Okna Starmark vs Renewal by Andersen
Hi John, have recently found your site and appreciate all your research. Are you affiliated with a company, and do you receive commissions? That’s fine, but I just want to understand your orientation because there’s no background info about you or the site.
I have received proposals from Okna Starmark (“composite”), Renewal by Andersen (composite), Pella (wood), and Union (vinyl). You evaluate the Okna Starmark to be “best in class,” but I’ve been told it’s not really composite, but, rather rubber. Are they actually vinyl? How long do they last? Also, you don’t address Starmark performance ratings. I don’t want vinyl.
Many thanks and all the best to you and yours!
Deborah - Homeowner - September, 2022
Website Editor's Answer
Deborah in terms of monetizing this site -- We appreciate our visitors filling out our "Find Local Five Star Rated Window Pros" form starting with a zip code. This allows us to provide free unbiased advise that can save you thousands. We are not incentivized by any of the companies, so send us any bids you receive and we will give you our unbiased opinion.
The Okna Starmark window is not rubber -- I don't think a rubber window would actually work in a window frame. It's a composite frame that tends to be thicker than vinyl, which makes for a strong and durable window, but also means less glass area. It is considered one of the best composite frames, but home owners with smaller window openings might prefer something with more glass.
This model is comparable to a Renewal By Andersen, although the Okna often gets better reviews at a lower price. The newer Okna Starmark Evo or 7500 series is the updated Starmark composite series that looks to have made some nice improvements to the original Starmark and the air infiltration improvement from .05 to .03 seems to bear this out.
The Okna is heads and shoulders above Renewal, Union (I've never heard of Union but after 20 years of this, if I haven't heard of a manufacturer, you probably want to stay away -- unless you like to gamble haha), and really anything Pella makes. I guess I should say that Pella does make a very nice wood window, but wood is fraught with issues in my opinion -- and you really only need to look at the warranty terms to see this.
Editor John M. - September, 2022
Deborah's Reply
Wow! I am amazed and ever so grateful for your quick response. Is this really 2022, or are you from the golden age of customer service? Either way, thank you for your professionalism!
I am inclined to go with the highest end of the Starmarks as the house is a 1955 never-been-changed-with-almost-no-maintenance for 67 years. It's a big job with 22 double hungs, 6 casements and two bay windows. You are right to point out that the Starmark framing is (too) thick. It’s coming in at $1,200/double hung window installed plus $91/sash and $74 for 2 grids each window. I realize prices have gone up, but that seems high, especially when I used your site calculator. Am I wrong?
For purposes of your database, the zip code is 08108. House value is approx $450K. It's an old working-class town in New Jersey, just 5 minutes from downtown Philadelphia; the town, 25 miles from Bristol, PA (Okna's HQ) has seen a recent bump in non-COVID-related cultural/economic interest over the past decade. The house is beautifully situated on the river, and it’s a family house, so I want to keep it within the family and am doing a massive renovation.
I had gotten a Pella quotation as a starting point and laughed at the absurdity of their pricing. I knew they would be expensive, but I can't figure out why they would even send a sales rep to such a modest town. I had also received a quotation for Marvin black-exterior/black interior (Fiberglas). The only reason I got an Andersen quotation was that I really wanted black-black and wanted to be sure I was covering all my bases; they said their black-blacks are “a few hundred” more each than the white-whites. The Starmarks are white-white. I didn’t and still don’t want vinyl (or wood for that matter), but my kitchen guy thought I should at least investigate them too; the whole lot of white-white installed would have cost $18K.
Should I be looking at anything else for composites? Beyond effectiveness, I’d like to maximize light, durability, and ease of maintenance.
Please do not quote me by name, but feel free to use any of my comments (if you generalize them and make no references to the house, value, or location, please, especially as I am finalizing my decision and detest social media).
Many thanks again.
Deborah - Homeowner - September, 2022
Website Editor's Answer
Deborah, the Starmark is not cheap. Honestly though, I think a top tier vinyl window would be the call. The Sunrise Restorations is a vinyl/fiberglass that is thin and well made, but it still might run in that $1200 to $1300 range. Prices have gotten crazy in the past two years.
The Okna 500, 600, and 800 series are all excellent windows, as well as the Ideal Majestic and Ideal Platinum 3000 series (an NJ based company). Defintely get a bid from your Okna dealer on these series and an Ideal dealer.
Those custom frame colors can really spike your costs. FYI, lots of the high end vinyl windows come in an interior laminate that mimics the look of wood -- pretty well too -- so if you want a wood-esque looking window, this is the call as far as I'm concerned.
I will change your name and drop any details in the post. I would get a slew of bids myself in order to find the right window and company doing the install. There are still fair deals out there, but you have to put in the work -- which is a grind.
Editor John M. - September, 2022
