I replaced a house full of MW Freedom series sashes in Nov. of 04. Now they are leaking. Water is running down the glass and in the vinyl clad and seeping under the glass and coming in around the small wooden strip that holds the glass in.
I actually observed this in a light rain. HO say there are about 6 more leaking.
I have a work request in with MW to come and check it out.
Has anyone seen this or dealt with MW warranty?
John
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Replies
MW is a new one to me. Lumber guy just mentioned it this morning and was talking it up. I'll be watching this thread with interest.
What kind of windows are they? Double hung? Casements?
What kind of siding? Where is the house? Coast or inland?
Warranty claims suck.
Don K.
EJG Homes Renovations - New Construction - Rentals
Double hung vinylclad
Beveled Cedar siding
on the NC coast
HO says that they were leaking bad in a blowing rain. I only seen them in a light no wind rain and was leaking.
John
Are all the flanges sealed with Tyvek tape or window wrap?
jimfka (formerly known as) blue
Yes Flanges are sealed with peal and seal type stuff.
However the water is coming through the sash itself. Rain is running down the glass into the vinyl cladding and entering the interior under the glass, where the 1/2'' to 3/4'' wooden strip that holds the glass in place is.
Water is showing itself between the "strip" and the sash.
John
I would get the manufacturers rep out there fast.
jimfka (formerly known as) blue
I got with the MW through my salesman. They are supposed to call me and set up a time to go look at it.
John
Just remember their motto:
"What builders and contractors will like is MW’s commitment to keeping everybody on schedule and on budget. Because at MW, service never goes out of style."
Apparently their definition of service and mine are just stylishly different.
Good luck...
Bump
JDale,
I would never use those windows on a beachfront job. Look at the sashes and you should see terrible gaps in the glazing stops. The last job I used the clads on I had them replace nearly every sash twice because of the gaps. Some of the gaps were 1/2". This was 10 years ago.
I normally would not use this type of window, however when the HO bought the house in 04 the home inspection report said the sashes were bad so I replaced the sashes with same thing.
We did replace one entire window with a new construction window, and discovered the entire house was water damaged. Damaged sheathing and framing all the way around.
That job was a big learning experience for me, and apparantly I am still learning from it.
John
John
We're in the process of re-doing a lake front house with the same problems as your having.
Different brand of windows but the same thing, rain will come right down the window and seap in. This place is 17 years old and there isnt a window in it that isnt leaking bad.
We had a glass man(not a rep from the brand of window thats in the place) come out the other day and he started taking window stop(holds the whole window unit in place) out and found all kinds of rot in the walls. This particular window guy walked aways and said he wanted nothing to do with the job!
Now we have to tear off all the trim work on the outside and replace about $75,000 in windows, not to mention all the rot.
Cheap azz windows!
Doug
That is about the same situation this job started as. But the new HO just wanted new sashes. Still got to fix all the rot though.
That was my first major rot experience. Been through 7 or 8 more since. Most of the time it appears to me to be that the windows are not properly flashed.
Have an MW rep coming the 23rd, we'll see what he says
John
I'm thinking the best way is to go back to single pain windows with old fashioned storms!
Doug
FWIW. If the rep is a salesman, cancel the appointment and request a service person to inspect. The only way you'll get leakage around glass is if it is glazed improperly. Expect under the terms of their warrenty to get a free tube of silicone caulk.
Good luck.
OH SHEET, NOW YA TELL ME .
I just installed 7 of these today...... in a metal building , none the less. A real time consuming affair.
Keep us up to date on this one!
dug
UPDATE
Well MW showed up today. Was supposed to be between 8 and 9, but did not show till 10:30. He did call and say he was running late though.
As someone suggested earlier they just offered to caulk them. The service rep said the glue does not stand up to the heat. So he caulked them and documented it. If they still leak they will supposedly then replace the sashes.
He told me he does not like to see the vinyl clad windows used in this situation. House is located on what we here call The Point, ocean on one side and sound on the other. I have to agree but it all falls bak to what the HO wanted originally (cheap fix).
John
When and if they replace the windows, make sure they have solved the "glue" and heat issue... because the only thing between your customer and outside is caulk over glue that will continue to fail due to heat.