average. Its basically a contractors window and they are still using a metal spacer system after all these years, kind of ridiculous.

Would not recommend Harvey Windows. Purchased their acoustical windows and was guaranteed that they would reduce the street noise level I was experiencing in my two story home. Not only did windows not reduce the noise level, the company went onto deny their claims (through legal counsel no less) and I never recieved a response from a letter sent to its CEO.. Really can’t say one good thing about the experience and sincerely feel that i was taken advantage of.

I have had Harvey Classic double hungs for 20 years. No problems. Simple window. Works fine. Alot of these posts are from competitors who want your business. Harvey is a great value. They guarantee parts for LIFE. Not 10 years, as you get with Andersen or Marvin.

We order Harvey windows (we are not competitors just homeowners). We ordered them on 8/5/2020. today is October 15 and we are still without doors or windows on our renovation.

the Contractor has called and we have called and we have all gotten the run around. They put you on hold for 25 min, they have said they would be delivered and then we never receive them, they said they can’t find out order and then they only have half the order. It has been a terrible experience for us. perhaps They do have the best windows out there but it has been the WORST customer service experience ever. Ten weeks and we still have no idea when or where our order is.

@Nicole Toomey, without regard to the manufacturer or your specific window dealer, this is an industry wide issue at this time. There is record demand for home improvement products including but not limited to windows, and the manufacturers are working with reduced staffing and production due to covid. This includes the upstream suppliers of the parts that the window manufacturers use, including glass, hardware, etc. The most frustrating part of course is due to this, manufacturers and therefore dealers are not able to give firm dates for delivery. These delays are across the country, and on everything from lumber, to cabinets, to windows.

If you are getting poor communication or service that is another issue, but you should expect significant delays regardless of product at this point in time.

Of course. Significant delays are absolutely expected and understood. We have ordered wood, tile, cabinets and appliances - all delayed. The difference is that these companies are communicating this with us. If the order is delayed we are able to call them and they give us a real answer.

However, Harvey has told Us our doors and windows will be delivered, then they are not (this has happened several times) we have been told they cannot find our order (again several times), we have been told our order is in another state, that It is on the truck to be delivered Thursday, etc.

We understand what is going on out there and have been very understanding. We just don’t understand why we cannot get a straight answer.

Delays are affecting everyone. A manufacturer may say 8 weeks based on the current expectations and then 2 weeks later have to change their lead time to 12 weeks.

Harvey windows in action: youtube.com/watch?v=yoKA13VrJtg

Not a big fan of these windows at all. Was promised noise reduction with their acoustical windows and replaced perfectly good Anderson windows only to find there was no reduction at all. Received no support from corporate offices and was actually told by an associate in the technical department that these windows only work with a total sound proofing of the entire space. This was vehemently denied in a follow up from this individuals supervisor. In defense of Harvey Windows though the onus for this huge bit of disinformation probably falls more with the distributor in my area. Regardless even a box window that was installed is in need of replacing after just four years as all of the hinge components are rusted out and it took over a year to receive a service call. All in all I truly wish I had not fell for the sales pitch and replaced my original Anderson windows as the Harvey windows I got instead are not nearly as well made.

What glass package did you get? Are you sure you got that glass package? Do you know the stc rating of your current wall and roof assembly? Odd to hinges rusting out that soon , typically does not even happen on cheap windows unless maybe you are in a coastal region. You could have had windows that may have had an upgraded glass package already? Id say this falls on your sales person and lack of communication or experience. I will never make any energy savings claims or noise reduction claims since there are way to many varibles i cant control and expectation levels vary just as much.

They were listed as accoustical windows and you are 100% right about the salesman promising something he should not have. I trusted him and really got burned. in all honesty because there are so many variables with sound proofing in my opinion the windows should not even be advertised as ’accoustical’ and this is where I fault Harvey Windows. As for the box windows I just think they are ’cheap’ and again my trust in salesperson was a mistake

There website shows an STC rating if 44 the Harvey accoustical double hung, the Anderson 400 double hung shows an STC rating of 27-29 with a dtandard dual pane. That is a huge difference and with those numbers the Harvey is clearly an accoustical window A ”typicall” exterior wall on a house has an STC rating around 35-45. In theory the Harvey windows should have made some noticable difference.

Made no difference whatsover. And I mean that sincerely Those ’claims’ are exactly what i was told by the salesman. But the technical person at Harvey told me those ’numbers’ are basically irrelevant unless everthing else in the space is ’accoustically sound’ He in fact stated that windows should be the last point of attack in noise refuction Was not aware of this at the time and no where does Harvey mention that at all.

I dont think they should be the last point of attack, often they are first because they are the weakest link. At this point you may want to go further in your attempt at sound mitigation.

I did. I brought in a company that specializes in sound mitigation and they also said the windows are important but nearly as much as other issues. When it was all said and done it was mor of an issue of 'bass' tones in my attic that just needed some rubber insulation and all was good. Really did not need new windows after all,

interesting, never heard of that remedy before. What was the noise source?

Sound, much like air or energy, will travel through the weak link in the equation.

That is exactly what i learned after the fact. i should not have trusted and listened to the salesman. i did not need to replace my windows acter all