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Double Glazing prices what a minefield!

The UK Double glazing Industry which I’m proud to have been part of for nearly 25 years has very often, in fact almost always gotten a bad press. The perception seems to be that because Double glazing windows are made from ‘plastic’ and that carrier bag are to. It must therefore follow that they should cost roughly the same. And if some one pays say £5000 to have their house fitted with Double glazed windows they paid through the nose. As 12 carrier bags cost £1.Great logic eh?

Buying Double glazed windows is something, thankfully I’ve never had to do. I say thankfully, because, I imagine it’s a very confusing thing to do. There is just so much information out there .And it’s fairly hard for the average consumer to find out what is really is a good Double glazing deal amongst every company’s claims.

Ok, so I’m going bound to be a bit biased and you’ll learn why in a minute. But today I’m hopefully going to lift the fog that surrounds buying Double glazing and give it to you straight. So you need or perhaps would even like new double glazing. There are three options open to you;

1) Go to a local or national Double glazing installation firm.
2) Buy the windows from a Double glazing factory and fit them yourselves.
3) As no 2 but employ some one to fit them for you.

Yes, I do own a Double Glazing Factory as it happens so naturally I’m will be telling you to go with for either option 2 or 3.But, no, I like being unbiased and truthful.

If you want a complete turn key operation with very little time involved. Get a Double glazing installation firm to fit your windows, ideally get 3 quotes and ask to see examples of their work locally(not just pretty pictures).Be prepared to spend more money with this option. Convenience costs and you’re paying for it in spadefulls.

Typically choosing this option you could be spending £200-£500 per window more than if you went with the other two options. That certainly adds up with seven windows you’re suddenly looking at £1400 to £3500 more. I’m not saying it’s wrong to spend more money if that’s what you want. But today it really does pay to be an extremely savvy buyer and by that I mean paying no more than you have to. By doing so, you can spend your money on the things you really, really want like that holiday or new sport cars. I’m sure you realise this.

So if you want to pay no more than you have too. Options 2 and 3 are what you need. You can buy your Double glazing from a Double glazing factory. It’s as direct as you can go, as you by pass all the middle men taking a slice of your money.
Don’t think the quality of your windows, buying this way will be less either. It’s very likely to be near identical in specification to the household name Double glazing companies.

We set up manufacturing and selling DIY double glazing back in 1996 and in 1999 we started selling DIY windows on the web. Our old website was getting a bit clunky after 11 years. So we took what we had learnt and developed a new site dedicated to giving you, the DIY installer the right information and importantly great Double Glazing prices

Our new revamped website allows anyone to measure their own windows, select a style and get instant Double Glazing prices, without having to fill in a form, unless you chose to. You can buy your windows online and have delivered by us. Or you can call us up and we can talk you through it and via email. You chose to fit your new windows yourself or employ a window fitter to fit them for you. Either way our Double Glazing prices will undoubtedly save you money

When you are young and I mean young as an 18 year old boy,UPVC windows hold very little interest,actually none.My first introduction to UPVC windows was by Sid who was the showroom manager at a firm that sold UPVC windows.That was back in the year 1986 so over 25 years ago.

I met Knew Sid from selling his firm advertising space in the newspaper I worked for.Every week I'd go and visit and Sid who would by that time on a Friday afternoon be very merry and red faced.I'd sit his in his office, go to get the paper out and then more often than not he'd say

'Come on John let's go down the boozer'

Being 18 years old I thought Sid was great .Five or six of us from the UPVC window showroom would pile into his red BMW M5 and Sid would do drive very spiritedly to a lovely pub by a river.

Very Often Sid would cajole me into saying how much I'd earned that week.Having been part of this conversation before I knew the structure and outcome of it.Remember it was the mid 1980's

So id say ' £150 this week' adding a bit always for good measure.

Sid would shout something like ' how much?'

'Jack tell John would you did this week' and so would follow a round robin of how much every one had earned that week .Always with out fail I'd earned least.It was Big Sid's method of job recruitment.And it worked

Sid had recruited me selling UPVC windows.I liked Sid a lot.He made a big impression on my young mind with statements like 'always carry a grand on your hip,in case you see something you want'.

I recall going out selling UPVC windows with Sid for the first time.He was a very likeable fellow and put people at their ease within a few minutes of meeting them.One line I remember Involved claiming that the rubber gaskets on our UPVC windows were the same as the one used on the space shuttle.I just searched that fact on google and it would appear he was right.The O rings that failed on the shuttle were in fact made from EPDM rubber.

