I've been following for a while and was hoping to get some expert advice here. For background, we've got a house here in Northern Virginia with 24 year old Barber and Ross wood, double-pane, double-hung windows. (Yea...) I apparently got the unicorn model as they're actually in not morbid condition with no rotting, etc. (Well, one window has a leak through the top of the frame, likely a seal gave on the outside of the house.) I realize that given the fact that this particular brand was installed that none of my windows may actually be installed properly.
Unfortunately, noise levels in the house are starting to get annoying (especially at night since the bed is right next to windows) because of increasing traffic on an interstate nearby, so we're starting to look at what our options are. Unfortunately many vendors are not so forthcoming with STC & OITC information. So far, we've gotten quotes on Marvin Ultimate (40 STC), Anderson (32 STC. Maybe higher with combination storm but undocumented?), Alside (36 STC, but seemingly risky given financial positions), and Okna (STC unknown.)
The Marvin's are a *really* nice product and have the sound numbers that should work for us, but the prices have been, quite frankly, eye watering. Everyone has been wanting to do full-frame tearouts due to the noise concern, as well as the fact that the windows were B&R. I do, however, have high confidence that the installers will do the right thing.
Anderson pricing is coming in the first half of this week, but ballpark quotes have been a little better (400 & A), but it's all through HD so I don't know much about their installers. Prior owner had an Anderson 200 french door installed through their services and it doesn't close properly, so they're not exactly off to a good start. Sound wise, the ADMs have the prime windows coming in around 32 STC 28 OITC, but there's not information that's been shared about performance with a storm window in front. (I also got pricing from a local lumber yard, but quickly lost interest when it was clear I knew more about windows than the person writing the quote. Yikes.)
I'm not sure what to think about Alside. The company seems to be quoted in a couple trade magazines talking about product quality troubles. I'm not sure I want to deal with that given where I'm coming from with B&R. (We asked this firm to quote Simenton in response, but they went dark after that.)
I also got a quote for Okna Envirostar, but that quote came with no information on STC despite me sharing with the rep that was the prime reason for the project. They are the best vinyl window we've looked at, but that (unfortunately) doesn't say much. (I also didn't appreciate getting a quote that required me to use a calculator and decoder ring to figure out the per-unit pricing, but that's neither here nor there.)
We have a Jeld-Wen quote that was included in one of the Marvin quotes, but we're not very interested in that one given reputation of that brand.
I called Larson SCS up and they weren't really sure how to sell me anything.
Other comments along the way: Props to Jeld-Wen, Milguard, Kolbe, and Larson for posting the actual lab reports results for their acoustic performance data. It goes a long way to show how serious they are about their acoustic quality numbers. I also appreciated Marvin's transparency as well, having all of their technical publications available for all is a welcome change in what is seemingly a fairly opaque industry.
In any case, the questions I'm hoping to have folks help me answer are:
* What are good windows to consider for noise abatement?
* Does anyone have recommendation on tear-out versus pocket windows given my goals?
* Does anyone have information on Okna Envirostar DH noise performance?
* What questions should I be asking given these goals?
Thanks to everyone in advance. I hope we can make this a good thread for others to reference in the future for those with acoustic windows desires.
