Quality of CURRENT Andersen and their Woodwright

15 years ago

Hi Folks...

I've been stringing my poor contractor along for a year, trying to pick out the right window for replacing 17 double-hungs in our historical home. The major historical requirement in our district is to have external grids and keep the original exterior trim, neither of which are hard to meet. Also, my personal preference is to have white WOOD interior. And I need replacements rather than full-frame. My budget is $18k.

I've looked at many windows, and recently had a false-start with Kolbe and Kolbe when I found out I'd been quoted for standard sizes rather than the custom size we provided, putting us way over budget.

My contractor finally quoted me for the Pella 850 series from Lowes, which was not his first (or fourth) choice but was well within budget. I went to look at that window and also the Andersen Woodwright 400 (450?) from Home Depot. The Andersen seemed clearly better to me in terms of quality of workmanship, etc. Just my impression from the display, but I did look each over very carefully. I actually LIKED the Andersen, so I got a quote for them from my contractor. A little over budget but workable.

Then I made the mistake of doing additional research, and I ran across a large cluster of people--mostly installers--claiming all kinds of problems with Andersen, both the hardware and the company.

Question: how is Andersen NOW (not how were they in 2006 or 1996,) and how are these Woodwright 400/450 windows? They really looked good to me, but I have no way of judgin longevity of seals and things like that.

Sorry for the novella...thanks for any help you can provide.

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Comments (3)

kec01
15 years ago
I can't help with answers to your questions but I'm wondering why you are replacing your windows instead of repairing what you already have. If it's just drafts, you can save yourself tons with spring bronze weatherstripping. Or is wood rotted beyond repair? I'm an old home lover and hate to see original windows dumped if they could be saved.
scottek
Original Author
15 years ago
kec01, I did wrestle with that option for quite a while. The main reason for getting new windows is lead paint. Lots and lots of lead paint. I hired some painters to redo some paint on the exterior of the house for the same reason, and it was difficult enough to find someone who could do that properly (actually, I DIDN'T find someone who could do that properly.) The prospect of shopping around for someone qualified to rehabilitate all my windows, most of which won't open and all of which send lead paint chips flying when they ARE opened, was not appealing.
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C Bro
3 years ago
Just wondering how are your Anderson Woodright windows holding after 12 years?

Quality of CURRENT Andersen and their Woodwright

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kec01

scottek
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Quality of CURRENT Andersen and their Woodwright

Comments (3)

kec01

scottekOriginal Author

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scottek
Original Author