Renewal by Andersen

All of the windows in our house before we purchased it were Andersen Windows. This time, we got some double hung windows. We have one that is clear glass. We have a set for our bathroom that's an opaque glass. We have a slider window and a picture window. They were a couple of weeks late for the installation but that was communicated to us. There were multiple guys who came the day of to do the installation. It was an all hands on deck. I was very impressed with their communication with each other. They were explanatory as to what was happening when and where. It was the only thing in my renovation that had gone according to plan. There was even an unfortunate circumstance where in installing one of the windows, it caused a shelf to shake and knock something off that broke. One of the gentlemen went out to his car, got some glue and glued the piece back together for me. That was very kind.

The windows are beautiful. I'm impressed with the opaque windows and how they bring a different level of privacy to our bathroom. The picture window is gorgeous. I'm very impressed with the quality as well and look forward to staring at them for many more years. The price matched the quality. I felt more confident going through Renewal by Andersen and knowing that I was paying for that work to be done in an efficient way that was going to not only improve the beauty of the windows, but also the functioning and keeping heat within my house. I've already noticed the difference in less draftiness.

My husband had all the heat turned off because they were in and out and the window’s open. When they left, they left all their equipment piled up against our baseboard heater in the living room, so we couldn't even turn the heat on that night in the living room. And when my husband said something to them the next day when they came back, it didn't seem like they cared.

It was a father-son team and the son was personable. He was nice. And he would talk. The father was not. But the guy could cut a board without measuring it. He was good at what he did. He put the trim outside on the outside window but never took the old siding off underneath it. He knew that we were going to replace the siding. So my husband said, “You can't do that because now I can't run the siding underneath it.” My husband asked the salesman, “Do you want me to cut the siding back before they come?” The salesman said, “No. Our guys do that." But they didn't. They put the window over on top of it. So, my husband told him he had to take it back off and redo it, which he did, but they were not happy about.

Another thing that happened was we got a French door. We ordered a screen door with it. He was pissed because he had to put that screen door on. And we were, “We ordered what we wanted. It's not our fault that you're not happy that you have to do that part of the job.” Also, I'm not crazy about the quality of the screen door. The window in the front is one huge picture window. That one side slides nice, the side that the sash sticks out. But the other side is going to be hard to slide in because it's so heavy and there's nowhere to hold on to it. But the quality is great. All of the windows are nice.

I can notice a difference in noise. My husband drives a truck, and I can usually hear him coming when he's down the road. I can't even hear him when he's pulling in the driveway now. There was a train wreck. The whole town had to be evacuated. I didn't even know it was happening until somebody texted me, because I couldn't hear it. They texted me and said, “Is there a train wreck?” I looked out the window, and I could see planes coming up over the trees on the other side of town. There was never any smell that came in the house from the smoke and fire. So, they're doing a great job.

I had some problems with the trim. The molding that I had picked out wasn't exactly what I wanted. They were willing to make a change. But when they took the molding out that was there, there was plaster behind it that disintegrated, which we certainly didn't expect. Had I known that or somebody had told me that, we could have saved each of us a lot of trouble. Then we would have just left as one as is.

I specifically took Andersen even though they're much more expensive than most of the other windows. It’s because I didn't really want to replace the wood around the window. I didn’t want the mess. I wanted something that could fit into the existing areas that I had to replace. I have 14 windows in my living room and dining room, so I really didn't want to have to start ripping up walls. That afforded me the opportunity not to do that.

I got the E-glass. I have a lot of problems with the sun on one side of my house where I have my driveway. The new window replaced a regular Andersen window I've had since the late 80s, and that room was awfully stifling hot in the summer. It was unbearable. I always had to put the ceiling fan on. The minute that window got put in there, the room was 20 degrees cooler, which was really amazing. I didn't expect to see that much of a difference. Also always, I had a problem with the glare coming in there that bounced off my television set, and the light comes in but there's no glare. It all has to be that E-window that I never had before. The staff was also accommodating and the installers were savvy. They knew what they were doing.

Whatever date they set for the installation held and the install process was phenomenal. They were a very courteous crew. They didn't have a mess to clean up because they found ways to keep things clean as they went. I thought it would be three days but it was only two. When I looked at the hole that was left after the old windows were removed, it wasn't square, and yet when they finished, it looked like it was. They made it work.

I got seven windows and two doors. One was a fixed-in-place window that was between our living room and a new patio so we had viewing between the two areas without the need to move the window. There were some standard windows, up-down, pull it out to clean it. There is one large almost picture window. It's got two halves where if you needed to escape from upstairs, you could. It goes from left to right, right to left. One is an itty-bitty window in a bathroom upstairs that's fixed in place. For the doors, one was a double French door. The other was a basic door to the exterior. The windows and the doors have been great. Our only problem is they're so nice, clear and clean that we've had a bird die already because he flew into the big fixed window.

The part that convinced me was the forever guarantee as long as I own the home or if someone buys the home. My understanding had been that the guarantee passed on to whoever owned the house. When I finally got the written documents, there were changes made in the warranty agreement. I don't know that my agent knew in 2021, but I feel that I got caught in the midst of a change and the warranty applies when the install is done. That makes sense but I should have been aware of the wording change. That's the only downside of the experience.

Jose and his team of installers were awesome too. We moved almost everything we had to move, and they only had to move one thing away from the window. They were very timely as well as respectful of the home, keeping the house clean and putting tarps everywhere. We discussed about starting downstairs first, then doing the upstairs second and they were good with that. They got it done in two days and cleaned up everything really good. They were very good guys, and I trusted them. The windows are awesome, and I’ve got a lot of positive feedback for them. Compared to what we had, the noise level has just disappeared and it seems like the cooling system is staying cool longer inside the house than before.

I’ve had several people asking about Renewal by Andersen. I tell them, “Hey, call them. It's well worth it.” I’ve had people look at the windows, because unfortunately, we had to trim back a tree in the front of the house that got hurt with the freeze. It exposed the house a lot more and people are seeing the upstairs windows, how nice they look, and the downstairs windows. They’ve been asking, “Who did your job?” I told them. Deborah left some cards around, but everybody’s got something they’re gonna do around the house for the summer. With everybody’s finances, everybody's planning a year out of what they’re gonna invest in in their home. We started planning this last year and it finally got done.

Three months ago, before the install, I got a $10 Subway gift card to let me know that, “We’re still in the process. We know it’s taking long.” It was just to say, “Hey, thanks for being so patient. Everything’s still going on.” However, they told us from the very beginning it would be months before we would get in the install. Knowing that, we were fine. We knew we were taken care of, and we knew it was gonna happen.

The whole experience from beginning to end was excellent, probably the best customer service we ever had on any project we have ever taken. My husband and I have been using Andersen products for a long time and the quality is every bit as good now as it was way back in '75. We've built two houses and used Andersen in both, plus did some replacement on another structure in another home we had. And the product has maintained its quality through the years. I'd do it again. We're already contemplating doing some window replacement in our home and when we are ready to do so, we will be contacting Renewal by Andersen.