Mihai from Waterloo

BAD POINTS - Poor communication. The installation on October 28 (2 months after we signed up) was cancelled because of rain and only after several days with unanswered emails we managed to obtain a new date (the company did not bother to call to reschedule). On the new installation day, November 13, the crew (Michael and his helper) arrived two hours later than the 1-3 pm interval scheduled, without calling to let us know. - Hasty installation and problems with finishing. Already late and dark outside, the installation was done in a rush. In some places the window moldings were chipped or leaving a gap one could stick their fingers through. No insulation was applied from the inside leaving big gaps between the window and the wall. When I asked why, I was told that the expanding foam insulation applied from the interior would make the moldings buckle. I don’t know much about windows, but no insulation makes little sense considering the winters in Ontario. In their haste to leave, the crew left a pile of garbage by the house which we discovered the second day. After one week, thinking they would not return (Phil, the salesperson, had promised they would come back the second day), we cleaned up the place and chopped the longer boards in such a way they fit for the regular garbage collection. GOOD POINTS - Good price for changing 4 windows: 2 very small and 2 large; $3,817. - The salesperson (Phil) tried to help when communication broke down with the service center or installation crew. - The installation crew returned eventually, 8 days after the installation, to remove the pile of garbage which we had cleaned and to caulk a place which they had forgotten to cover. They even took for the dump a few other boards left from another job. My personal impression is that they had good intentions but the company tried to squeeze in more jobs that they could manage properly. This was in no way a service at the level of the excellent reviews Canadian Choice Windows seems to receive.

Service has deteriorated a lot recently and doing the required maintenance can be frustrating not to mention expensive. In general, the maintenance is an overcharge that one is forced to accept in order to keep warranties active. At this point, 15-20 minutes of furnace “maintenance” costs you about $135 (after a reduction!). I said “maintenance” because I am not sure what is really done in those 15 minutes. Presumably other companies do the same, but AireOne has perfected this into an art. Their maintenance prices have increased with about 50% in the last five years.