Just a quick post to show my latest window creation, a winter-themed one...
to be sold along with my Japanese one. My husband has cleared a wall for me at the shop for display...
This was the first window I attempted. Since I barely have any free wall space throughout the house, I had my husband put chains on it and we hung up in the sunroom...
Now that I have a system, each one takes me about a week to make...much better than the months the first one did! Don't throw out those old frames...recycle them!
And on the 18th day, all the workers were gone and serenity was returned to the woman...
It took a while to get all 19 windows installed but they kept their word and were done by Thanksgiving. Had it not been for the EPA's Draconian and absurd lead rules it would have been done much quicker. The company we used is not one you'll find on a coupon in a blue envelope claiming to install windows for $189, that's for sure. They weren't cheap but we didn't want cheap...we wanted good. Assuming we would have structural work needed besides just ripping out and popping in a framed window we decided to go with F & S Sunrooms.
They checked the frames on every window and if there was a speckle of damage done by water or insects they replaced the wood before placing in the new windows. They grounded down the metal to the brick on my antiquated casement basement windows.
Old one...
New one...
My neighbor had the same windows done and the company he used skipped that step and instead made the windows smaller by just covering the old metal. Not good enough. Yesterday the last two workers finished up by installing hand cut custom stained inside trim to frame out the basement windows. Another detail the other company didn't perform.
There was some damage to two ceilings from the tape they used when they needed to "secure the house" from the dreaded deadly lead. They matched the paint perfectly and repainted the areas, and even left behind the cans of excess paint. They stained all the wooden frames inside the basement covering any nicks they inadvertently caused. They cleaned all their mess. They removed the old windows carefully and handed them back to me so I can create some art with them. I have ideas, just no time to implement them.
One plus about being stuck home for the last two weeks is that I got a lot of writing done. Another plus is that my son's windows, and he, are no longer crying during a cold snap. This picture was taken the first of November before the new windows. Notice Jack frost nipping at the window...
He hasn't been around since the new ones were put in. And my heat has hardly been running at all. I am amazed at the difference. Did I mention how wonderful it is that they tilt in to clean? By the way I did rip off the labels, just haven't taken any new pictures.
This was my old front window. Doesn't look like there's anything wrong with it, but the putrid smell of wet wood from rain dripping inside the frame made me nauseous. Not only were those cute little triangles a bitch to clean but they blocked my view as well...
The new and improved window is in place. Egads! Is that a mountain in the background?
Can't wait to decorate it for Christmas. Wait, we may have to skip Christmas this year...ain't got no money left after spending it all on windows!
Don't even think about crossing this Caution tape that surrounds my property...
And if you happen to make it across the barrier you'd better not even think about eating, drinking or smoking because as you can clearly see Renovation Work is in progress...
And if you happen to make it across the barrier and through the door you're sure to face the plastic tombs...
And if you make it across the barrier, through the door, survive the plastic tombs and think you're going to install a window outdoors you damn well better be wearing a Hazmat suit!
All this because my 1957 home had lead paint, not even on the windows or frames, but on the window sill interior. Thank you EPA. If you didn't mandate this treatment God knows my teenagers would have picked up the speckle of paint that fell on the floor and sucked it down and then suffered irreversible brain damage.
The job is still going on because my 1957 home had some water damaged wooden sills which had to be cut by hand and replaced.
The job is still going on because my 1957 home does not have a straight edge anywhere so each of the 19 window frames are being hand cut on site and installed one section at a time.
The job is still going on because my 1957 home's basement windows were steel framed embedded into brick and had to be cut out with a grinder.
It's no wonder one window company didn't even want to take the job.
While navigating around the plastic tombs, holding my breath, not smoking, drinking or eating, I asked aloud for the thirtieth time, "Can someone please tell me why I decided to get new windows?" my son answered, "Because I was dying a slow death in my frigid room. Oh, and just so you know, I can now feel my fingers and toes and it's about ten degrees warmer in there already and they haven't even put the frame around it yet!"
Oh, it's always for the kids, isn't it? So you're welcome and Merry Christmas!
Hopefully, soon, like this week, my new best friends will be gone I can get back to my routine. And after that, the next horrible experience happens...shopping for curtains.
So the guy who was going to charge me the "special price" of $125 per window ("special" since according to him, "the average is $200 per window") for lead removal, and also around $200 more for each window than the other company I was leaning to, calls me up yesterday afternoon and says, "Bad news." I figured his price was going to be out of the ballpark, and had already decided I wouldn't be using him since I didn't get a "good vibe." Frankly, I didn't trust him and believed he was being less than truthful to me when he said I would have all the windows in place by Thanksgiving, but I wanted to hear the price anyway.
Well, he didn't quote a price. Instead he said, "We can't do your job." Rejected! Wow. That was a shocker. I was shattered I tell ya, shattered!
Not really, but I would have thought in this economy any company would have jumped to replace 19 windows on a ranch house. The funny thing is I had told my husband, "This guy doesn't want the job" after he left. When my husband asked why, I told him a) I got a weird vibe, b) he had odd body language, c) he told us he had 11 clients waiting for the EPA rule to be repealed so they were waiting until next year, d) he said it would take 2 - 3 weeks to install, and e) he threw out such high numbers without even checking off the top of his head, that they sounded like they came out of his ass.
