Personally, I am extremely dissatisfied with Supreme windows. Our home is 5 years old. The first 3 winters the windows seemed great. In fact, I was extremely impressed that there was absolutely no condensation at even -30 C. Then last winter, at even -10 C I noticed some condensation on all the windows. At -25 like it is now, there is an inch of ice along the bottom of all of them.
I called Supreme last winter and the service depths extremely rude. I was basically told there is nothing wrong with the windows and the humidity is too high in my house. When I asked what it should be, they could not provide an answer. Here's the thing - the humidity is exactly the same as the first 3 winters. I know this because I have been watching it very closely. We have extensive amount of hardwood flooring on our main floor and the hardwood manufacturer requires an minimum of 30% to avoid cracking. The crappy little humidifier on the furnace can't get it much above 23 or 24%. I have the exact same furnace, humidifier and humidity meter and its always been between 21 and 23%. There is no way there should be condensation and -10 C outside with 23% hum its inside, unless the windows have virtually no insulating value.
I really have no idea what has gone wrong with these windows. I do know Supreme has no interest in helping me.
I will never buy any product from Supreme again!
- Approximate cost of services:
- $100,000.00
- Company Response
Hello George,
It is very unfortunate that your home had been fitted with double pane windows in the builder series frame given your expectations for humidity levels in your home. They function according to the laws of physics in the same manner that all things do. I would like for not only yourself but every home owner to understand that R value and performance ratings have a very real relevance with regards to exterior temperatures, interior home temperatures/humidity levels and glass insulating properties. There are various levels and grades of windows and doors that we manufacture, yours being considered a builder grade type window meets the basic demands of the industry, will meet minimum code requirements, but should not be confused with our higher performance products. By contrast our Triple glazed Low E Argon gas filled windows (or Legacy Series Windows) would be considered a high performance window product. The difference is substantial between these two types of products whether it is very cold or very hot outside as they reflect 2 1/2 times more heat from entering your home or leaving it. When we talk about glass surface temperatures and how this functions with regards to moisture showing up on the glass is simple. The colder the glass surface the faster a dew point will be reached (think of a glass of water pulled out of a fridge - condensation forms immediately as the cool glass surface relative to the rooms ambient temperature and humidity level is expressed almost instantly) With a double pane glass window and by having an internal humidity level at or above 30% in your home, will virtually guarantee that window to reach a dew point even when exterior temperatures are around -10 C (given the maximum possible R value that type of window can provide) There is nothing wrong with your window it is performing to the best of it's ability, this much is true. What is also true is that with your type of window (double pane basic standard issue builder series product) we highly recommend that any temperature below -10 you must begin equalization of your homes internal humidity percentage in 5% per 5 degree drop increments. So when we have -20 or -25 degree C weather your humidity must not be higher than 15% or you are guaranteed to have a dew point (condensation) form on a double pane glass unit. Again this is just nature at work. If you reduce your homes humidity during a cold snap it will save you a great deal of aggravation. Another suggestion that works well if we get a sudden cold snap is to turn on your Kitchen hood fan or bathroom fan that vents outside as this will aid in equalizing the humidity and internal pressure of your home thereby greatly reducing condensation issues. If you have a high performance window system (and I have both double pane and Triple pane Low E Argon gas filled windows in my own home) internal humidity levels are not a concern with my Triple Low E windows but humidity has massive effects on my double pane windows. Double pane windows simply conduct more as they have a lower insulating value. I have a high performance Triple glazed Low E Argon gas filled window in a new steam shower I installed this past Summer and even with +100 C steam against the window this past week when temperatures were reaching -28 C I did not have any frost or ice on the window and when the shower area had dried out there was no condensation on the glass at all. However my double pane windows have shown signs of moisture all week (again given interior humidity versus exterior temperatures). So the very clear moral of the story that I cannot express enough is for everyone considering new windows, whether you are building a home or replacing windows is this - please save yourself the grief, spend the small difference in price between the basic offering and higher end products - especially if your expectations are to have high levels of humidity in your homes during our extreme winter temperatures. You will not believe the difference.
Best Regards,
Karl Bergen F.A.D.P. B.F.A.
Senior Renovation Consultant
HGTV Designer Superstar Finalist
Supreme Windows Calgary Inc.