has anyone used Sears windows?

I bought mine from Home Depot but won't buy the rest from them. I did not want double hung windows except in my kitchen and bathroom but they told me you can't buy a single hung window anymore. I questioned the guy over the department and he insisted the same thing. I bought two of them but remembered a company in Mobile the church bought from called Jemison windows and called them. They said they sell them every day. I don't know why I didn't call them before I bought the double hung but I will buy the rest from them. There is also a window world in Mobile that a lot of people recommend. Good luck with your windows.

I buy about ten grand in single hung windows every year for my new homes. They are cheaper, tighter and 99% of all homeowners never move the top sash anyway. Simonton and Jeld-Wen both make decent quality singles hungs at very reasonable prices, I'm sure there are lots of other manufacturers out there also.

I chuckled to myself when I saw this. I had the absolute honor of working for an old school hustler at a 100 year old hardware store, starting when I was thirteen. The guy looked like he was straight out of a somewhere in pre-war Europe, dressed like it was 1930, and was absolutely honest, but boy he walked the razor's edge in that department. He could negotiate better than anybody alive, knew to a penny what he paid for everything he had bought over the previous forty years, and was an extraordinary businessman who left school at 14, penniless, and made millions. One day, as a young lad I wanted to buy a Monitor Kerosene heater. My boss sent me to see his buddy the tinman. The tinman was a similar character, maybe seventy years old, very Jewish and had a cigar planted in his mouth ever waking moment. He was selling these things as a sideline in his "home improvement" showroom. As I was paying him, Cash of course, no paperwork, I asked "did you see that new movie, "Tinmen"? He got a twinkle in his eye, and a smile came over is face. He unplugged his cigar and said, " you watched it, kid?" I answered yes. He looked me straight in the eye and said with a grin. "I should of wrote that thing, I did EVERYTHING in that movie and more". It made his day to know that at my young age, I recognized the art of his craft, and knew he was a master. I still smile thinking about that moment decades ago

I still have to replace my bedroom windows and they will not be double hung. I cannot believe I did not check it out before just taking his word for that. Never again.

Sears has been around forever, will be around forever, and it sends teams from all over the country to replace windows after hurricanes. If a hurricane damages my windows, all I have to do is make a single phone call. I don't have to chase down a manufacturer or try to find an installer. They have the measurements for my windows in their system.

I like my Sears windows. Their installation team was top of the line, and the windows are awesome.

If you live in a hurricane zone, I recommend Sears.

Oh, by the way, the salesman will negotiate on price.

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Alice
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"No great thing is created suddenly." ~Epictitus

wow thanks to everyone for their advice and suggestions and insight ... this is going to be a bigger task than I thought! I have appointments Thursday and Friday to have Sears, Lowes and Window World come out to measure and give me quotes, and I went to Menards and Home Depot and priced the windows if I buy them myself. I have a few calls in to contractors to see what they would charge me to install the windows if I buy them, but no return calls yet (but that is typical Missouri customer service crap ) I had no idea they were so expensive!!

Why wouldn't you want a double hung ? You can't clean the upper sash from the inside with a single hung.

Only place I ever see single hung windows used are on new, low-mid range houses where the builder is trying to cut corners and save 15-20 bucks/window.

You're on the right track. Getting several estimates alone ( and LET THEM KNOW YOU ARE ) will cut the price they quote you quite a bit.

--Don't fall for the "got to sign tonight or the deal is no good" line of BS

--Don't buy their hype that they have THE most super duper window on the market.....the difference in every vinyl window on the market probably isn't 20 bucks worth of quality.

--DO get LowE glass.....good stuff.....well worth it if you have to pay 20-30 bucks a window more for it ( but hold them to the fire and don't pay over that....manufacturers often throw it in for free )

It isn't actually "Sears".....it's a window sales company that pays Sears to use their name.....and of course, that is also built into the price of the window.

I'm glad it worked out good for you, but don't assume that other window companies around the country operating under the Sears name are the same quality or ethics.....


Well, they certainly have room to do so.....

Ouch, I'm that builder, LOL. Actually, I typically build affordable ranch homes for the retirement and vacation market. I use a lot of single hungs for many reasons. I can upgrade to an exterior brick mold with integral J channel, argon, low-e, attractive internal grilles (that look like moldings, not aluminum paint stirrers) and self-locking sashes, and still stay on budget. If I have a customer who objects, I have no issue with using double hungs. But if they object while shopping in one of my spec. homes, I ask if they have ever opened the top sash for ventilation if they currently live with double hungs? The answer is always no. If they argue that they can't clean the windows because they are fixed, I tell them that my own ranch has all high end double hungs. The top sash never moves and I never tilt them in. I clean them twice a year, from the outside, with a long handled brush and a hose. It's faster, cleans everything including all the bugs,spider webs, sash and frame. Last, in this climate a double hung literally has twice the amount of air leakage, and parts to break.

