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A brand name is something of a shortcut to recognition: hearing the company’s name or seeing its logo reminds you of its established reputation and history of good, solid work in the community. The thing is, there wouldn’t be a reputation to recall, or a history to remember, if there wasn’t anything behind that reputation. A good name lasts only as long as a company is willing to work to keep it in good standing.
The names of the top window replacement companies stay in America’s consciousness by doing good work and providing good products. One of the easiest ways to gauge a company’s quality is by the warranties they offer. How long are they willing to guarantee both the quality of their product, and the work they put into installing it properly? Will they still be willing to offer guarantees of product quality even after 10 or 20 years?
Even if a company is willing to offer a long warranty on its products, what, exactly, does the warranty cover? While your typical window company will, naturally, cover the glass and the frame, how many are willing to cover the factory-installed paint job, and for how long? How about the other parts and accessories that came with the window? It may seem like a little thing, but being willing to cover things like the locks and weatherstripping on the window can make a big difference in the long run.
When it comes to installing the window itself, look for a company that’s willing to go the extra mile for you. No two homes are ever exactly alike, even ones built in the same neighborhood by the same construction company. A company that is willing to take the time to customize your new windows to your home is much better than one which takes a cardboard cutout, cookie-cutter approach to installing your new windows.
The phrase “greater than the sum of its parts” is a great way to describe a truly great window. While individually its components and features all look good, it’s how they all stack together that will determine if you’ve made a good choice.
The material that your window frame is made from will determine a lot of a unit’s characteristics. Wood, for example, is durable, provides great insulation, and has a particular elegance to it that’s hard to match, while vinyl is inexpensive and resists the elements well, and requires little in the way of regular maintenance. Aluminum, on the other hand, is strong, structurally speaking, and can be made into thinner frames without sacrificing that strength.
For those looking for a material that combines the best features of all the others, though, there is Fibrex. A proprietary composite material made from reclaimed wood fiber and thermoplastic polymers, it combines the best features of its component materials and, overall, outperforms all the others. It can accurately mimic the look of wood, and requires as little maintenance as vinyl. It’s as durable and provides as much insulation as wood, and strong enough, even compared to aluminum, that thinner frames can be made with Fibrex, giving you a larger view with less of the frame obstructing you.
Windows today typically come double-glazed. For those looking for better insulating value, look for a double-glazed window that uses inert gas, such as argon or krypton, to fill the space between the two panes. This will stunt heat transfer better than if ordinary air was used to fill the gap.
The biggest range of options, for performance and energy efficiency, are in the glass itself. Low-emissivity, or Low-E, glass, with the right additional options, will not only help save you more in heating costs during the winter, and in cooling costs during the summer, but can also protect you better against ultraviolet light that fades furniture and others inside the home located around a window.
It’s one thing to have a good product, but being able to market a fantastic window isn’t enough to build a name on. It’s the human angle — the things that a company and its people are willing to do for you — that earns them a place in the hearts and minds of their customers and communities.
There’s nothing quite like the personal touch — the ability and willingness to go that extra mile for you — to distinguish a company. Instead of just grabbing any old window off the rack, the best window replacement companies will take the time to make a trip out to your home.
Taking to heart that no two houses — and no two home situations — are exactly alike, this kind of pre-installation consultation not only allows them to custom-tailor your new windows to where they’ll be going in your home, it also allows them to inspect the installation area, to see what sorts of issues and challenges might come up on installation day.
Construction work of any kind is, by its very nature, messy. Without the right care and attitude, even something as straightforward as installing new windows can be a terrible disruption.
By taking the time not only to move your furniture out of the way — furniture that might obstruct the window installation process — but also to proactively protect other, potentially frangible items, too, your chosen window replacement company shows that it values not just your business, but your contentment and well-being, too.
A job’s not done until it’s actually done. Making sure your new windows open and close properly is not enough. By taking the time to pick up after themselves and put everything back to where it was before they started, the window company of your choice is able to conclude a job well done by leaving you with nothing more to worry about.
Realizing you need to replace your windows may put you in a bit of a panic. Find the right window expert to work with, however, and you’ll have everything you need covered, allowing you to put your worries at ease.