Has anyone ever used Home Depot or Lowes to replace windows and sliding glass doors? Our 1960s house still has the original crank windows and doors, and it's time for an upgrade (for safety, noise, and energy efficiency reasons). Had an independent guy come out who was highly recommended, but his quote was 25-30% higher than Lowes, for a similar product. Would love to know if anyone has had a good/bad experience with Lowes with a big box retailer.

Thanks!

Call window world

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Had an independent guy come out who was highly recommended, but his quote was 25-30% higher than Lowes, for a similar product. Would love to know if anyone has had a good/bad experience with Lowes with a big box retailer.

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I had Home Depot install a sliding patio door for me. Keep in mind that until HD or Lowes sends their installer out you won't know "exactly" what they are going to charge you for installation. (hint.. it will be more than their standard installation fee).

They were going to charge me $120 extra because the interior trim "tested positive" for lead paint. Instead of arguing I just removed it before they got there and didn't have to pay it.

Thirty two...

About five years ago, we bought a 1920 Craftsman style house that still had the original windows on the first floor. (Ten large windows to be exact...some measuring 36" x 60").

I went to both Home Depot and Lowe's. Went with Lowe's, because they really had their act together and came in with the best price. As I recall, it came to about $3750 including installation (white vinyl, double pane).

Installation went smoothly, no issues.

Window World in 2012...it amazes us how much more efficient they are over our original single pane aluminum windows...house stays warmer/cooler and controls are exactly the same as always. Twelve, upgrade beige windows $4000! The installation guys cleaned up after each window they installed which is a big plus in my book.

Thanks everyone. We did have Lowes come in with an official quote, so I feel good about that estimate. Might also get Window World to come out and provide a quote as well.

Sliding glass doors are driving a lot of the cost for us. We have 4 sliding glass doors on the back of the house (one in the master, two in the living, and one in the game room). And then 15 windows on top of that. It's a big job.

Another vote for Window World. Replaced my entire house about 3 years ago - best money I've put into it so far.

Only use Lowe's or HD is doing a simple DIY job.

Big box stores are a crap shoot. Some of their installers are good, some are bad. Think about this. Why would a Grade A contractor work for a company that pays significantly less than market value? A bad installer will go where ever he can get paid because chances are he's already ran his past businesses into the ground. There are exceptions to everything, but keep that in mind.

Also, make sure you compare apples to apples. An 1100 series Plygem window is very different from a 5500 series Simonton or 5400 Wincore. Ask any contractor for his good, better, best lines so you know exactly what you're getting. If I'm quoted $7000 for Plygem vs $9000 for Wincore, Wincore is the better value.

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Call window world

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This. When Crossbow and I agree on something, it must be the right choice.

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Big box stores are a crap shoot. Some of their installers are good, some are bad. Think about this. Why would a Grade A contractor work for a company that pays significantly less than market value?

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Agclass....in theory, I completely agree with your assertion. That said, I've used Lowe's for four major installations in Texas and Tennessee and had nothing less than A++ results.

The one that sold me on Lowe's....I pulled the carpet from my rental property in Euless and installed laminate. Halfway through the install the laborers stopped...and notified Lowe's that a portion of the laminate was from a different lot...and subsequently had an obvious visual difference. Candidly, I couldn't see it...and I really wasn't that concerned...as I was dressing up the place to sell.

To your point, when I was having a dishwasher installed in Maryville, Tennessee....I asked the plumber why he was contracted to Lowe's (because he was that good). He said he installed for Lowe's for a few hours per week...and that it helped cover his overhead.

Take it for what it's worth...which is only my opinion through experience.

I'm glad its worked out well for you. Like i said, there are exceptions to every rule. I can name 3-4 contractors I have sold to in the past that I wouldn't let build a dog house, but they work for Lowes/Home Depot/Sears. I also know a siding installer who put the Hardi on my parents house. Did a great job and does Lowes installs as well. He had just started out on his own and it was a good way to stay busy and establish a good reputation. And different markets will probably have different results as well.

Best thing to do is make sure the products you are looking at compare to what youre getting quotes on.

Had a Hardy and gutter install from HD.

Went great and very satisfied.

Used Home Depot for the front of our house. They contract out installation. We had a great experience.

We used window world for the back of our house. Had a bad experience and they were definitely shady. In addition, the hardware on the sliding glass door is cheap and breaks a lot.

With friends and family their big box experience has been about 50/50. Take that for whatever it's worth.

Initially we were ok with the replacement of our windows with new vinyl windows. The installer did a poor job caulking around the trim and we had to mention it while he was here and fix it. It's been 6 mos and the caulking has continued to shrink and change color which looks horrible since the windows are white and the caulk is now yellowish brown. There is also mold growing in some places. I have called four times, each time being promised by customer service that someone would call back right away. To this date, no one called me back and I am super irritated. There windows cost us over $24,000 and our house now has a problem that Home Depot created. With the rain we get here in Georgia, I do not appreciated paying that much to get leaky windows. Apparently they don't care despite their alleged warranty. DO NOT make the same mistake by going with Home Depot.

Warran, sorry to here about the issues you're having. First off it sounds like they used the cheapest caulk on the shelf. The caulking around the Window World windows I had installed in 2012 have not shrunk a bit. I had a similar experience as yours with getting counter tops installed by Lowe's. The salesperson totally botched the order even though it was their contractor that did the measurements. My wife and I went straight to the manager of the store and wouldn't leave until he finally agreed to a 25% discount - he wanted to only give us 10%. So I would suggest you not call but go meet with the manager face to face.

Unfortunately we didn't learn our lesson from that experience as a few years later we had them install new carpet in our bedrooms. The price of the carpet and the free installation they were offering at the time seemed too good to pass up. After having the carpet restretched twice in a 6-year period, I finally gave up on it and replaced it all with hardwood this past year.

Never again will I get a big box store to do an install for me!

We are getting a quote from Lowe's this week on our 1949 craftsman. Should be interesting to see what they say..

I believe these guys are all contract, and not employees of the Big Box companies. They will not continue to represent the company if they get bad reviews.

Window companies that specialize in window replacement (and siding and metal roofs, etc.) usually have their own employees.

Depending on the crew you get, you can get excellent results - or not...