Avoid Fast Glass & Window Repair by Olwin -- overcharges, sloppy work, and they'll ghost you when…read moretheir work fails
I called them for a simple balancer replacement on one single-hung window -- a job their own website prices at $180+. I was charged $520.
I knew I was being overcharged for maybe ten minutes of labor, but the technician was already on-site with parts in hand, my time is limited and I didn't want to start over with another vendor. While he was there, he upsold me on "expert maintenance" for three other windows to prevent the same worn balancer issue -- $150 each, $450 total. From what I could see, this "expert maintenance" was: pull the bottom sash, spray some silicone, put it back, slide it up and down a few times. Maybe five minutes of work per window. Still, I'd authorized it, so I paid the nearly $1,000 total bill.
Three months later, all three "expertly maintained" windows failed with the exact same balancer issue.
I reached out seven times over a week -- calls, texts, emails, the same photos resent four times -- before anyone responded in any kind of manner beyond, "send photos.". When a technician finally showed up two weeks later, he admitted the windows hadn't been clipped in correctly during the original service. All three windows needed new balancers. Olwin's office then tried to bill this as separate, non-warranty work.
I don't buy their claim, for two reasons:
1. If the balancers were worn and starting to fail, a $150-per-window "expert maintenance" should have surfaced the issue.
2. Their own technician admitted the windows weren't clipped in correctly -- an unclipped window puts abnormal stress on the balancer system. If the sash is sitting crooked which can happen when windows are not clipped in, one balancer carries significantly more weight than intended while the other might over-extend or jam. This lines up perfectly with a failure three months later, on exactly the three windows they touched and no other windows in the house.
Either way, this traces back to their $450 service, not normal wear and tear.
They then quoted me $2,180 to install new balancers -- $450 per window -- for a problem their own team caused or missed. I told them that I'm willing to pay for parts to get to a solution, but I'm not willing to pay for any labor - it was their labor that either caused or missed the problem. They continued to be unwilling to accept any responsibility for this debacle. The last straw was when the manager started claiming that there are no clips on a single hung window (simply not true - all you have to do is look at my windows and see them).
When I told him I now had no choice but to post a negative review about my experience with his business, he then accused me of "blackmailing" him -- and only then dropped his price to $225/window. Sleazy move.
I called a different vendor instead: $200 per window, $600 total. Plus they lubricated and did maintenance on every window in the house at no extra cost. One call, one visit, done right the first time.
Do the math: I was quoted by Fast Glass & Window Repair by Olwin nearly 4 times what another (competent) vendor actually charged -- for damage to repair Fast Glass & Window Repair by Olwin's own sloppy and negligent work.
Save your time and money. Go elsewhere.