Sid was always bigging us up,making us feel we could have sold UPVC windows to the Queen.Sid knew how to keep us young lads motivated,the top salesman would get Sid's BMW on Friday night and keep it till Monday morning.

I'd love to meet Sid again,Sadly I lost touch with him. He thought I was mad going to sell window profile and couldn't understand why I was taking a salary cut to do so.I imagine that his long departed he certainly lived for today and would be in to his 80's today.I'd like to think of him instead driving round in his red BM closing lots of deals in UPVC window heaven.

DIY Double Glazing has probably been around as long as Double glazing has.I can remember my first Double Glazing boss complaining to me back in 1990.

'We need to try and get more DIY Double glazing business the margins are great'

This resulted in me towing a caravan that had been converted into a mobile DIY double glazing showroom.Behind a V6 Granada.It was great we'd drive around housing estates with two other guys,one with a loud hailer shouting out DIY door prices etc.It ended late one night coming over a hump back bridge.The Granada's suspension got bust and the caravan went into the back of the car.Undeterred my boss bought a rascal van but no one would drive it.

He was comparing the margins between trade window buyers and the DIY Double glazing installer.I guess the DIY installer is typically paying about 10-15% more than a trade window buyer.

As a DIY installer you are making large savings compared to having a window fitting firm fit your windows weather it be one window or a houseful.The reasons for the difference in price is due to several factors.

1) You are not paying for there advertising campaign

2) No Salesman commission to pay

3) No window surveyor to pay

So you the typical DIY double glazing installer is saving about £250 per item over a retail window companies prices so its a great saving especially if you have 4 or 5 items to fit.

The other thing to consider for the DIY Double Glazing Installer is how to measure or survey your windows. Alternatively you can ask a builder or a window fitter to survey your windows and or install them for you.They will charge about £60 for a survey and about £50-70 per item to fit the item, more if it's a door or patio.

If you go down the route of surveying and installing your own DIY double glazing. We have a video on this site under measuring your windows which goes into a fair bit of detail.The golden rule if you survey your windows is to find measure the opening between the brickwork.And not the existing window frame itself.Similarly the survey sizes are all in millimetres and very importantly is to make sure the new window going into the opening is actually smaller than the opening.Sounds obvious but you wouldn't have a glove the same size as your hand would you! The window frame must have a tolerance or gap around the edge of about 5mm.This allows you to square it up in the opening and allows for some expansion of the window.IA white UPVC window will move approx 2mm for every 1000mm of size.

We started supplying DIY Double Glazing in 1996 and have thousands of customers who have enjoyed large savings and also a lot of pride in the fitting of their own windows.

Coventry Doors was an idea I had 16 years ago.I had just moved to Coventry and had this idea of just fabricating Doors only.The reason was using my logic was that it was a lot easier to fabricate Coventry Doors than fabricating windows as well.

So I named my company Door express, the idea was simple I used my limited start up capital to invest in the machinery to manufacture doors only.We used to install a Coventry Door for £299.We even had a catchy freephone number, 0500 000 299.I wished I'd kept that number it would be worth a few quid these days.

At that time Coventry Doors was unusual as no firm before had made exclusively Doors.I remember (during the war) that we were rushed off our feet fabricating Coventry Doors but something was wrong.Occasionally people would say can you supply a kitchen window or a full house full.

'No I'd say unfortunately we don't ' That normally meant we'd lose the order as the customers quiet rightly just wanted one firm to complete the work.Coventry Door was not the brain child I imagined it to be, in fact 40% of enquiries wanted windows wither door order.

Being a resourceful chap and one who hates to see money going elsewhere.I made a decision to fabricate window as well as Coventry doors.The decision to do so was helped by a friend of mine,Greg, based Near Croydon who was setting up a retail window company - called cosy home.

Greg wanted to buy our windows off us and being the kind of guy who could sell anything he did very well and before long I thought the idea of Coventry Doors was a bit silly.And focused on becoming a trade window fabricator instead.

Funny enough though I always harboured the dream of a firm selling just doors and went on to set up a website called doorexpress which sold Coventry Doors and also all over the UK,Europe and the world.We have a trade customer who took on the idea of just selling Doors and he became quiet an expert at selling Doors but still used to fit windows which he bought from us.

When I drive around Coventry these days I can still see the first Coventry Doors we installed 16 years ago and that make me smile and feel slightly aged at the same time.

I did discuss the subject of cheap UPVC windows last month,but that was more to do with prices and perception.And nothing to do with cheap.The irony is that once upon a time you could buy cheap UPVC windows.In this definition of cheap I mean not very good windows ie they were a bit crappy let me give you an example.

