I cannot with a clear conscience recommend EcoLine to anyone. I will say that I am mostly happy with the product itself and the windows were installed well as far as I can tell. My biggest issues are with safety, service and follow-up.
First up: safety. The very first window they installed on day 1 of the project, which was a very large (approx. 10 feet high by 2.5 feet wide) window, was destroyed. The installers only had one suction cup on the outside of the window and when that installer's ladder collapsed (for unknown reason), the installer in the house was not able to secure it. Therefore, the installer fell onto the collapsed ladder and the window fell partly on him and partly on the ground. It was smashed into a million peices (2 out of the 3 panes) and I am still finding pieces of glass in my lawn (months later), which is especially concerning because my dogs spend time in that yard and they, along with neighbours dogs have been injured because of this mistake. They installed the broken window, covered it with flimsy cardboard (thank goodness it didn't rain or snow much) and I waited weeks for them to come and replace it. The installer who was injured in the fall would not allow me to help him (to see if he was ok) and continued working. I did not see any sort of Health & Safety, Incident, etc. reporting done and even when I expressed concern to the installation inspector afterwards, it fell on deaf ears. Point of fact is that it is law under Occupational Health & Safety guidelines that such incidents be reported and investigated. It is my understanding (as I was told) that neither was done.
Next issue: service. As has been stated by other reviewers, their site cleaniness was deploarble. As mentioned, the broken glass from the window was a huge concern, but so were numerous nails, screws and bits of debris from the installation process left laying around. I mentioned on several occasions that it was a safety hazard for my pets, but they did not seem to be concerned with that - so much so, that unbeknowst to me (until I investigated), they left all the large shards of glass from the broken window in a garbage bag in the corner of the yard! It was far too heavy and unsafe for me to lift, so I had to block it off with a folded table to protect my dogs from becoming impaled. During the installation process, the level of customer service was extremely poor. I tried on many occasions to converse with the installers, offer water or coffee and I was met with blank stares and grunts. I'm not entirely sure it wasn't a language barrier, but one of the installers seemed to speak perfect english when he needed to and not so much when he didn't feel like it. This has since been the case with all follow-up individuals I have dealt with.
Third issue: follow-up. After installation I had all the windows professionally cleaned. It was noticed by me and confirmed by the window washer that there was dust between the panes of glass in the transom window above the front door. The installation inspector came and assessed the window and left without giving me much information. After weeks of not hearing anything, I received a call to book an appointment to replace that window - excellent, or so I thought. They failed to show up on the originally scheduled day and I had to wait around yet another day for them to come. The transom window and door were built as a single unit, so when they removed the small window and replaced it, the installers (different from original installers) stated that it had to be shimed against the door until the silicon would have a chance to set - therefore I couldn't use my front door for "2-3 days". They also left behind a messy worksite and I spent a great deal of time trying to locate all the bits of silicon that they dropped everywhere so my dogs wouldn't eat it. I waited 3.5 days before removing the shim and immediately, the window frame bowed and was now resting on the door itself. I called back to express my concern and was told that someone would come and look at it. Days later, the inspector is back and leaves with no information given. After waiting over a week for some information, I follow up yet again. By now, the door is so incredibly hard to open and close, I fear I will rip the handle off each time or break the glass insert by having to slam it just to close it. I send another email to the service Mgr. only to be told that I need to contact the men that did the window replacement directly. We make arrangements for them to come back (again) to fix it. I have expressed my grave concerns that if this is not solved, I will be left with a non-functioning door after the warranty expires and it will be my expense to replace it. He rudely tells me that he's 'sure' this will 'probably' work and goes about yet another fix-it job. When all is said and done, and before he leaves, he tells me that the problem is actually that I wrongly chose a black door on a West facing house. That's right, blame the customer. If black doors should not be installed on West facing houses, why would the manufacturer or salesperson say something? I disagreed strongly with him and said that if the window had been properly manufactured in the first place (no dust between the sealed panes of glass) we wouldn't be having this discussion at all and quite frankly I wouldn't likely be writing this less than complimentary review. And one last item to speak to the poor workmanship of the installers, on my back door, when they installed the door hardware, they left off one of the plates (see attached picture). Left unfixed, this would allow moisture to enter the core of the door and over time, ruin it. This will require yet another trip out here by someone to fix that. Apparently I have nothing better to do with my time than wait for repair people to come to my house to fix jobs that should have been done properly in the first place.
Remember, the old adage is true - "you get what you pay for". I believed I was saving money with this company and yes, I likely did. But what it has cost me (so far) in time and frustration has more than cancelled out any cost savings I may have realized.
If you choose to use this company, watch them closely and check everything very carefully for yourself. And lastly, don't expect and kind of smiling customer service from anyone other than the salesperson, just to get you hooked.
