I do not believe that either of those choices will do what your looking to accomplish form the noise aspect. They may help slightly but you may also ask about using different thickness of glass in the IGU as this may also help slightly.

This post was edited by millworkman on Wed, Mar 20, 13 at 8:33

I assume that you are on the west coast based on those options? Flip a coin. Both are solid and will offer similar performance... MWM is right though, you probably will not see the result that you are looking for in terms of sound reduction.

Hmmmm, thats pretty discouraging and yes I live in the Bay Area. If those two brands won't accomplish what I am looking for, any good recommendations along a similar price point?

Without going to laminated glass and or a sound attenuation window in addition to sound attenuation in the walls nothing will really help unfortunately.

+1. Those are actually a couple of the better choices that are available out west. The problem is that a standard glass package just isn't going to do a lot for you in the area of sound control. The degree of improvement that you will see depends on what you have currently. If you have existing double pane units or single pane with storms, don't expect to hear a huge difference.

I see, well I have old thin single pane windows, and i am sure any upgrade will be better than what I have currently. I am just trying to figure out which would work best. Thanks for all your inputs!

If they have no storms you should see a marked improvement. If they do have storms, you may be disappointed.

We don't get many storms out here in the Bay, occasional high winds and rain, but I don't mind the sound of rain or even nature at its rage, its the people who cause all the racket that's been quite the bother (highways, construction, trains, etc).

By storms he is speaking about storm windows.

Lol, yes, storm windows.... Forgive me if they are uncommon on the west coast. I don't get out that way very often.

LOL, it took me a few for it to register. I was thinking storms in the bay area?? if the company has storm windows??? huh??OHHHHHHH, if I currently have storm windowsssss.......ding!

Hi, I'm with Elite Exteriors, Inc. out of Bremerton, WA. I wanted you to know that we have sold a few different brands of windows, and every one of them that we installed in the SeaTac Airport area significantly reduced the noise problems from low-flying overhead planes. I believe you will get the desired results from either of the windows you are looking at. I would check to see if there are factory service reps for any of the window brands you are looking at. This is probably one of the more important issues. If you need and cannot get service, then you have not made the best choice in a window. Both these companies probably have an equal chance of being around in 20 or 30 years. Hope this helps in your choice.

We have the same problem as the original poster. Noisy neighbors, barking dogs and train horns. We had a leaky window several years ago and replaced it with an Anlin window. It has held up very nicely, but it's not a noise reduction window. We also had a Simonton window installed to replace a builder grade window that clouded up. The Simonton window leaked twice. The company we bought the Simonton window from did come out and fix it twice, but we're kind of scared to continue with the Simonton. Other companies have said the window was probably not installed correctly. And what it did seem to us was that all the company did to "weatherproof" the window was caulk it and then caulk it some more. They claimed they used the best caulk, but they had to come back twice. So we're a little scared of the Simonton. As far as noise reduction goes, I'll be happy with any noise reduction we can get. All these windows seem to have noise reduction packages where they used different size glass between the panes. Does this work at all? Will using different size glass between the panes reduce noise more than just double paned 1/8 inch windows with argon gas?

Offset glazing (i.e. different thicknesses of glass) is quite effective at improving STC.

You can also inquire about laminated glass.

We have Simonton Windows that were installed ten years ago. The installation was poor, a caulk normally used for stucco that looks ugly. We have to recaulk on the sunny side of the house as it eventually cracks.

I am doing a remodel and considering going to the Milgard Tuscany because it has a lifetime warranty and accessible customer service.

This time we are installing to studs and using the system recommended in the warranty which includes a channel to offset any potential leaks so you don't develop a mold problem.

Can anyone tell me the downside of Milgard Tuscany? We are looking at double hungs, casements and single hungs with external grids.

We used them for a time when they were on the East Coast.

I hated the PAL locks. Ugh. They worked about as well as Healthcare.gov does.

Other than that and some customer service issues, they were a pretty solid window.

Decent numbers. Not a world beater but I would put it ahead of the Simonton in terms of clean lines and performance edge.

Hi Djinn415
Any updates on which window you used and the results?
I'm curious.
Did you go with the different glass thickness? or laminated?

I'm in the same boat in san diego...starting to do my research.
Milgard posts their Tuscany performance ratings and of other models. It lists it out by the type of glass thickness or laminated combos, it's very interested to see how the STC rating increases.

-dan

I also live in the Bay Area and have several quotes on Milgard Tuscany, Simonton DaylightMax and Comfort Design by Brothers. My head is about to explode because I don't know if I am comparing apples to apples. Any help on which window is going to hold up the best and be the best value for the money. Simonton DaylightMax came in at $12,500 and Brothers $14,500. I was told Simonton is superior to Milgard which is why I didn't get an actual quote (SGK represented Milgard and Simonton). Brother's is the only one that brought out an actual sample window.