Anyhow I asked the salesman why he couldn't do the job and he proceeded with this in-depth cock and bull story about how his boss decided they would no longer work on any house built prior to 1978 until this lead rule was repealed. Ummm, houses built prior to 1978 are the ones that probably need the windows the most. If it's true what he said I would imagine their business is going to really suffer. "My boss said 'Goddam EPA and stomped his foot.'" I believe someone is lying when their story is so "detailed." He then went on to say the EPA just came out with a "new" rule -- the homeowner had to stay in a hotel for two days when the windows were being replaced. Oh really? I hadn't heard that. "Oh, sure, check it out. And if we don't comply to the tee with their regulations we will get fined $37,000 per instance." Now that number I did read, but didn't read anything about having to stay in a hotel for two days...and why would I have to stay in a hotel for only two days when he had said it would take 2 - 3 weeks to install all the windows??? It was getting embarrassing, not for me, but for him, so I let him off easy by saying thank you anyway even after he suggested I wait until next year and then give him a call. Ummm, yeah, no.
So I have a couple of theories on why my money was no good -- They couldn't finish the job by the deadline I set and didn't want to admit it. (When we walked into the showroom the day before yesterday and I spoke to someone else and mentioned my Thanksgiving date, he laughed and asked "next year's?")
After entering my daughter's messy bedroom he thought he might get swallowed up in there and no one would know he was missing.
He saw the stained basement ceiling, which we can't fix until we fix the windows and find the leak from wherever, didn't think we could afford them, and/or we would be deadbeats.
We were too Yankee for him. Don't laugh. It's happened before, a couple of times in fact, especially when we're dealing with Salemites.
My husband was pissed when I told him since he had to close up the shop to come home and meet with the guy and watch him take measurements. "He knew our house was built before 1978 so he's full of shit and just wasted our time." It is getting to be a pain in the neck everytime someone comes over. It's all cool though. I wouldn't want to have someone do a job this size that I didn't have a good vibe about. We work hard for the money he might think is no good. Better I know beforehand. I don't want to wait out the EPA so I've decided to go with the first people I met with. They're not the cheapest, but I got a good feeling and their lead removal price is fair -- way under the "special $125 price" -- $40 a window. C'mon, you just know this house is going to have lead. I'll let you know how we make out. Fingers crossed.
Oh, and the worst part of the entire thing was the salesman who rejected us came to my house hacking away, coughed into his hand and then shook our hands. I asked him if he would like a drink of water because I thought he had a tickle and he says, "No it's just bronchitis." Ack! With my weakened immune system that's the last thing I need. The moment he left I scrubbed my hands, told my husband to do the same, Lysoled everything down and then called the EPA to come over with a Hazmat team to sterilize my house.
Had I known that the EPA was going to make lead removal mandatory when replacing windows I would have replaced them before June of this year. Before July 6th, households were able to "opt out" if they didn't have any small children or pregnant women living there. Any home built before 1978 is now subject to these new rules. Naturally, my house was built way before 1978, in the 1957, to be exact. I don't have small children who chew on paint chips (never did)and I won't be getting pregnant any time soon, so would have preferred to opt out. Unfortunately our government has decided that is not an option so now I have to pay through the nose if I want to make my home more energy efficient. With our government inefficiency at work, it's no wonder small businesses are struggling, and people are saving money instead of spending it.
Depending on the company I go with, the $1,500 rebate wouldn't even cover the lead removal costs in my home -- I have 19 windows that I wanted to replace. Now, my windows are not falling apart, and only the front one is "leaking internally" which is why I began the window replacement process. For the lead removal, I have been quoted an additional $36.00 per window from one company to $125.00 per window from another. The $125.00 company said the minimum it would take to replace my windows would be two to three weeks of work because of the lead removal requirements. The other one said one week.
One of my requirements is that the windows must be installed by Thanksgiving. They both said they could do that, but I didn't believe one of them because in the next breath he said if I ordered them by Friday it would take 7 weeks for them to be delivered. That gives three days for them to be installed if we got on the schedule immediately. I don't think that's going to happen, especially when I was told it would take two to three weeks minimum to install!
I asked about the possibility that this new regulation would be repealed and was told that in fact the National Assn of Home Builders had indeed filed a suit against the EPA for dismissing the "opt out" clause. No decision has been made yet. I wondered if it would be wise for me to wait it out to see the outcome. The one window guy that came this morning told me he has 11 customers who have chosen to wait. Since he quoted the $125 more per window I can understand why!
We haven't even bothered calling any of the companies who send ads claiming a new window installed is $189. We figure it's bull or a really crappy window. Now mind you I don't need hurricane strength but I would like a decent window. Naturally all the features I prefer cost more, like tilt in windows, night locks, half-screens, and inserts. The inserts are actually placed between the glass panes so they won't be like my wooden ones are, always in need of paint. Look how easy they look to clean...
All the windows we've looked at are vinyl and pretty much look the same. Frankly, I'm sick of researching them. I am waiting to hear the last bid before I make any decision, but I can tell you it won't just be by the price. I'm going to go with my spidey sense. I have full control on the decision because my husband finally admits that his choices usually turn out poor. I'll take the heat on this one. Sheesh, and I thought shopping for a pocketbook was exhausting!
