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rhode island Custom Replacement Windows
Congratulations! You’ve found a comprehensive, easy to understand discussion
on custom replacement window construction… the good, the bad, and the
ugly. Sadly, there is a ton of confusing, and conflicting “mis-information” out
there on the web. Good news - read this one page and you can knowledgably decide
for yourself which is the best rhode island custom replacement window for your intended
use and budget.
At first glance, most people assume a replacement window is a replacement
window. If they’ve looked around a little bit, they’ll be aware
that there is a handful of different shapes and sizes, and of course dozens
of brands. On the face most of them really do just look like windows. It’s
easy to jump to the conclusion that they’re pretty much all the same,
aside from the branding… and of course the pricing! And why the heck
are they some windows so much more expensive than other windows?
Custom replacement window insides
The difficulty in differentiating one custom replacement window from the next
is that you can’t peer inside. Thus, as a prospective buyer, you’re
left to sort thru the unfamiliar industry lingo which all kind of sounds
the same. You’ll repeatedly hear terms thrown around like:
Welded Seams
Low E
Argon Gas
Energy Star
Without getting into an overly technical discussion, it is still relatively
easy to understand what is and is not a quality window. The below discussion
will, in part, help you understand why one window costs $350 while another
one of similar size that looks pretty much the same costs maybe $900.
Distribution is a huge factor in the pricing!
While price is generally a good indicator of quality for most products, differing
distribution methods for replacement windows will confuse almost anyone!
In fact, a window you can buy for $300 from a solid local installer without
a massive sales and marketing budget to pay for is likely equivalent to the
quality and cost of a window you’d pay $800-900 from the slick, high
pressure, home show installer. Before you can separate out construction quality
factors and costs, it is essential to wrap your head around how the differing
distribution channels in the custom replacement window marketplace affect
the pricing you see as a customer.
The traditional distribution system.
As custom replacement windows are sold… the vast majority are sold through
a traditional advertise/ get leads/send salesperson/ send outside installer
pathway. The customer is buying from a slick advertising company, with a massive
advertising budget, experience manipulative commissioned salespeople, outside
contractors, and more. The seller is installing the same window as we do; your
local installer!
Your local installer.
In the custom replacement window market, there are a handful of direct local
installers. We purchase the replacement windows from the same manufacturers
as the “national brands”. We install them ourselves. We don’t
need to pay outside, run of the mill, “will work for cheap” installers.
Our budgets are small, and word of mouth advertising helps up greatly.
The bottom line.
Replacement windows are all wildly similar. If they meet energy star ratings..(of
course, ours do) they meet extremely high efficiency and manufacturing guidelines
created by the government itself. They often qualify for rebates due to their
amazing efficiency.
If you are considering paying 800 dollars a window; consider this slowly...about
400 of that goes right back into their huge ad budget, ad executives, tv stations,
newspapers, and to pay the high pressure “slick” salespeople who
follow up on all the leads; armed with every trick in the book to get you to
sign a contract; that day; on the spot.
Don’t fall for bogus sales discounts offered:
“
we need a model home for the neighborhood”
“
we are close to our quota, and one more sale puts us over!”
“
we have a one time, one day only, managers sale/special”
That leaves about some meat on the bone”. That’s where
we shine. We offer a better installation, with the identical or similar window
for $299. That’s it. Same warranty. Same window. Better install.
Half the price.
