Builder pushing back on design flaw
Sai
4 years ago
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Fundamental flaw in our education system.
Comments (7)Nick that's a thoughtful post. I agree absolutely that pampering and patting kids on their backs for mediocre achievements is a particularly insidious problem in the North American system. In my mind, it spawns from the phenomenon of emphasizing individuality...the 'everyone is special' type treatment. To put it harshly, at the extreme this behavior breeds an inflated sense of self worth that isn't grounded in any tangible talent. I've observed that this is a definite negative trait that bleeds into other undesirable personality traits (lack of humility, lack of perspective, poor losers etc...) But when it comes to the education system, I think it's a tricky area. Education is not just about academic growth but mental and social growth, right? What happens if a kid is a late bloomer? I wasn't particularly good at math when I was in elementary school or middle school. I remember so clearly that in 5th grade, our math class was divided into three groups based upon intelligence: the Septendecillions, the Trapazoids and the Duodecahedrons, in increasing intelligence. I remember being put into the Septendecillions (the dumbest group) because I had performed poorly on the first math test, and I felt terrible. The other two groups would make fun of us (we were the only group with a name that wasn't a shape), and worst of all, we were stuck in the same group for the rest of the year. I somehow 'got it' in high school, ended up getting one of the highest ranks in math for my class, and I even took second and third year math courses in University. I'm now completing my masters degree and I'll be going to medical school in September - I sure am glad those 5th grade groupings lasted only one year! It's a slippery slope - you're assuming that intelligence is somehow innate, or at least the full capacity of a child manifests at an early stage where 'sorting' can be done. But really, how well developed is a child's work ethic and self motivation at the age of 8? Poor teachers vs good teachers, differences in learning habits are also factors. And really, is doing well on exams sufficient in being a good doctor? In my opinion, high school is probably a good stage at which some sort of sorting can happen, because kids have had a chance to figure out whether they are academically minded or not. Options for more talented students should be available should they have the capacity or drive to take them, but it should be about opening more doors to the capable, rather than closing doors for those who might not be capable(yet). One conceivable solution is to make the whole curriculum more difficult from day 1. You are right; our high school graduates lag far behind high school graduates in other countries. The difference between students from places like China and Korea are astounding. In North America, everyone is special and kids should be allowed to be kids. It's a different culture compared to other places...in Asia, kids take rigorous examinations and are brutally ranked publicly against their classmates. Academically they are superior but they are lacking in creativity and innovation. They also have higher suicide rates...trade-off?...See MoreWhen to push for change w/builder & when to just go on? Windows
Comments (19)The doors/windows in the inspiration pic are a custom set of 4 patio doors mulled together with only the 2 inner ones operating all from the same manufacturer--likely a Pella, Jeld-Wen, Andersen or Marvin. We had something similar specced at one time and the cost was $3-4K with grids between the glass if I remember correctly. The cost skyrockets from there if you want simulated or true divided lites/grids. It is not easy to duplicate the look in the inspiration pic when you're using components from different manufacturers and mixing & matching windows and doors to get the effect you want. What you have appears to be the standard box store style patio door set with a transom mulled above flanked by 2 double hung windows. The problem with these style doors is that they will not look flush like the windows as the glass is held in by a chunky plastic frame that screws in place on the inside and outside of the door. The window will never have that look. You can get closer to the look in your pic by using flush glazed patio doors which more closely resemble the window design for uniformity. Changing the side windows to non-operational windows will also help achieve a cohesive look with the glass in the doors. I've linked to another thread that talks about flush glazed doors & mixing windows and doors below. If you need to use the pics in the thread to explain anything to the builder, you are more than welcome to do so. No matter which way you go, make sure the glass sizes match up in the transoms across the entire wall and not just the height of the overall transom. (you'll see in the link what I mean). Hope this helps! Here is a link that might be useful: Flush Glaszed Patio Door Discussion w/ Pics...See Moreloewen windows design flaw?
