Sky Manor Window and Door Info: SECTION 2
Window product info: brands and frame material options
(This is a training and reference page and not for customers!)
Section 2. Brands and Frame Options
Our preferred brands
There are many, many window brands on the market. Way more than shingle manufacturers. Having tried multiple brands with varying degrees of success and challenges (to put it politely), we have locked in on three brands as our go-tos for windows and one for doors. For windows, we are currently certified contractors with:
- Pella
- Sierra Pacific
- Andersen
For doors, we aren't certified (I don't think they have that option), but the top brand we like is Therma-Tru. Provia is another great brand, but they are more expensive and Therma-Tru gives us a bunch of great options. The three window companies have some door options, too, in case clients prefer a certain brand.
These are all tried and true companies and, between them all, they offer us a full line of windows and doors to fit any budget and style.
Pella and Andersen are two very well-known names in the window world. Sierra Pacific is big in new construction and is now growing their replacement business. They are truly fantastic windows. If it were up to me, we'd only sell SP windows, but unless your HOs are all super wealthy, you'd be very limited on clientele.
There are other big names in windows: Marvin, Milgard, MI, Weathershield, Simonton, Amerimax, and many more. The ones we have selected offer everything these others have and, in the name of simplicity, familiarity, support, and loyalty, we prefer to stick with our main options.
Frame types
From a material standpoint, we can sell anywhere from basic vinyl, Fibrex, fiberglass, and high-end wood windows. The saying you get what you pay for is very much true when it comes to windows. Windows are not cheap, but some are much cheaper than others, both in price and in quality!
Luxury Level: Clad Wood Windows
The gold standard of windows. They are typically all wood (the H3 has a vinyl core) with a protective cladding (vinyl, Fibrex, or aluminum) on the exterior. Pine is the most common wood which typically comes unfinished. The wood needs to be painted or stained on the interior. For very large windows, especially super tall ones (over 8' tall), only wood can be made that big.
Sierra Pacific: all extruded aluminum cladding (strongest cladding available - basically a hail proof frame). We buy SP direct, so we can get a higher quality window for basically the same price as other wood windows we buy through ABC.
H3 corner sample showing vinyl core
- Aspen series (full wood frame) https://www.sierrapacificwindows.com/pdf/AspenBrochure-091318.pdf
- H3 series (wood with vinyl core) - competitively priced
Pella:
- Lifestyle series: roll form aluminum clad (not as strong), no sliders, but offers internal blinds/shades
- They offer two higher end lines, the Reserve and Architect series, but SP is better
Andersen: cladding varies
- E series - roll form aluminum clad
- A series - Fibrex clad
- 400 series - vinyl clad - the least expensive option for getting into wood windows.
Super Durable: Fiberglass
Fiberglass is a durable material designed to resist the elements. Fiberglass windows are low-maintenance and the frame is 10x stronger than vinyl (for maybe 1.5-2x the cost). The material is layered with interlocking mats, a structural core, heat-set resin and a baked-on finish. Fiberglass windows have a long-lasting factory powder-coated finish that stays looking fresh — so you won’t have to worry about refinishing year after year. Fiberglass IS paintable, but it's much easier to paint it at the factory level.
Pella:
- Impervia is the only true fiberglass series we offer.
- These windows are about the same frame depth as most vinyl (3 1/4"), so they are good, easy upgrades install-wise in houses with vinyl currently.
The smart alternative to vinyl: Fibrex Composite
Fibrex is a proprietary material made by Andersen. It's a composite material which is a blend of 40% wood fiber (mostly reclaimed from Andersen manufacturing processes) and 60% thermoplastic polymer. From an aesthetic and performance standpoint, Fibrex is meant to be a step up from vinyl. It's usually not that much more expensive than the Pella 250s. It's 2x stronger than vinyl and paintable.
Andersen:
- 100 series is the only Fribrex window we can offer
Side note: RBA (Renewal By Andersen) is a marketing firm for Andersen Windows but they are their own company. They only offer one window line which is also a Fibrex frame, so they don't sell any of Andersen's wood window lines. They are very expensive because they go all out on their installs (full nail fin replacements) plus they have a high advertising budget and overhead they have to cover. If your client is comparing us to RBA, we will easily be 25% or more less for basically the same product. We could easily offer fiberglass or wood windows for around the same as they sell Fibrex for.
