[applesoffh]

Just closed on my Lilac in Village of Charlotte on January 23rd. First thing hubby and I noticed was that none of the windows in the house open easily from the bottom. Notes were made on the Warranty checklist and shown to our builder upon review. He said windows were installed to specs. We questioned howe anyone under 6' tall coule open these windows...there is no lip at the bottom to allow the fingers to grasp and push the window up. The window must be pushes from the lip just above the locks. Once the window is open, you have to be tall enough to reach the top of the TOP window to pull it down again. The builder sent our complaint along to the Project Manager. We complained to HIM about the windows, and he said they were perfectly fine, that 50% of all newer homes have these windows installed and no one has complained. I don't get it. If you are short, or have arthritic hands or whatever...how the heck are you supposed top open and shut your windows? I really, really find it hard to believe that absolutely no one in TV has complained about this issue. I don't know about anyone else, but I have NEVER had to open a window in this manner. Comments, please. Also, if you've run into this problem and complained about it, did you achieve any results?

[applesoffh]

I've tried to correct the typos in my post, but haven't been able to do so. Please excuse...

Yes, the windows are extememly hard to open. That's just the way they are. I hate them. Probably cheap like everything else TV puts in their houses.

[KEVIN & JOSIE]

Originally Posted by KittyKat

Yes, the windows are extememly hard to open. That's just the way they are. I hate them. Probably cheap like everything else TV puts in their houses.

It's a shame they don't spend an extra couple of dollars for better windows. A top of the line double glazed, argon gas , energy star window at cost is only about $100.00. After all, they definately aren't losing any money on any of these homes....they're all overpriced for the Florida real estate market.

[Sadie1313]

Originally Posted by applesoffh

Just closed on my Lilac in Village of Charlotte on January 23rd. First thing hubby and I noticed was that none of the windows in the house open easily from the bottom. Notes were made on the Warranty checklist and shown to our builder upon review. He said windows were installed to specs. We questioned howe anyone under 6' tall coule open these windows...there is no lip at the bottom to allow the fingers to grasp and push the window up. The window must be pushes from the lip just above the locks. Once the window is open, you have to be tall enough to reach the top of the TOP window to pull it down again. The builder sent our complaint along to the Project Manager. We complained to HIM about the windows, and he said they were perfectly fine, that 50% of all newer homes have these windows installed and no one has complained. I don't get it. If you are short, or have arthritic hands or whatever...how the heck are you supposed top open and shut your windows? I really, really find it hard to believe that absolutely no one in TV has complained about this issue. I don't know about anyone else, but I have NEVER had to open a window in this manner. Comments, please. Also, if you've run into this problem and complained about it, did you achieve any results?

Whoever told you that nobody complained about those strange windows, is lying. We have a Gardenia and closed on our home on Sept. 1st. I'm short and couldn't open any of the windows, due to there being no grip at the bottom. Also, the windows were sooo tight, even if I had a grip on the bottom, I couldn't push them up. I called Warranty and they sent two men. They loosened all the windows so that they slide easier. However, they said that these were the windows that the builder is using, and we had no recourse. I love my home, but am not happy about the windows. Trish

[Uptown Girl]

Don't have a problem with mine... I am well under 6 foot tall, and my house is new.
We didn't spend a bazillion dollars buying our home, so we did not anticipate that what the builder provides would be (from tip to stern) the best of the highest end products available. If we wanted a truly custom built home (like we have built in the past) I would have built one exactly to my specs, right down to the screws for the drywall.

I do know that everything chosen here must meet standards and evidently does.
Judging from our electric bills (since purchasing early last spring) we are doing quite well, energy-wise.
For what it is, I am quite satisfied with our home, and very happy we live in The Villages..
P.S. Mine tilt in for ease of cleaning, as well.

[shcisamax]

I wonder if I ask in my "deisgn meeting" to get the 50% of the windows with a lip that aren't a pain to open if they will abide and provide. I have heard before the quality has gone down and they don't "build 'em like they used to".
I hope TV hasn't decided that the quality they have given in the past is not necessary because their reputation has gotten so good so they started cutting corners.

[graciegirl]

I am confused about a lip on bottom of windows, we have something to grab onto at the bottom. Some windows may need for them to look at and fix as they do open hard but not awful hard and they did come and fix the track on our slider that opened hard. They took the whole thing down and put new wheels on it.

