If you've looked at photos of our house's exterior, you may have noticed that two of the large second-floor windows are of different colors. After the glass was installed, we pointed this out to our Accurate Dorwin Window Co. representative from Above and Beyond Construction, and to our general contractor, as well. We decided that based on the low temperatures at the time we would wait until spring before we replaced the glass, to decrease the risk of shattering.
Over the past several months, I've talked to the company about the windows as well as some issues we've had with several of our doors. We've had to wait to get the correct glass for our windows, which recently arrived. After a glass audit, we discovered that it wasn't just a few windows that were incorrect.
Almost all the windows on the front of our house should have been a blue-tinted suncoat Low-E glass. The tan glass in our south-facing windows was of a lesser quality than we had ordered, and it was the blue-tinted glass that was correct. The installers from Above and Beyond began to replace this glass on the big sections of our windows and will return to complete the project. Stacy and I spent much of the weekend trying to figure out where or how we could salvage the old glass, but we really don't have the space and use for it now.
The doors are a different story. Our three-panel sliding glass door looks great, but we are displeased with how it operates. I am a former bodybuilder and this door is hard for me to slide, let alone my wife and kids. The door also had water infiltration problems along the frame, causing the track to freeze. The front door and upstairs deck access doors appeared to have warped, making them difficult to close.
Above and Beyond Construction has offered to replace the doors. The biggest frustration is that the doors are framed by our finished siding. We will again have workers at the house replacing this material, as well.
I feel our reps from Above and Beyond Construction are doing the honorable thing and replacing everything that is incorrect and at their expense. I can only hope that anyone else who may have taken my research into consideration when selecting their windows does not have any of the same issues.
To learn more about Jason's new house and to see photos and previous blog posts, go to www.startribune.com/newhouse. Or e-mail him at hammond@mojosolo.com.
