Canadian Choice

Canadian Choice replaced most of the windows in our house last month. We had interviewed eight companies, and Canadian Choice had everything we were looking for---quality windows, technically knowledgeable salesperson/point-of-contact (Mike Lesche, "Boss Mike"), wide range of exterior color options, and ability to handle some of our special needs. We converted one large window to a bay window (which needed a roof), bricked up another window, and for the few windows and doors had been replaced more recently than the others, we wanted to keep them and have them capped so that they looked like the new windows from the outside. Canadian Choice was able to handle those requests within our tight budget. The new windows are amazing---they look fantastic, they block so much sound from the outside, and they keep the house so much cooler (it's summer now) than the old windows. If I had known what a dramatic difference new windows would make to my enjoyment of my house, I would have replaced all the windows years ago.

On the day of the install (<30 days from the estimate), the install team arrived on time. The install team consisted of a different Mike ("Installer Mike") and his assistant. They worked quickly and competently until late in the evening to finish the job in one day, but if you ask Installer Mike too many questions, he gets a bit rude. Unfortunately, we had to interrupt his process several times since many details of our install (e.g., capping existing windows, one window in a shower needed special trim) weren't explicitly written down in the contract, so we had to call Boss Mike multiple times to straighten things out, even though we had gone over those items with Installer Mike (and verified with Boss Mike) when he came to do the measurements. Boss Mike quickly straighten things out and made sure everything was exactly what we expected, but it would have been easier with better communication between Boss Mike and Installer Mike before the actual installation. The lesson learned is to make sure every last detail is written in the contract. Also, we had to pester Installer Mike about completely filling gaps with spray foam (he was trying to be quick and only fill from the outside, when we also wanted the gaps filled from the inside), and while the windows he did were adequately insulated, the message apparently didn't make it to his assistant. We had to fill in the gaps on his windows the next day; luckily, we have lots of our own spray foam. Still, I would absolutely contact Boss Mike for future window replacement, and I have recommended him to neighbors.

One last thing worth mentioning: During the install, a piece of aluminum flashing fell into our AC unit and caused significant damage when the AC tried to turn on the next day. Boss Mike was quick to accept accountability and promptly reimbursed us for the repairs. I only mention the incident because it is useful to know that if something goes wrong, Canadian Choice will do the right thing. Not all home improvement companies are so trustworthy.