TNAndy, what is LowE glass?

My humble opinion on Sears Windows. DON"T DO IT! We had all are windows replaced by Sears years ago. They leaked for over 4 years before the problem was solved! Sears would come and say that the problem was not with them but the windows themselves, the window company would say no the problem is the installation, this went on for years untill finally I brought Sears to court. We won, but my then the floor was damaged from the constant leaking. I have not, or will not ever go into another Sears store for the rest of my life.

PS I since have learned of other people having problems with them on different installations. Be careful.

Low emissivity glass

Read here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low_emissivity

Either a coating on the glass, or made into it ( they use two different methods ) made of iron. Gives a slight tint to the window, but the main thing it does is increase the energy efficiency about 25% by reflecting heat out in the summer and in during the winter. Well worth the money, considering a ANY window is just a big thermal hole in the wall.

Some companies also combine it with Argon gas between the panes, but don't pay extra for that IF it's an option...what I read, the Argon is gone after a couple years and the window companies only use it to get a temporary energy rating boost during testing. If it comes as a "package", take it....but if you can separate out the Argon, do so.

As I said, it really depends on the window company that Sears rented their name to....you can get a good one or a bad one. But they are all overpriced from what I've seen, and the name "Sears" on the deal means about nothing.

Andy you're right Argon dissipates over time,the 20% to the window cost is a waste of money for something that will be totally gone in 3 or 4 years. However, remember too that what Low E offers in efficiency it also detracts from in the necessary UV rays that plants need to live... a plant will not thrive in a window thats got Low E glass... so if you love your plants its not a good idea to get all the windows in your home with that option. It is however good for keeping carpets and furniture from sun fading in front of a window. I prefer my plants tho.

Tell ya a little story on how well it works.

We have a 'sunroom' off the kitchen with tall, Andersen casement windows that have LowE glass.

I bought a small solar powered battery charger for AA,AAA, D type batteries, and it has a meter on it to tell you how much sun your getting. Day it came, I was playing with it at a table in the sun room, bright sunshine coming it, and the meter would only go to about 40%.....so I stepped out on the adjoining deck, and it pegged out at 100% !

THAT is the first time I ever actually was able to measure the effect of LowE glass !

Given our current code requirements for "U" value, that being the opposite of "R" value, for windows in our climate, I need to specify both Low-E and Argon fill to meet the rules. A few more points about Low-E coatings. They are improving, but in the past they have suffered from an oil sheen appearance look to them in certain sun-light conditions. Some manufacturers put the coating on a nearly invisible sheet of plastic that becomes the third pane in a triple glazed window, I always found the durability of this system to be questionable. The location of the coating, as in which face of which sheet of glass does the coating get applied to, varies by climate. A low-e window for the desert southwest is not the same window you want for a home in Minnesota. Given the need for both LOW-E and Argon fill in my market area, neither "option" adds much to the cost of a window, not should it when you shop for replacements. If you are in a cold climate DO NOT skip the Low-E option on any window. This can mean the difference between a window with constant condensation and problems including mold growth, and a trouble free unit. The performance difference is quite noticeable and you may find that saving money by ordering standard insulated glass is a short cut you later regret.

No talk about casement windows? I used those in my log home. I really like them, didn't mind the screen inside. The large ones are heavy though, need to fix some of the sliders.

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We will meet in the golden city, called the New Jerusalem,
All our pain and all our tears will be no more.....

My house was built in 1973 by my grandparents. It had single pane single hung windows. I am replacing them. I wanted double hung windows for the kitchen and bathroom because those windows are harder to reach and I wanted to be able to open them inside for easier cleaning. I have owned this house since 1977 and clean the windows inside and out, upper and lower sash at least twice a year with no problem. I just use a step ladder for the upper sash on the outside and my small kitchen stepladder for the upper sash on the inside. One issue I have encountered is the thickness of the double hung windows. This house has 2x4 studs whereas newer ones have 2x6 studs.

If you can purchase three sets of windows without a lifetime guarantee, you'd do just fine without that guarantee. The last windows we got had either a ten or a 15 year warranty.

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Moms don't look at things like normal people.
-----DD