About 25 years a go my then boss came up to with a press cutting from the Daily Mail newspaper waving at me he said...

'Just look at these cheap UPVC windows, how can they sell them for that price'

I looked a the prices they were certainly very cheap UPVC windows

'Well what do you think ?' he continued

I replied 'Look it's going to cost £20 to order the smallest one they do why not order it and see what it's like'

'I bloody well will' and off he went

One Monday morning about 4 weeks later he came up to me...

'Well it's arrived it's in the boot of the car'

My boss had a bit of photocopied paper in his hand as we looked over what had been delivered.I was amazed well we were both gob smacked would be a better description.

The cheap upvc window was in fact a window in embryonic form.By that I mean there 9 bits of upvc profile some glazing beads a handle,some hinges and the bit of photocopied paper.Yes,looking at the bit of paper it explained we would need a small saw with a fine tooth blade and a mitre blog.With which to cut 45 degree mitres in the profile and to the correct sizes.(not supplied)

Then you had to join the corners together using a chemical not supplied to melt them together, if you didn't have this unspecified 'chemical' you could join the corners together with long screws going diagonally.

My boss was an engineer and went away and did build the window.He had ordered it to fit in his shed.I was amazed that he had bothered, as it was with out doubt the Mother of all cheap upvc windows.Now my boss had two opinions about his window;

1) he realised it was an absolute crock of shit and that it was only because he spent ages masking it that it actually work- badly at that.

2) The people who owned the company were absolute business geniuses- who made Alan Sugar look like an apprentice as the money they were making was huge.

Sadly He is no longer around to tell me if that cheap upvc window is still functioning, however badly , (there were large gaps between the opening and closing part, when it was shut).

The point is that nowadays it has become very difficult to buy a cheap upvc window and by that I mean a basket case one.Most upvc windows today are of a very sophisticated, some are slightly better than others. And by better I mean, it's like comparing a top of the range BMW with a Mercedes and saying it's better, because one uses a wiring loom that has 10% fewer connectors.So what !.

However and it's an important thing to know if you think cheap upvc windows is all about getting the absolute lowest price. Then be careful because your 'buying' the firm supplying the cheap upvc windows reputation.It has become increasingly common for our competitors in double glazing to suddenly drop there prices by 20% for a few weeks take as many deposits and pre paid orders as they can and then go bust.All executed with military precision.

My advice is to find testimonials about the firm online and also do a credit check on the company offering cheap upvc windows.If they look poor and the price is low be warned your money will be protected if you use a credit card but you may get a lot of hassle and no guarantee and or missing parts.

The take home message is 'Buy your cheap upvc windows from us instead!'

I have a sister inlaw who had double glazing fitted to her house in 1988.Now personally I do like to see very early examples of UPVC Double glazing, especially UPVC Doors.Peg that's my sister inlaw's name has gone in and out of that UPVC Door for over 20 years and never had any bother from it.Other than the fact that it uses a kind of UPVC door lock, that today would be virtually illegal to fit.It has just two small locking points on the UPVC Door more suited to a balcony door lock.

Recently she started asking us to give her a price for a new UPVC Door.I kind of told her

.

'Look why don't you get some online UPVC Door Prices on our new site' I added 'Then you can see the range and see what you like' I added knowing that it would take her many hours , No maybe days to choose a new UPVC Door style she liked.

I left it a whilst but my wife started kept bringing up the subject.So I went round there 'admired' the existing UPVC Doors longevity and rather bulky square profiles and 16 mm glazing cavity.I Felt the extremely worn but very smooth, UPVC Door handle and thought I wonder how long I'm going to be here for.

Luckily for me Peg had decided to buy the best value for money UPVC Door we manufacture.That saved a lot of umming and erring on her part.She had another quote from a national fitting firm.

'Do you know they were going to charge me £1100 for my UPVC Door to be replaced'

I replied in a matter of fact tone ' Really that sounds about right'

'Then why is yours only £260'

'Plus the fitting' I hastily added A local trades man was fitting the UPVC Door for her and a good job the they made too - I'm relived to say.

Then followed a lot of questions about UPVC door locks,UPVC Door Hinges and how the salesman had said 'Every other UPVC Door was a cheap imitation of his'

I often hear this a lot why are your UPVC Doors so cheap in comparison to most others.The answer has many facets and will have too be saved for another blog on UPVC Doors.I can conclude that Peg is delighted with here new UPVC Door and that it really does suit the property.I wish we had kept the old UPVC Door - maybe we could have started a museum for old UPVC Doors.

