How Getting New Windows Affects Our Budget

Window Leaks are NOT fun!

Last summer, Mrs. Corn Fed and I decided to take the plunge and look at getting new windows for our master bedroom. For the first two years in our house (our first home!), we put up with random leaks from the corners of our half-circle window in our master bedroom. Not fun.

We had a couple people come out and recaulk the outside of the window, but they couldn't find any other reason for the leaks. Given the fact that the leaks were random in nature, we couldn't help the contractors with any details either!

Where do you get replacement windows?

I started looking around at the big box stores for windows since we've had good luck so far with them for our new storm door and new sliding patio door. Let's just say that big box stores are not the best place for getting replacement windows, at least in our area (upper midwest).

Google saves the day!

A Google Search eventually put me in touch with Renewal by Andersen. You may have heard of Andersen Windows. They're kind of all over! Well, Renewal by Andersen is an in-house brand that handles all the sales, manufacturing, and installation of their windows. This differs from buying actual Andersen windows/doors where you need to hire someone else to install your new windows. The other major difference is that Renewal by Andersen windows fit your existing opening, instead of a complete rip-out to the studs of your wall. (I'm not the best at explaining that!)


Needless to say, we eventually replaced about 10 windows in our house with new fiberglass, double pane windows. Holla!


This was in October, just as things were starting to cool off in the neighborhood.

Savings

We were expecting savings on our heating bill this winter, but we certainly weren't expecting differences like this!


Nov 07, 2013 - Dec 10, 2013 - $96.74
Nov 07, 2014 - Dec 10, 2014 - $85.87

Savings = $10.87


Dec 10, 2013 - Jan 13, 2014 - $147.53
Dec 10, 2014 - Jan 13, 2015 - $108.29

Savings = $39.24

Jan 13, 2014 - Feb 12, 2014 - $154.87
Jan 13, 2015 - Feb 12, 2015 - $77.50

Savings = $80.37

Feb 12, 2014 - Mar 14, 2014 - $139.28
Feb 12, 2015 - Mar 16, 2015 - $80.92

Savings = $58.36

Total savings (4 months) since new windows = $188.84

Not too bad!

Now the cost.

We paid roughly $11,500 for our new windows. As we were low on any savings during this time, we got a home loan from our credit union. We got a 5-year, $15,000 loan, creating monthly payments of roughly $280.

So, with our lower energy usage, we've saved roughly 2/3 of one loan payment in lower heating costs from this year to last year. We also did have the luxury of a more mild winter than last year, but we also were opening our patio door a whole lot more due to our new puppy in December.

Tax Credits

A nice surprise came when it was time to do our taxes this year. I was pleasantly surprised when TurboTax asked me if we made any home improvements to our house during the year. I thought, hell yes we did! Putting in the relevant costs and improvements came back with a tax credit of roughly $315. Applied to our deductions, this helped us avoid any further

The next step in savings is during the summer and seeing how the UV protection and double-pane windows help with our AC bill. Our master bedroom normally gets super hot during the summer as the windows face to the west and get sun from about Noon-9pm during the summer.

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Have you made any energy saving improvements to your home lately? How did they turn out?