Curious about your experience post installation, energy savings if any, comfort level etc. Who did you use and what brand did you buy? Anyone do it themselves?
I have an older house that originally had single pane aluminum frame windows. In the summer the sun would bake you. In the winter you could feel the cold coming from them along with moisture would collect on the inside. I bought triple pane Gorell windows. They can be quite expensive from the replacement company. I spent longer talking to them than I wanted until they got the price down. The company was Dixie Home Crafters. Their installers were good, efficient, and cleaned up. They started around 8 or 9a and was finished by 3 or 4P. I could immediately tell a difference in the noise coming from outside and the heat coming inside. The light coming inside was also reduced. The windows also have a security feature that allows you to crack the windows open without them being able to be fully opened and the screens can only be removed from the inside. Top and bottom fold in for cleaning. The company measured each space and the windows were made for each specific opening. Their installers worked for them and weren't contractors. I would shop around comparing prices as these are expensive.
Have had 7 windows and a french door replaced by Champion. Lifetime replacement warranty - Over 10 years, we have had two panes replaced and a door panel replaced when the integrated mini-blind broke. Replacement takes a few weeks. Not the cheapest vinyl windows but the service is excellent. Definitely cut our heating and A/C costs. Average electric bill is around $100 for a (all electric) 2,000 sf single floor brick house. YMMV
I have installed lots of them but not on my house. With the vinyl windows you will get what you pay for. If you attempt to cheap out then you will not be very happy with your decision. Window World is not the bottom of the barrel but not too far up the ladder either. Get several estimates from various companies, read reviews on their service and quality, ask for reduced pricing (works best in slow months 11, 12, 1, 2), try to fit mid range or better in your budget. An independent contractor can probably get you better pricing for the same window than one of the well known companies. They will more than likely be the installer anyway.
We had 21 vinyl windows installed by Window World about 12-13 years ago. They were the $189 windows. We are still in the house and the windows are still doing great. They made a huge difference in heating/ cooling, as well as cutting down on noise. After a couple of years, we had a latch issue on 1 window. They promptly got a replacement pane to us. After we had ours installed, my in-laws. 2 of their neighbors, and 4 of my own neighbors have had Window World replace their windows. I think our latch issue has been the only issue out of over 120 windows, all installed for at least 8 years now.
By comparison, our previous house had vinyl windows installed by the builder. Within 4 years, over half of the windows had fogged due to the window seals between the panes not maintaining their seal. I do not know what brand those windows were.
My house was built back in '71 and had the old single pane, double hung wooden windows. In the winter you could feel the cold coming in, the propane furnace worked overtime trying to keep a comfortable temp but ti was still drafty and there were cool/cold spots in every room. In the summer the A/C struggled to keep a tolerable temp often running nearly constantly during daylight hours when outside temps hit the high 80's/low 90's and even then barely managing to keep the inside temp below 80 by late afternoon on the really hot days. We had replacement windows installed by N Ga Windows and Doors late last fall. We went with their 'house window', the exact brand and model escapes me at the moment but they're low E, double pane, argon filled and have a life of the structure warranty. There was an immediate decrease in noise from the outside and the perceived comfort level improved dramatically. According to the stats from my thermostat, summer run times on the A/C have decreased by 30-40% for the same period last year. And the A/C is actually cycling on and off throughout the day, even on the hottest days, rather than running constantly like it did prior to the new windows. I don't have stats for winter since I didn't have the fancy thermostat installed long enough but seat of the pants comparison of propane usage show a savings of 20-30% for 2016 from the prior one. Granted, there are some variances due to the weather year to year but overall I have to say it's one of the best investments/upgrades I've done to the old place.