Spiders, Water, & New Windows

While I was doing the inspection with the inspector a few weeks before I bought the place, we noticed (it was pouring rain) that water was leaking inside the condo through the cheap aluminum windows in the bedroom. So you're probably thinking, "And you still bought the place?!" BUT, but, it's OK to buy a place with defects, you just have to know what you're getting yourself into. Hence the inspector. 

One of the first nights I stayed in the condo, a huge spider sauntered out of the side of the bathroom window and greeted me. That was awful. So that's how I decided which three (I have six) windows to replace FIRST in the condo. The two aluminum ones and the one original one in the bathroom. Aka Water 1 Window, Water 2 Window, and Spider Window. I also knew I would probably have to open the window during showers in the bathroom due to the lack of an exhaust fan and I didn't want to wrestle with a stuck window every time (that was before I bought Eva the dehumidifier.) 

So last October (in 2011), I had those three windows replaced in the condo. They were ordered over Labor day weekend in September because Home Depot had a great sale going on. The entire process takes weeks though, so they weren't installed until about a month later. Here's the process we took:

1. Visited Home Depot to speak with the sales representative and setup an appointment for her to come to the condo.
2. The sales representative visited the condo and measured and provided a total price. At this meeting any decisions about styles/quality had to be made. We paid and setup a time for the next appointment.
3. The project manager stopped by a week or so later and took final measurements.
4. The installers came and put the windows in. Before they left I had to sign paperwork that said everything was complete, except there was a broken part on one of the outer window panes so I had them make a note about it.
5. A woman called me from Home Depot to schedule a time for the new window pane to be installed to fix the cracked one.
6. The project manager (from step 3) came back and fixed the window.

These pictures are seriously old. Here's a view of the old aluminum living room window (taken while standing in the dining room).

Another view of the same living room window above. 

This is the old aluminum bedroom window. 

My view out of the big bedroom window. 

A better view of the old aluminum window in the bedroom. Notice the two white vertical boards that helped to frame the window - they're gone now. 

This shot shows you how rotted the wood is from water leaking through the window. 

Here's a peek at the old bathroom window (original to the building, I think) before I took down the stained glass window that came with the place. 

And the bathroom window with the stained glass removed, before it was replaced.

The open cavity of a the bathroom window. Welcome, spiders! Welcome one and all!

This part was kinda cool, when they removed the bedroom window. Such a big open space! I felt like I lived in a treehouse. 

And after the windows were installed!

Another one of the bedroom. 

And the bathroom. 

Choosing the style of the windows was difficult for me. I ended up considering what other people had done in the building (by walking around outside). It seemed to me like most people had chosen a large "empty" window in the middle of the big windows with the little "paneled" windows on the side. (They're just one big window, really.) The big windows are called Sliders. Little hamburgers! AHEM I mean little veggie burger sliders!

From this website

Oh my GOD is that a pineapple on top? I think I just barfed. I can hardly stand to look at them. Anyway, maybe you thought of this kind of Sliders instead:

Sliders, TV SHOW!

I know I thought of eating veggie sliders while watching Sliders. But that's just me. WHAT WERE WE TALKING ABOUT?!

Oh, right. Windows. The bathroom window is not a slider, it's known as double-hung. I think because it opens from the top and the bottom. But why I would open it from the top, I don't know because there's no screen on the top half. Spiders, anyone?

Overall my impression with Home Depot's window installation process was good. They are REALLY pushy when it comes to selling the windows, and then they take a long time to install them. But they are honest about the long wait time. So you know what you're getting into, at least. I wasn't mad about the broken part of the window since they eventually fixed it. I just don't get weirded out about stuff like that. NOW, if I had some strange contractor install them from nowhereville I probably would have been nervous that he wouldn't have come back. But since it was Home Depot I felt like I could count on them. Is that weird? Anyway it all worked out in the end. Also their prices were better than the quotes I received from contractors. Thousands of dollars better. And I found my contractor-quote-people off Angie's List. Interesting, right?? The installation guys were better than the sales/contractor/measuring people from Home Depot. They were nice and pretty fast, I thought. One guy kept having fights with his girlfriend on his cell phone, but we all have bad days. Whatever!

Now that I've had the windows for months and months, I'm still happy. And I gotta get those other three replaced. The sound difference is incredible. When I'm in the dining room (no windows replaced) I can hear every sound from the building across from me. When I'm in the bathroom (window replaced) with the door closed, the sound disappears.