I think that Amerimax is a well regarded unit out in your area as well. Window shopping can be tough but if you do your research, you will land on the right product for your application.

SO glad I found this thread! I'm also in the Bay Area and recently bought a house in a neighborhood that I was not aware would be so noisy. Doesn't help that I'm also super noise sensitive. My street is busy, and i live in Oakland with lots of modded vehicles. My neighbor has a ridiculously loud motorcycle, and a dog that barks incessantly. I am losing what's left of my mind. I have a home built in 1923 with all single paned aluminum windows. Oh, and there is a house being built across the street and I work from home...If I can't get the noise down, I am going to have to move and sell my house.

I got a bid on Milgard Slimline(?) windows with the noise package, which is 1/8" over 3/16" glass, don't know about the spacer. Today I got a bid from Brothers home improvement for Simonton Daylight Max. Same glass thicknesses with a foam insert. I don't know why Simonton does not list the STC rating for these windows, but that makes me very nervous. However, the Simonton is cheaper than the Milgard, and from everything I've read, the Milgard Slimline is the cheapest and least recommended of all the the Milgards. So I'm leaning towards the Simonton.

I'd love to hear from those of you that have gotten the Daylight Max. And I'd REALLY love to hear from the original poster of this thread! They posted my story, but didn't give us the outcome!!

@LeahP - for some reason I never got a notification about your follow up post. Did you get new windows yet? I"m revisiting the estimate I got from Brothers and considering adding laminated glass to the windows in the front of my house. I am on a tight budget right now but after this weekend's latest live mariachi band party across the street that went until 2am, I know if I don't get some relief soon I will have to sell my house.

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@Leah P. Did you get the windows? I have decided to go with the Simonton Daylight Max with sound package. The guy from Brothers came to do final measurements today and installation is expected in 4-5 weeks. I'm really hoping it makes a substantial difference in the noise level as I was woken up this morning by a neighbor using his leaf blower for the 4th time in a week. I swear downtown SF is quieter than this residential neighborhood.

Tatsie Cereale, Please let me know how do you like the Simonton. A Brothers' rep provided a quote for triple pane and laminated

Hi, I did get them. I then sold my house. The windows did help with noise, but there were a few problems:

1. The house was almost 100 year old and had a crawl space, so noise and vibrations still came up through the floor. I could feel car stereos, etc.
2. It had the original glass front door and matching front window that added a great aesthetic value, so I did not want them replaced. They also faced the busy street and therefore noise was still quite loud in the living room. A front bedroom also facing the street but with all new windows was noticeably quieter, but you could certainly still hear outside noise.
3. Third, I am extremely sensitive to noise. Much more so than the average person. So what others might not even notice, I often find intolerable.

Other issues encountered:

• Most of the windows installed did not stay open upon installation. The Brothers installers believed that the windows did not have the correct balances, i.e. the "sound package" glass was heavier than the usual glass, but that was not accounted for in the manufacturing, so the windows were too heavy to stay open. After reading the horror stories of trying to deal with installers and manufacturers, I was not going to wait months just to get the runaround, so I refused to pay the rest of the bill until they fixed the problem. Brothers was helpful, but Simonton reps were a pain. I insisted that the Brothers supervisor come out to oversee the Simonton people when inspecting and adjusting the windows, which he did. They were then fixed, but that should never have happened.
• Shortly after installation I found water pooled in one of the window frames. There was a ton of rain this year, so maybe it would have eventually drained/dried. I don't know, but it was a bit concerning.
• The light filtering properties, which I had been told were not noticeable, were very noticeable to me. The light coming in had a greenish cast and made things darker. I think most people wouldn't notice, but again, I have sensory issues. To me it felt like I was wearing polarized sunglasses in the house. I asked about it and was told it was unavoidable in the energy efficient windows.

So that's my experience. I did NOT get triple glazed, so those might really cut out noise more. I personally would not buy these again just because after installation I didn't feel the noise reduction was sufficient to warrant the hassle. I will say it was quieter in my bedroom, BUT I like to sleep with my windows ajar, which defeated the purpose of noise reduction.

Hi Taste Cereale, Thank you so much for your reply. That was very smart to sell your home and get another one. I hope your new house is much better. I looked at the home prices in my area ( Bay area, Ca) and they are insane. if the windows do no work my plan is to sell my house.

I'm also in the bay area, which factored into my decision to sell. I figured the current market can't be sustained too much longer, so it would be better to sell now and hold on to the proceeds until prices soften and bit. Hopefully I'll be able to then afford a house in an area better suited to my needs.