Last summer it was sweltering hot, with most days listed as "above average" and many of THEM at 90…read moredegrees or above. By Labor Day, the weather person said "If you thought THIS summer was hot wait a few years until you remember this summer as the last cool one we had". We have a large Western-facing bow window that was getting direct sun. We put that window in 27 years ago, and it worked perfectly fine. Opened, closed, clear glass, nice screens. Really, a very nice bow window without a single problem. I didn't have window treatments because I like a plain look and it's a living room, not a bedroom. But I felt like I was under a magnifying glass, with the sun concentrating in our living room. The air conditioner would not stop cranking, and it was only getting moderately cool. All my neighbors have the same problem, but solved it with thick drapery which, aside from being expensive (4K for one neighbor!) was just dark. I was out shopping with my parents for window treatments, and my father said "Just get Renewal by Andersen Low-E glass". Now my dad is a frugal guy AND a builder. I couldn't BELIEVE he was recommending replacing perfectly good windows, but he explained "They are the best windows out there, I only use Andersen, and look, my house doesn't get hot". And it doesn't.
Well one more hot day later, and I call the Andersen people. They have fliers, commercials, social media ads...I just found one of those numbers and made the call. I might have said "I am roasting alive in my own house". Next week, a consultant, Vito Anasto, comes to the house, and he has his box of samples, and a heat lamp. He was so down to earth, and didn't try to "sell" me anything. In fact, I started talking about OTHER windows, and he asked if I had any idea what windows cost, and I hadn't. So he gave me a ballpark figure and I quickly agreed that we should just discuss the one bow window. It was higher than I expected, but I appreciated his honesty. So he explained how the Low-E windows worked, and I was already getting excited. Then, out comes the heat lamp. Vito said "I usually don't do this demonstration, but since it says here 'Client reports being roasted alive' let me show you exactly how these work". So he takes the heat lamp, opens one of my existing bows, and holds the heat lamp outside. I touch the inside of my glass, and almost burn my hand. Then we decamp to the table, and he has samples. We do the same thing with each of the samples, and with the top-of-the-line sample, it's like a trivet. Cool to the touch! I was SOLD. Vito explained that he doesn't have to really sell the windows, the product sells itself; he's just there to figure out which of the local and national deals--which are ongoing--will help me get the best price. And after some searching and playing on his computer, out comes a price. It was higher than I thought it would be, but it was one price. No add-ons, no surprises later...one and done. Well, I looked longingly at that sample that acted like a trivet, and signed. No regrets.
