I had two window replaced by Everest, I know they're expensive but I wanted decent sound proofing and they have a reputation for making quality uPVC windows (if that's not an oxymoron) well, the windows fitted perfectly with no gaps, my house is 150 years old so they're not exactly a standard size, they weighed a ton, two men struggled to lift each one and they're not exactly huge windows, they have a lifetime guarantee and have been faultless. I paid exactly one third of the original rip-off quote - they try it on in the hope that people are stupid/rich enough to pay the first quote!

The only downer is once they have your number they keep phoning for a year afterwards for more work. I watched the whole installation and at no point did the job look as messy as the posts above.

I think some have been a little harsh on the industry here, yes that work is terrible and should be ripped out. But the mark up on windows isn't as huge as you may think nowadays, the bottom fell out of the market years ago, the rip-off double glazing firms then moved into sofits and facias and started charging thousands of pounds for what is normally a £500 job.

A typical profit margin is now 30% after all costs are taken into account and that doesn't just mean the cost of the unit!! Some firms also sell quality units, which can be very hard when your competitors are knocking out cheap crap, it's up to them to educate the customer. There are also some excellent fitters out there too, fitters that don't smear 5 tubes of silicone all over the frame which then discolours and makes them look tatty 2 years down the line.

I know this as fact... why because my brother has his own factory producing and installing.

I don't disagree the industry has issues. But you can't tar them all with the same brush, it's like saying all plumbers are rip-off merchants just because they had a bad name a few years back.

how do you guys feel about planing the legs/ribs off a frame to make it fit?
I ask because I havent seen the expansion co-efficient of upvc mentioned, although im sure most are aware the stuff expands and contracts like mercury in a thermometer...
upvc gutter, same material, has a 5mm expansion gap built into the fittings...
so by the same reasoning, a 1m peice of trim should have a 1mm gap...
yes, the trimming is rough, not all of it just some of it... that job looks like it needed some plastering or major decoration works, new window boards etc...
windows and doors are a major part of a building, not so much in a structural sense anymore but in the way of weatherproofing, security and aesthetics...
tight fitting doors and windows are prone to catching in the heat of summer...
foaming a 5mm gap makes a significant difference in noise reduction, one youll only notice on two windows on the same wall in different rooms when youve forgotten to foam one of em...
i could go on for a lifetime about this industry, i got out when the arse fell out of it years ago but i had a good 10+ years trying to make a silk purse out of a sows ear for various companies..
ive seen bays and dormer windows collapse due to ignorant fitters...
toughened units explode for 'no apparent reason' (there is one)
self builders taking a company to court because the window didnt fit his shite brickwork...
cappit board used as fascia, window board...
old rotten box sash frames left in with the pvc window 'odd legged' into them (this was in fact, a council spec in walthamstow)...
ditto with the pvc window not odd legged, just trimmed up with cappit board reveal liners (m.o.d spec)....
some jobs just drop in and caulk up the inside, others need the bleedin wall rebuilding... the fitters will be on a price to fit the windows usually, including all the making good...
try and ring the 'gaffer' when extra work is needed and the usual routine is to do whatever you can get away with...
it was easy money years ago because no one had seen plastic trim, they thought it was part of the window...
now people have wised up they expect better standards...
the problem is, the greedy people are still trying to get away with what theyve been getting away with for years...
'window fitters' i speak to these days are actually getting less money per item than i was 15 years ago... theyll struggle to make 80 quid a day subcontracting on price... theres no way on gods earth lads are gonna scribe trims, superglue mitres, chop out horns and fit new bricks for that rate cos then they'd be on less than the minimum wage...
this isnt to say good companies dont exist, cos they do, but there are still many many companies out of the 'get rich quick' bucket, salesmen who will tell the customer whatever they want to hear to get a sale, directors with a high staff turnover because the lads just cant make it pay whilst the fat git drives round to the job in his 80k motor...
the thing is, i rarely get asked to fit windows these days, but when i do, the actual fitting is the easy bit, its rebuilding the aperture thats a pain in the arse and when salesmen are telling people 'we'll leave it finished so you wont have to decorate' etc theyll get the job and plaster it up with caulk.... god ive even seen fitters using it externally...
if the directors werent so greedy, the salesmen werent on commission, the fitters better trained, on decent wedge, with associated works undertaken by plasterers/bricklayers/carpenters and the customers a bit more realistic... this thread wouldnt be here...
company doing the windows on a council contract ive been on recently (i wasnt on the windows, thank god) had a request from the council to provide written documentation of all theyre operatives qualifications... i p'ssed myself laughing... nvq2 in window fitting?
what exactly would that course cover? the gaffer had to write back saying all his operatives had a minimum of 2 years experience, what else was he supposed to tell em? but what does that actually prove? good bloke and a good company as it goes, but the lads had to be on day rate to get the quality, didnt include any building works of any kind yet they were on 80 quid a day and were lucky to fit 4 windows between 2 of em....
i'd advise any prospective customer to choose their company very, very carefully and do some research beforehand... its not a simple case of 'you get what you pay for' because of all the different factors involved...
how about the 'read the red writing' advert currently doing the tv rounds...
anyone read the white writing? i rest my case m'lud...

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http://www.peterborough-plasterer.co.uk/

I think it is often a case of good fitter/not bad fitter but absolutely clueless surveyor who has measured wrong and the fitter is the one who has to overcome it.

I only ever worked for 2 companies.....first one we did 4 jobs for and all had to be bodged because the surveyor was cack. 2nd firm I seem to recall telling them to stick it up their hoop after a few days.

Exact same problems with the kitchens. I always survey them, even if kitchen company is putting a surveyor/designer in. lets face it, most are women that have never fitted a kitchen, can't add up and can't use a tape.