Windows are the never-ending loose end of this project. But finally, looks like we've settled on a material (fiberglass) and a vender (Serious Windows). To summarize recent developments:
- We had sourced and were ready to go with a Milgard Canadian supplier (the only thermally broken aluminum window vendor our architect could find at a decent price). But then we got a sample: these windows have a push-out hinge style, and this mechanism requires an unfortunate screen design: mesh housed in a separate, 1.5"-thick frame that sat on top of the window itself, plus the screen needs to be tilted open before unlocking and opening the window itself.
- Aluminum windows really have two bonuses: wearability (hence their commercial uses), and aesthetics (thinner frames & mulling). Cons: they're terrible for insulation, also the embodied energy (the energy/resources required to manufacture them) is high (they're metal).
- Vinyl windows are made from petroleum-based materials, don't last anywhere as long, and don't feel/look as nice. They only appeal they have is price.
- Fiberglass has some not-so-nice ingredients (in the binders), but its wearability is like metal, and its thermal properties are excellent. These windows will last as long as your house.
- Wood has good thermal properties, and appealing material quality. However, it has high maintenance costs, (needs periodic painting/sealing).
- We're willing to pay more for better insulation, but not so much for aesthetics.
We looked at four lines:
- Serious Windows
- they use a two-pane-plus-film design, and use extra-inert gasses in some of their lines (krypton and xenon)
- they fill the hollows of their frames with an insulating foam
- this all adds up to ridiculously insulated windows, with R-values from about 3 to 11...their thermal properties start significantly higher than that of the average fiberglass, then go up from there.
- their finishes are beautiful...and use some kind of integrated color process
- they have nice hardware
- they can go pretty completely custom on the sizing
- their cost for dual color (one color for exterior, different one for interior) was rather high...the salesman apologized since he didn't expect the difference to be so great. but we eventually decided that we probably prefer one color anyway.
- Anderson's fiberglass series
- interesting tidbit: made with the mixed wood-vinyl sawdust by-product from their vinyl window manufacturing
- their finish and color options are pretty nice
- the hardware isn't that nice, in my opinion; husband was ambivalent.
- they have an awesome fine-mesh screen option (but it's $60 to $70 extra per opening)
- their pricing runs the lowest of the options we looked at
- I want to say that their colors are painted on...
- sizing does have some limits
- Marvin's Integrity series
- the finish is nice
- the price is ok, if I recall
- sizing does have some limits
- Milgard's fiberglass lines
- the finish is obviously far less smooth than all the other options
- the price is somewhere between the Marvin Integrity & Anderson's
Anyway, we ended up with Serious, because of their crazy awesome thermal properties, the quality of their finishes, and we were willing to pay extra for the thermal properties. If you're in the market for windows, consider:
- thermal properties
- durability/lifetime
- maintenance needs (need re-painting? will color fade?)
- cost (factor in durability & maintenance aspects)
- sizing options
- quality of the finish
- is the color painted on, or manufactured as an integral coating/layer (the latter lasts longer, fades less)
- color selection
- the hardware
- operation process of the window
- screen operation/options
