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theporchguy

Alside Windows

theporchguy
12 years ago

Any reason I would want to own Alside Windows?

Comments (12)

  • skydawggy
    12 years ago

    I can't think of one.

  • PRO
    Windows on Washington Ltd
    12 years ago

    Arthur,

    Not when their are much better units out there.

    We are getting ready to pull some out of a customer's home....I can get a you a good deal on them...Ha...Ha!!

  • mmarse1
    12 years ago

    Excalibur are poor because they leak air and are flimsy.
    The ultramaxx and Sheffield are very bulky which means you lose more glass than other windows. Also, they both utilize the cheap pocket and snap in sloped sill. Any quality window will be a truly welded sloped sill. A snap in sill and pocket sill drain water through the frame which is just ridiculous..the weep holes clog and water backs up and mold developed . So how do you unclog those weep holes ? Very difficult..why are these poorly designed sills used? It's cheap because you don't need to invest in expensive robotics in order to cut a welded sloped sill. A good company will invest in this machinery. Alside does not.

  • GulfBreezeWindows
    12 years ago

    The pocket designs typically lead to better Air Infiltration rating over a slopped sill. The issue is that to acheive greater AI's on a slopped sill, you typically have to increas the bottom interior lip, and the excaliber and others do not. Way easier to just keep using the pocket sill design.

    Alside is not the worse company out there, but there are better out there, in my opinion.

  • contractiontruth
    12 years ago

    Wow some about time i see some intellectual feedback.

    a homeowner shouldn't compare how weep holes can get clogged, that's beyond being anal. if they feel they should spend $200 more on a window so maybe..... just maybe their weep holes don't clog that's their choice lol.

    It's like comparing tv's... when staring at them on the wall is the only time you can tell the minute differences if any.

    Everything has it's pros and cons and to say alside sucks becuase they have clogged weep holes is just plain dumb.

    But i guarantee a window you recommended will be knocked by some other guy that thinks the vinyl is too white. (sarcasim)

  • mmarse1
    12 years ago

    Gulf breeze, that was an idiotic comment. Pocket sills are poorly designed.., every pro worth his salt would attest to that. I can name 4 companies with TRUELY welded sloped sills that have much better air leakage numbers than any window with a pocket sill including anything Alside makes.

  • skydawggy
    12 years ago

    Every window I know of that achieves very low air infiltration uses an extruded, true sloped sill, not a pocket sill.

  • PRO
    Windows on Washington Ltd
    12 years ago

    GulfBreez...you are correct, in theory.

    A pocket sill window should be more stable across the lower rail and more air tight as a result of its design. That being said, most are not.

    Even taking into account the theoretic improvements, it is not worth the known design issues with a pocket sill.

    Now that you can get sloped sill windows with better air, structure, and performance numbers...the idea of using a pocket sill window is not well founded.

  • mmarse1
    12 years ago

    Further, manufacturers Choose pocket sills or snap in sills simply because they are much cheaper than a truely welded sloped sill. A pocket sill may have slightly better air leakage numbers than a low quality welded sill ( rare).. But any high quality window with a welded sill will still have much better air leakage numbers than any pocket sill.

  • GulfBreezeWindows
    12 years ago

    Well mm, you can keep your opinions as I have mine. Although most companies do not create a good pocket sill design, and further the "snap in sill" is useless, the fact stands that the overal design of the pocket sill has an inherit ability to be a better AI design. You can't rest an entire AI number on just he pocket sill since most manufactures now have gone to the slope sill design.

    Further more, I never condoned the use of a pocket sill window, I only mentioned its design and its nature and the fact that it is cheaper to manufacuter, i.e, Ultramaxx and Shefield......

  • mmarse1
    12 years ago

    Fair enough gulf breeze...