Canadian Choice

As the title suggests - Run.

I was excited to have the windows and doors replaced in my 50's era home in Hamilton. Coming from poorly sealed doors and completely useless aluminum windows - I was excited to upgrade everything. I chose these guys based on the quality and energy ratings of the windows along with the generally clean finishing work seen in other reviews. Little did I know, this was going to be an expensive lesson in home improvements. From the outset the rep left out key details regarding the actual finishing of the windows and doors. First, selecting a door - the rep didn't specify I had to choose a color for both sides - ended up with only one side painted the color I specified while the inside was left white. I wouldn't be surprised if they charged me for the paint on both sides. Second - I opted for wood trim as it matched the existing trim in the rest of the house (flat - no grooves or flourishes). Was told it would need to be painted. Fine, no problem, I have to paint the house anyway. What I was not told is that the windowsills themselves are also unfinished - as in, just a coat of white primer. This I was never told. So unless I wanted to started painting window sills without getting paint all over the window frame (1mm lip - you try taping that off perfectly without any bleeding) I couldn't install any shades. On top of this, the windows sills were dented with deep hammer marks, dirty handprints and smudges on almost all the windows. Glue residue that only comes off with a razer on most the windows as well - a lot of it outside unreachable. Protruding nails from the trim being attached. No caps for the screw holes. Dented and crushed trim and window jams. Poor caulking work including unfinished windows, gaps in the seals outside. Shoddy flashing with screws falling out. The list goes on.

The only window in the whole house (14 total) that was finished according to what I was assuming would be the base standard was the bathroom. Smooth white plastic (or some such material) coated windowsills - no painting required. But even that wasn't done correctly - There is no caulking preventing the water from the shower leaking in behind the trim.

I contacted them immediately after the install and after arranging a day for someone to come by to look at the litany of issues. Nobody showed up. No call or text. The next day, they showed up unannounced late at night (around 8pm) and attempted to fix the dents and dings with putty which just made it all look worse and would result in more work for me down the road. They attempted to rebuild the crushed parts with their finger and more putty (how well do you think that went?). The loose screws outside weren't fixed. They just put in a new one in the already stripped hole (I found the old screw rolling around my driveway a week later). The real issue is the flashing wasn't cut properly.

I contacted them again a few weeks later after work calmed down and was told they would arrange a time to come by to look. A week later. Nothing. So, now, I'm stuck with unsealed windows and (squeaky)doors, shoddy caulking, dents, dings, improper cuts of the window jams, sunken screw holes hastily filled with putty. And an odd blue stain on the one actually finished window in the bathroom.

There are a couple more issues but at this point this list should be enough to deter you.