I am really sorry you are disappointed in your windows and I know you must have different ones than I have and I am so sad that you can't open them.

We closed at the end of September on our second new house here and also our three and a half year old Camellia in Hadley had "lips" on the windows. It appears that the windows are different on your house than mine.

I feel that the developers and builders and decision makers read this forum. Other don't think so, but I do. This forum is the pulse of The Villages. This forum is powerful. It is a good idea to post things here that needattention.

The warranty department has been very helpful and quickly responsive to us in both new homes.

[shcisamax]

Is it related to the style of the house? Lantana or Gardenia? or the series? Courtyard, Designer, Premium?

[Debfrommaine]

Agree with comments posted that windows are hard to open, poor design. But, they have loosened up a bit over time. You are correct too that there is no lip to grab on to - poor design but we're getting used to them. We have a CYV.

[memason]

I have to agree with Gracie.... all of our windows have lips on the bottom and at the top. We've not had any problems with our windows.

We are in a Designer home, if that matters ???

[BostonCelt]

Originally Posted by applesoffh

Just closed on my Lilac in Village of Charlotte on January 23rd. First thing hubby and I noticed was that none of the windows in the house open easily from the bottom. Notes were made on the Warranty checklist and shown to our builder upon review. He said windows were installed to specs. We questioned howe anyone under 6' tall coule open these windows...there is no lip at the bottom to allow the fingers to grasp and push the window up. The window must be pushes from the lip just above the locks. Once the window is open, you have to be tall enough to reach the top of the TOP window to pull it down again. The builder sent our complaint along to the Project Manager. We complained to HIM about the windows, and he said they were perfectly fine, that 50% of all newer homes have these windows installed and no one has complained. I don't get it. If you are short, or have arthritic hands or whatever...how the heck are you supposed top open and shut your windows? I really, really find it hard to believe that absolutely no one in TV has complained about this issue. I don't know about anyone else, but I have NEVER had to open a window in this manner. Comments, please. Also, if you've run into this problem and complained about it, did you achieve any results?

Hi, Neighbor!

I'm also on Yarborough, way in from Charlotte Way near Callahan (528) and closed on 1/27, a Designer (Iris). They must have been hammering our respective nails at the same time.

Which is strange, 'cause we apparently have entirely different windows. For mine, the lower half (below the lock) has a half inch lip at the very bottom and the same at the top. All are very snug and all...ALL...large and small...can be easily opened with one hand, most with one finger! In fact, until I read some of the previous posts, I thought they were the best windows I've ever had (though I do wish they'd tilt in from the top). Guess I've been living in real dumps....

For what it's worth on my P&S they're listed as "LOW-E WINDOWS" and described as "LoE, INSULATED, WHITE FRAME, CLEAR GLASS WINDOWS (NON-TILT). The obscured bathroom windows have the same design and operate just as smoothly.

I assume they didn't install yours inside out........right? Right?

Hope this helps.

[natickdan]

I also had some difficulty opening our windows and the person I hired to do our home inspection before the one year warranty expired proved to one of the smartest things I've recently done.

The home inspector said he was very familiar with is issue and it was caused by the window manufacturer installing the incorrect tension mechanism; and it was a known issue. He included the window issue in the inspection findings that he sent to The Villages warranty department. Shortly after, I received a call from the company that installed the windows acknowledging the wrong tension mechanism was installed my the manufacturer. After ordering the correct tension mechanism from the manufacturer, the installation company sent a couple of guys out to replace the tension mechanism in my windows. What a difference!

If this had not been reported as an issue prior to the home warranty expiration, I'm not sure the TV warranty department or the manufacturer would have fixed the windows. We are in a designer Allamanda home.

[applesoffh]

Dear Neighbor...

I, too, have a Designer, but your windows sound better than mine! I must have made an error in my description, though...my windows slide easily enough, it's the lack of lip that's totally frustrating and leaving me really annoyed with the answers I've been getting from the builder and project manager. Other than that, they appear to be decent windows. Walk on over! The name is on the lamppost!

[applesoffh]

I really don't understand this "no recourse" nonsense. Had we been aware that there were two different double-hung windows being used by the builders, we certainly would NOT have chosen the ones we have. I've never, ever, lived in a place where the double-hungs opened differently than from the very bottom, so it never occured to me to check. My mistake, obviously.