Recently, I was talking with a friend in the double glazing Industry.He runs a upvc window manufacturing business supplying the trade upvc window markets.His double glazing prices are a fair bit higher than the ones on this site.

He nearly always complains that my company sells upvc windows too cheaply, and that in general cheap upvc windows aren't any good.As I've known him for a good few years I decided to take him to task on this occasion.Firstly lets look at his arguments.

1) German upvc window profiles are 'better' than ones extruded in the UK as they are more expensive to buy and are therefore of higher quality.

Sadly his perception of better quality windows is based purely on the fact,that if something is more expensive to buy it is automatically better.The only way he knows this is from advertising and marketing designed to tell him it is.I offered this reply;

' Look Dave you know those expensive steaks you can buy in the super market the ones advertised on TV by the celebrity chef,with the fancy looking packaging'

'Yeah I know the one's'

'well do you which farm they came from?,or what the cow ate? grass,grain,did it have steroids added to it's water supply'

'what are you saying' quips Dave

' You don't know these things in fact you can't but you blindly accept that because it's the dearest product on the shelf it most surely follow, that it is the best, and anything lower in price is automatically inferior'

On a bit of a roll with the steak versus double glazing prices argument I added

' A local butcher selling locally sourced,grass fed meat is cheaper than the super markets best'

I added ' It stands to reason lower over heads the local butcher has no TV chef to pay,No TV advert,No media marketing campaign,No PR campaign,No expensive packaging,No large transport costs,expensive staff,store etc - Yet the butcher is better!

So there you have it if your looking at double glazing prices, think steak!.No the far bigger picture is that never ever assume a cheap double glazing price means the product is rubbish - Take off the blinkers and realise the bigger picture and don't be a sucker to high double glazing prices!.

I've been asking Phil at Meridian Plastics for ages to  get his details up on the site.He tells me that his been very busy,which is great to hear.

We have supplied Meridian plastics in Kent with upvc windows and doors for something like the last eight years which in upvc double glazing terms is nearly gold watch time.

You can choose to buy your windows from us on site window quote or call 0800 389 0595 and buy over the phone and then collect your windows from Meridian in Kent.Or buy direct from Phil at Meridian if you require a Survey/Installation service.

Here are there contact details

DIY installation of your own upvc windows seems to most people a very odd thing to do.I think the main reason is that whilst it appears normal to build up bedroom furniture or a garden shed.Messing about with a upvc window is something that's part of the wall and can't be touched.This is wrong providing there is a lintel above the upvc window you can quiet happily remove the window and fit a new replacement upvc window.

The most important aspect of fitting DIY replacement windows is making sure that the new window is smaller than brickwork opening into which you are fitting it.To do this you must measure the brick work opening.See our survey window page.The main thing is to use a metric tape measure and measure tight in several places and then make a deduction of 10mm.This 5 mm gap will allow you a fitting tolerance and a sealant line.

There is as you would expect a large cost saving involved in installing your own DIY UPVC replacement windows.My advice is always to get a double glazing salesman round from one of the large national upvc window companies.What you do is spend 2 hours of his time getting him to advice what style of windows might suit each room,see his samples and profile colours.Then come online and get a window quote off our site.Or contact us for a quote.

As you are aware everything we buy, virtually with out exception has increased in price in the last 12 months or so.Due to energy,fuel costs and massive increases in raw materials.Coupled with massive internal demand from China, India and developing economies,has meant that the price of double glazing will increase to reflect these facts.

We have had some suppliers  turn up with demands for 14% price increases.There main concern is that they may not even be able to secure stock, such is demand and in some cases shortages of raw materials.

If this sounds like a buy it now type plea.(I comming to that)It is because from April we will probably be increasing our online prices I'm not sure how much by yet.But up they will go.So yes I'd advise to buy now if you can.

One word of warning if your are buying double galzed upvc windows at this time is to be very wary of who you are dealing with.I don't intend this to be a dig at our competitors.But there are more than a few firms out there trading near to the edge and by that I mean will bag your deposit with an incredibly cheap window price.Then go bust once they have enough cash built up and siphoned it off somewhere safe.

The golden rule is to use a credit card for all transactions in doing so by consumer law the card issuer is jointly liable for the return of your money.Be warned it takes a whilst to get back.So if your buying windows deal with a firm of longstanding and if you like check them out at companies house do a credit check on them it only costs a quid and can give you a picture as to how genuine they are.

Things too look out for are frequent changes of directors,frequent change of regd office, charging orders, very negative working capital.All these things can indicate thast you may be dealing with  a bunch of "$%^^&&! ".

Happy window shopping