So I was having a conversation on the couch with my mother when there was a knock on the door. When I answered I knew right away not to reveal that either of my parents were home when the man asked if the homeowners were present. He gave me a pamphlet and said that if they are having any problems with insulation that his company installs vinyl windows and doors. I just told him I would relate the info and sent him on his way.  What I really wanted to do was to say, “no we don’t have insulation problems because the roof is insulated just fine, thank you.” But with my post-holiday exhaustion, I was just too tired for an argument.

The moral of this story is that companies get people to buy vinyl windows and doors under the guise that the majority of their insulation problems come from these places. The truth is that the majority of the success rate depends on how well your roof is insulated. Furthermore, vinyl warps and cracks with time and weather conditions, creating more air leaks. With an average lifespan of 15-20 years, these windows will cost homeowners more in replacing them and accumulation of PVC refuse from these windows in landfills is an environmental disaster.

I could go on forever about it, but I’ll stop here. This recent visit by a vinyl window salesman just brought these issues back to the foreground.