All poor choices in my opinion from a quality and fit and finish standpoint. Any other options or choices available to you?

Sierra Pacific Aspen, Milgard Essence (wood/fiberglass) and Kolbe Ultra (wood/aluminum) are available. For 8500' elevation in Colorado if that makes a difference

Milgard scares me as I recently learned they were purchased by Metal Industries making this a no brainer for with me for the Kolbe Ultra. Can you get Marvin Ultimates as they are an equal in my opinion to the Kolbe (possibly a bit better than Kolbe but that is a personal choice).

I used Sierra Pacific windows and loved them. Had zero issues. Aluminum clad. No idea the model number.

I also have Marvin Ultimates in a different house. I can’t tell the difference except the Marvin’s cost way more.

I have been in the window and door industry for 30 plus years and there is considerable difference in the quality of the products.

Sierra Pacific has a 20 year warranty on the wood and Semco has only 10. Kolbe Ultra has 10 on the wood

SP is owned by Hurd. Ask any Hurd owner from 10-15 years ago how the warranty worked for them? It didn't they went belly up twice and no warranty. A pile of crap with a warranty is still a pile of crap. I would stand by a quality company that has stood the test of time with a quality product and a reputation of standing behind their product.

SP isn't owned by Hurd. SP bought Hurd several years ago. How Hurd handled warranty claims has nothing to do with how SP does since they are a completely different company. Sierra Pacific Windows is part of Sierra Pacific Industries, the largest millwork producer and the second largest lumber company in the U.S. Sierra Pacific Industries owns over 2 million acres of timberland in California and Washington. They aren't exactly a fly by nighter............

If you have relevant info as to how SP handles warranty claims lets hear it as this is important to me.

As far as the quality of the SP H3 window goes. I found it interesting that Kolbe copied their design and got sued for it last year. The hybrid H3 must be successful or competitors wouldn't be copying it.

I asked which other SP window might be better and you basically replied they are all junk. Sounds like you either work for or sell only one brand and everything else is junk. Just because SP isn't as well known as Marvin or Pella doesn't make them junk.

I would like to see info from you or anybody else that shows that the name brand windows are really better than a Semco or a SP. I know of many that have Pella and have all kinds of problems. All of the companies make a builders line of windows. The Andersen 100 series is an example. I looked at them. They look cheap and are hard to operate.

BTW, I have Andersen windows here at home. Been here since 1993 and no problems (double hung vinyl/wood)

Carl we have SP clad windows in our house and our son has SP H3 in his tiny house. We are pleased with the operation and performance and so is our son. But our climates are nothing like yours. We are in western NC in the Blue Ridge Mountains and he is on the Olympic Peninsula in WA. We had one seal break early on out of 42, probably something got past quality control but it was handled quickly and replaced. Isn't the Aspen line all wood? Are you sure that's something you would want in your climate? My other son lives in Denver, used to live in Aspen and before that Gunnison so I know how intense the sun is and we don't even need to talk about the snow! Have you considered triple pane? And FWIW, we had Hurd windows in our previous house (installed 1993) and never had an issue but I've heard here over and over how horrible those windows were! ;-)

This is an interesting thread, to put it mildly.

Carl, if you are so knowledgeable why are you asking? OK so Hurd and SP are owned SP and not Hurd. Just because the company is huge does not make the product automatically good. I have sold both SP and Hurd and would use neither in anything of mine. I have never sod Semco (thank god) and would never use their product either. I have said all i will say on the subject. Good luck on your project.

Another vote for Kolbe. Just because designs are similar it does not mean quality is. Carl Corut you have a strange amount of product knowledge and sensitivity about a product that you are only "considering". Its almost as though you are a SP rep and tried to make this post a sneaky commercial for your product by picking one of the few even crappier windows in semco for comparison, only to have it all blow up in you face. Yikes. If not, if you are Joe Consumer and you've simply developed an odd and perhaps unhealthy affection(obsession?) for the Sierra Pacific brand, go for it my friend. After all, all we can offer is our opinions.

No, I don't work for SP. I am a homeowner building a home in southern CO and the local dealer carries SP, Semco and Kolbe. I know how to google and find out info so when someone tries to pull the wool over my eyes I can google and find out what is true and not true. I found posts from millworkman from 8 or 10 years ago and every time all he says is SP are junk or bottom of the barrel. Sounds like he is the one that is here for another window manufacturer. I asked for input from those that have used Semco or SP windows. A broad statement like they are junk has no merit without data to back it up.

I did find a guy that lives in Canon City that has had SP window since '08. He doesn't have H3 but the standard wood/aluminum clad. He has had no problems.

It seems like their is brand snobbery when it comes to windows. If you don't get the Cadillac or Lincoln, folks call your decision stupid and a waste of money.

Consistency Carl Crout. I have no dog in the hunt. I work in commercial aluminum, have not been in residential in 15 years. S/P was poor quality, fit and finish and mediocre performance then when I sold residential and still know people in the business who will say the same. Same with Hurd, I still have people complaining about Hurd products they purchased in the 80's and 90's. Look at the end of the day I don't care of you use plastic sheeting for windows, I just pass along what I know to be true. Some may be my opinion but I am an expert at that. May they be fine for the average homeowner, yes. May many people have zero issues with them, yes. But there is always a problem at some point, not with every consumer, not with every type window and the way things are handled when I dealt with them goes a long way in my book.

I'd opt for Kolbe for my money out of these choices.

@Carl Crout , if you are seeing the posts from mwm for the past 8-10 years, you'll likely see that he speaks highly of several lines, poorly of several lines, and with little regard to "name brand" recognition. In fact, he and others are pretty critical of some of those brands that are "viewed to be the best".

Its great to consider the opinion of folks that have purchased windows and had them installed for a few years. Unfortunately there are fewer folks that post about how things are looking in year 10, 15, and 20. Industry pros have a unique opportunity to witness that, both from the beginning to the end of a window's service life (for those guys that have been around for decades like MWM), as well as being in homes of folks in need of new windows day in and day out. Looking at 10, 20 and 30 year old windows daily. Seeing repetitive problems, seeing which windows are generally being replaced more quickly in terms of service life, etc.

Sierra Pacific is not a brand that has been in my area for long, however Hurd was, and given the trends seen in quality, between that brand and Kolbe, I'd opt for Kolbe. I've sold a couple jobs between them in recent years by request, but I'm not tied to either any more than that. I will say that SP seems to be pouring tons of money into promotion and marketing lately, we'll see how that works out. Even products that were once poor can turn things around, one can look at a car company like Hyundai as an example. That said, most people don't want to take the risk of being an early adopter if that is the case, as there aren't all that many Cinderella stories like that.