Thursday, we put the finishing touches on a huge window job. These folks are repeat customers and by the time we are finally through replacing all of the windows in their house, the total will be above 60!

These are Simonton 5500 series, with the new glass that qualifies for Barak's Stimulus Package Tax Credit. Not a bad deal when the government gives back up to $1,500 towards the purchase of new windows.





Chuck and Orey set the last window. A little trim and it's clean-up time. Then lunch time!
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Several of these windows required some extra carpentry work. Sills needed to be replaced, and a few of them also needed new wood facings. Not to worry though....we do it all.

Like I said, this house has a lot of windows.

Our guys knocked out a 4-window job yesterday. But all four were huge!Some windows are easy to remove. These, on the other hand, were much more difficult. With these old aluminum windows, we had to renove the glass, and then pry the frames out. The glass was glued in with an adhesive that could have mended the San Adreas Fault.Here, Orey uses a torch to soften the glue so the glass unit will let go of the frame. This keeps breakage to a minimum, plus Orey satisfies his pyromania yearnings.

Then Chuck prepares the opening for the new window. In this case, the wood returns needed to be trimmed back to accomodate a 3 1/4 inch window.

A finished project, all done but the clean up.

Another weekend, another Home Show

This past weekend was Home Show Part Two for us. More specifically, it was the Tulsa Remodel and Landscape Show, held downtown at the Convention Center.Another morning of loading the truck. I swear the displays get heavier every show. But in spite of having more room in our booth and bringing more stuff....We are getting better at packing our truck. We actually had room left over for a deck of cards!

This show was not as well attended as the show last month, but we did get several very good leads, and met some nice people, many of whom need windows! :-)These home improvement shows are usually the catalyst that provides business for a great year. They are a lot of work, but they pay off.

Channel 8 was there Sunday afternoon filming and interviewing a few of the exhibitors. Windows by Jeff was asked for an interview, and Ken answered a few questions for news anchor Jerry Giordano. The segment was aired on the 10:00 news, and if the segment on the show is available, I'll post the link on the blog.

Finishing the Andersen doors

A quick update....both door units are in. Today, we trimmed them out.Chuck does some caulking before installing the mull cap.

The unit is insulated at the perimeter and at the mull, and most important, the transom is flashed at the top.

One might ask: How do you trim out the top, what with the transom being curved?
Glad you asked!We use Flex brick mold, a rubber-like material that has the exact specs as regular brick mold. It can be formed to fit almost any curved window or door.And yes, it is tricky to measure and cut. Think about it....a tape measure does not easily bend so measuring the exact length is impossible. After a preliminary cut, the trim is held up and marked. It usually required several trimmings to get it right.One unit trimmed, and one to go.

The top casing is installed. New fluted trim on the sides will soon be in place. The old paint line will be sanded and ready for paint.

I had promised an interview with the dog who clawed/chewed on the old door. However, the dog declined an interview, and preferred to keep his distance.I did hear him mumble something about it not being him, but the CAT!

An Andersen Project, Part Two

Day two.
The morning rain moved out, and pieces of blue sky began to show through the diminishing clouds.
It ended up being a great day for a little home improvement.
As always, the old door and window units are loaded and hauled away.

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Orey helps prep the opening.

On this application, the transom needs to be set first,
and we set some temporary setting blocks to hold it in place while we leveled it and anchored it in place.

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There are a lot of very important matters to consider when doing a project such as this. Since it is construction, special care is given to the floor, We always put down drop cloths to protect the carpet or hardwood flooring.
The old molding of course has to be removed, and before it is pried off, we cut the paint so the paint or wallpaper is not chipped or torn.

Chuck puts in some temporary fasteners before checking the transom for level.



It's a heavy unit.


Orey has his hands full.

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Next comes the stationary double door. No need for the guys to hit the weights today. This is quite the workout getting this door into place. (Notice the absence of the cameraman helping tote this door unit!)

A view from the inside. This will look super when it's trimmed out! More pictures tomorrow!


One down, and one to go! Check back tomorrow for some pictures of the finished product, and hopefully an interview with the dog.

An Andersen Project

Tuesday found our boys, expert installers
Chuck and Orey in south Tulsa preparing to replace some stationary double doors with eyebrow transoms.

This was a extremely nice house, with windows that were elegant, at least when the house was built.

These "windows" are actually stationary door panels, and are woor, fir to be more precise. Now the bad thing with wood, is that it is an organic material, and is subject to decay especially when it gets wet.Upon closer examination, you can see the problem. The wood has wicked up water when it rains, and i suspect whenever the sprinkler system kicks in.Wood rot is like a cancer. Very quickly, there is a point where no amount of caulking, puttying, or painting can stop the decay. Water that migrates through the wood from the cracks, and/or from leaks above also finds it's way inside the house.This particular door also had a little help from a doggie who did a nice remodeling job. (This fine doggie declined to comment, but I'll try to get an interview with him tomorrow.)we are putting Andersen door units into this home. These are wood doors, but the exterior is vinyl clad and is paintable, although it never needs painting unless one actually wants to change the color.
These stationary double doors will also have matching eyebrow transoms.Chuck checks the weather forecast before removing the old doors. The weatherman promises some severe weather to hit around 5:00 to 6:00. It seemed a wise decision to postpone the job until tomorrow. Would not want to have a huge opening in the side of the house with torrential rains in the picture.

More on this job tomorrow.

What have Chuck and Orey been up to?

A normal work day, if there actually is such a thing, starts early for Chuck and Orey. First things first....gotta get the truck cleaned out to make room for another load of new windows.All the old windows and debris are hauled away daily, so this is an every day ordeal. When possible we donate to Habitat for Humanity.

Today, the guys continued work on a 28 window job in south Tulsa. These windows again were Simonton double hung in the driftwood color. Driftwood is a fairly new color, and is quite popular as it blends well with most house that have a stone veneer.

A lot of people ask if the old windows that we remove can be saved to reuse again. While occasionally this is possible, usually they are nailed in behind the brick, rock, or wood siding, and the old windows end up in a pile like this. (Remember the pictures above....all of this gets hauled away!)

No question as to whether this is a boy's or girl's room!

Chuck and Orey will not have to hit the gym this evening. They got their weight lifting in with these windows as they had laminated glass which means 3 panes of glass per sash.

Orey catches his breath before hoisting another window up the ladder.

Look for more pictures of our staff with some fun personal facts in upcoming days.

Setting up for the Home Show!

This weekend is the Green Country Home and Garden show, the first of three such trade shows we'll be involved in in the next three months. This one is at the Exchange Center....

The nice new structure north of the Quik Trip Center (which was formerly the IPE building. Everything at the fairgrounds has a new name. What's next....a new name for the Golden Driller?)

We spent Wednesday setting up our booth. We have nice Andersen, Simonton, and Therma-Tru displays, along with charming guys like Jeff, Jason, and Ken to answer any questions you might have.

Setting up the show is one serious days work. These booths do not just set themselves up. It takes some dedicated manpower to put it all together.Jason spent some time cleaning out our box truck so we could get all the displays loaded.

Chuck and Orey load the heavy stuff first.

Stack it in guys. There's more displays to load.

Jeff is thinking "I know we're forgetting SOMETHING."

Our booth went together fairly quick. Of course it helped that we had 5 people working on it. :-)And it also helped that the boys were fed well! Three boxes of pizza disappeared in about five minutes flat!

Sarah makes the final inspection. Whew! We passed!

Come see us this weekend!!