Comments (7)I also left this post over in the remodelling forum since it seemed to fit a thread over there as well as this one. I have been considering this post for a week or so and I wasnt sure if I ever wanted to actually post it. But now that I have seen posts from other folks who are concerned about purchasing Loewen because of seeing specific negative posts on this (and other) forums, I have decided to comment. As usual, it is probably too long. kavo United States  registered on November 18, 2006  birthday June 19. From kavo on November 18, 2006 at 1919 (in the Windows forum)  "A cautionary note...we are having a major problem with some of Loewen windows just installed on a new addition to our house. The service from Loewen has been terrible and their rep is unresponsive." From kavo on November 18, 2006 at 1922 (in the Windows forum)  "We are having a major problem with large french casement push out windows by Loewen. Just installed and do not operate properly -- the rep insists they are fine and is stonewalling us" Kavo has no additional posts on any THS forum pnwarchitect  United States  registered on November 19, 2006  birthday May 19 From pnwarchitect on November 19, 2006 at 2138 (in the Remodeling forum) "In particular I would stay away from the large casement windows. Loewen uses the same size framing on the larger windows as on the smaller ones, and it is inadequate to support a larger window properly. As a result the windows tend to warp when you close them, if you can close them at all. I had a project in which you had to go outside and press the top corner of two of the windows in to close them at all." From Adrian Justin on November 19, 2006 (not from a THS forum - but the link to this post is in a THS forum post)  "Âthe larger ones are defective. The primary reason for this is that Loewen does not increase the size of the frame in the larger windows, allowing them to warp signicantly when they are closed and therefore not lock correctly. Two of our windows actually require a person to stand outside and push on the window while another pulls to get it to seal correctly." From pnwarchitect on November 19, 2006 at 2303 (in the Windows forum)  "I'm not surprised. Loewen has been going downhill since it (over)expanded a few years ago. Sales have become more important than quality. I think that attitude will catch up with Loewen soon, I've heard many negative stories about Loewen from builders and other architects recently." From pnwarchitect on November 19, 2006 at 2310 (in the Windows forum)  "If you choose to go with wood, I would stay away from Loewen, their large windows are underdesigned and fragile." From pnwarchitect on November 19, 2006 at 2320 (in the Windows forum)  "Some manufacturers do not upsize the window frames for larger sizes and the windows do not function correctly due to warpage without constant adjustment. Loewen windows are notorious for this problem. Whatever you get, make sure that the larger windows have upsized frames." From pnwarchitect on November 19, 2006 at 2326 (in the Windows forum)  "Unfortunately for you, Loewen casements are a problem in larger sizes (small ones are ok). Also, Loewen windows are generally fragile, the douglas fir is a veneer and can come apart easily" pnwarchitect has no additional posts on any THS forum magnum pio  Canada  registered on December 5, 2006  birthday January 6 From magnum pio on December 5, 2006 at 2004 (in the Windows forum)  "I wouldn't waste any time with Loewen (speaking from experience!)" From magnum pio on December 26, 2006 at 2008 (in the Windows forum)  "I'd love to E-mail you some pictures of my Loewen windows (triple glazed units!) with frost/ice build-up on the inside of the glass! Do waste your money on Loewen!" magnum pio has no additional posts on any THS forum My point to all this? In the intelligence biz (my previous occupation before entering the glass and window industry) one looks for consistency and patterns when gathering data. People tend to be creatures of habit  they tend to be consistent in how they do certain activities. Note, for example, that the number/date of registration and the number/date of birthday is the same (once) and one number lower (twice) for these three folks and that for two of the "individuals" the date of registration was also the date of their only posts to THS. Note the similarity of pnwarchitect post and the Adrian Justin post on another website forum  and on the same dayÂnote the timeframe of posts from all three individuals. From all three "individuals"  the essence of their posts is to slam Loewen  nothing else. In addition, pnwarchitect made a number of factual errors and misstatements that have been addressed by others following his posts in the specific threads. Also note that in all three cases the "I live in" was the country US, US, CAN. Again, many people also list their country of origin  many donÂt. Again, there is nothing about any of these comments that cannot be applied to many others who have posted on THS and elsewhere  but within the framework of this particular discussion there are a good many consistencies that seem to add up. I will offer no conclusions since this is simply idle conjecture, but I would suggest some interesting possibilities. Again, while I have debated with myself whether to actually post this thing  and I really donÂt care one way or the other if folks decide on Loewen as their window company  it does bother me when I see other folks becoming hesitant about their potential window purchase based on information in posts that one might consider to be not quite as straightforward as it might be. And as a disclaimer, I certainly donÂt spend my days "analyzing" what other folks post - I really enjoy reading what other people write - but, I was once trained to recognize patterns and I have spent a good part of my life identifying and analyzing consistencies  and in this case the numerous consistencies pointed out a very distinct pattern that I could not help but notice  I suspect that others may have noticed these as wellÂ....See MoreNew Cabinet Flaws
Comments (46)Yes, your dealer should be stepping in to help you to find someone to make the molding if that's still not done. But, you should be prepared to pay the rest that you owe to the dealer to get the job done. They generally have 30 days to pay the manufacturer, and the cost of the cabinets is more than you've paid them. So, they are out money and inconvenience as well from the company shutting it's doors. They probably have issues with more customers than you in the middle of the process, and they're probably tearing their hair out! I'd expect them to find someone local to help you out with tweaking your cabinets, but I'd also expect that they'd want at least 70 of the remaining 40% in order to be able to help you. That would let them not go underwater on your order, and it would help with them finding (and paying) someone to fix the issues. When the issues are resolved, then pay them the remainder. I wouldn't expect your drawer issue to be covered by the dealer either, as it falls within the acceptability guidelines of a production cabinet line....See MoreSai
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