Cost-conscious: Vinyl
Vinyl is by far the most common window frame type you'll run into. It's the asphalt shingle of the window world. It's cheap which makes it appealing to many homeowners, especially if they have a lot of windows to replace. Cost is often the biggest factor when it comes to buying new windows, but we highly encourage HOs, especially if they plan on living in the house for a good number of years, to consider upgrading to Fibrex or fiberglass.
Due to its nature, vinyl typically only lasts about 10-15 years. The material flexes quite a bit with direct sunlight and expansion and contraction of the house which leads to window operation issues and seal failures. White vinyl often turns yellow-ish over time and is NOT paintable. We can get vinyl in some colors, but the windows cost almost double white or tan and the color can scratch off.
Like asphalt, this will be your most common window sale. That said, learn the advantages of the other products and open the HO up to the different (and better) options.
There are a ton of vinyl window companies out there.
Pella:
- 250 series (high quality vinyl) is our preferred line.
- Encompass (builder grade) - much lower quality than 250s. Avoid selling if you can. It really is a super basic window and not a big upgrade (other than being new) than what your HO likely currently has.
Sierra Pacific:
- Multiple vinyl lines. This is NOT their forte. The vinyl line was developed for "wet windows" like showers and unfinished basements or just to save money in the basement. Wood is not good in wet areas, so that's why they offer these. Pella 250s are our go-to, but you CAN order SP vinyl if it's appropriate.
Other common vinyl brands:
- Amerimax (built in Loveland, but customer service sucks)
- Cascade (new construction window manufacturer. They own Amerimax)
- Simonton
- Milgard (owned by MI)
- Jeld-Wen
- Ply Gem
- Quaker
We CAN sell these brands, we just prefer Pella's and can quote them more easily.
NOTE: Andersen does NOT make a vinyl window
Exterior Doors
Doors come in a variety of materials and styles.
To me, doors are much more complicated than windows. It's best if your homeowners know what they want (at least, style-wise). If not, you can end up spending more time dealing with the one door than all of the windows combined!
The issue is there's no such thing as standard door. There are so many options and variables. And, when it comes to pricing a door, we don't have access to the quoting tool like we do with windows, so every little change a homeowner asks for has to be re-quoted.
If you want to make your life easier, either send them the door catalog link and let them pick out a door or plan on holding their hand and walking them through it. Either way, educate them through the different materials and general price ranges (not $ amounts, but like which materials are cheapest to most expensive).
Therma-Tru is one of ABC's top-selling door manufacturers. The other is Provia, but Therma-Tru is generally a bit lower in price. If you've ever seen their catalog, it's the size of a college text book.
You CAN get doors at Lowes and HD. Lowes even carries Therma-Tru. This can be a good, easy way to get doors quickly, especially super common door styles. I've heard Lowes/HD gets the bottom of the barrel from the manufacturers, so just keep that in mind. It's best to special order the door.
Door Material Options
The most common materials are solid wood, wood veneer, steel, fiberglass, aluminum, and vinyl (most common on patio sliders). To learn more about the differences between these, read this: https://www.bestpickreports.com/blog/post/the-most-common-exterior-door-materials/
Therma-Tru's main products are fiberglass and steel. Their fiberglass is definitely the preferred option, but can be a little pricey. That said, fiberglass will never warp or rust and has a ton of finish options (modern look/flat, wood grains, etc.) plus the paint lasts a long time.
In general, more glass = higher price. Also, doors can get as basic or as fancy as one would like.
The door in the photo above is is configured with sidelites on each side. It can also come with no sidelites, 1 on either side, or a transom on top of the whole thing.
When changing up the door configuration, it's important to be aware of how much space/width there is to work with.
The learning curve with doors is a bit steep. If you CAN avoid doors, especially while you're still learning windows, that's not a bad idea. But, it's not always avoidable, especially if it's a good job overall.
