Good info here. I have been shopping Pella, Marvin, JenWeld, LLuminare and Softlite. The quotes are all over the place- or not coming in at all ?? This is what I need: new construction 46 windows, many "fixed" /picture windows, rest are casement, slider, horizontal slider, awning. Looking for contemporary/ modern look with black or dark aluminum exterior and black interior aluminum clad - frameless, mounted with a drywall wrap look and adding some ornamental sills later in specific rooms. Appreciate any advice for vendors in GEORGIA. ( house is in 30522 zipcode)

In my area, TX Gulf Coast, everybody is using vinyl but I insisted on aluminum b/c I've seen so many plastic fences, furniture WARP. Didn't want to worry about that with windows. You are in a different climate so perhaps warping is not an issue. I don't regret my decision.

For what it is worth, I thought I'd circle back on what we chose to do in case it helps anyone else. We love our wood windows and I just wasn't sold on replacing them with fiberglass yet. After lots of research I found Clear Image Glass in Issaquah, WA. (not compensated for mentioning them) The majority of my windows were structurally sound, but with some foggy spots. After a thorough inspection, we decided that most just needed new sills. They are made with Alaskan Yellow Cedar (better for NW elements if choosing wood) and depending on location in house chose LOE 366 or 272. Weathervane is the original manufacturer and not in business anymore, so in the areas we were adding windows, they built custom windows to match our existing exactly. The few areas with rot were fixed. It has been almost a year and we are super pleased. We were even able to keep our existing kitchen windows! New sills were half the cost (or less, depended on window). Custom windows were higher than other bids, but was worth it. For us, we were really happy to keep wood and the charm. Here are my kitchen windows, painted with new sills.

To connect the dots for our studio audience, the glass itself does not make vinyl windows more thermally efficient than other materials, as you can and sometimes do have the very same glass in windows of various materials. Higher quality vinyl windows often have superior ratings, but the material, engineering, and build of the entire window assembly contribute to that. In other cases there may be a more thermally efficient glass pack used, but better glass and vinyl as a build material are in no way inextricably tied together... Sounds like you were trying to lead that horse to water oberon, but it just wouldn't drink... That or the windowmaster is aware of some new and amazing glass technology that is exclusive to vinyl windows, in which case we'd all love to hear it! @kcudzich13, more to your question, there are great windows in both vinyl and fiberglass. As has been discussed, quality vinyl will generally have better thermal and structural performance (think insulating ability, air leakage, etc), and be more cost effective. Fiberglass can do a few things that not many vinyl windows can like painted interiors, but other than that vinyl holds more advantages for most folks... Don't forget about choosing a reputable dealer for a quality installation as well, that is just as important as the window itself. You did mention a supply house, are you planning on DIY install?