Not Happy with My double glazing install and supplier is not willing to rectify

tes774952

Last week I had my double glazing installed by Safe Style UK and other than a myriad of installation issues (which i wont get into), the biggest issue that I have is with regards to the Georgian Bars that we have requested. Since i moved into my house I've longed to change the windows and have beautiful Georgian barred windows. When both the salesman and surveyor came to my property to do their business i stress how the Georgian bars must be symmetrical however what i have received is far from it. 
The gaps between the horizontal bars are all different sizes (on all of my windows). Below illustrates the issues.
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GAP 4 = 11 Inches
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GAP 3 = 11.5 inches
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GAP 2 = 8 Inches
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GAP 1 = 10 Inches
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https://i.imgur.com/Il8lLy0.jpg <- If you can open

Having spoken to a manager about this and sending over a dozen photos to them over 4 different emails and comms going back and forward, today they sent this response:
"...the Georgian bar layout is as specification and is standard to Safestyle." It is genuinely causing me anxiety and stress and i hate looking at them, SafeStyle have ruined my home and are not willing to make the amendments to fix as i assume this will require them reinstalling/re-manufacturing  the windows. 
I have not signed off on any paperwork and have will not until this is resolved, can someone please give me some advice on what I can do?

theonlywayisup

The photo shows the bars are not nicely spaced.  It seems they have taken the small side casements, divided them in thirds and taken the whole fenestration as one.  I totally see your point, I don't have bars so wouldn't know how they get around the obvious division of space in each pane.  Personally I would perhaps have gone with the largest and worked down but I am not a window manufacturer. 

Was there any specification on the contract when you signed?  Safe Style isn't a company I have had personal dealings with but that's because I know I wouldn't want to have dealings with them, that doesn't help you I know.
However, whilst it is unpleasant and not 'good on the eye' you should not be getting yourself stressed or anxious about them and it hasn't ruined your home.  I wouldn't like them to look like that though.
Examine the spec on the contract.  How did you pay and how much (percentage) is still outstanding?

SeaVixen

All the photos on their website of Georgian bars are evenly spaced, to the notion that this is standard to Safestyle is absolute rubbish. 
Do you have anything in writing where you said you wanted them evenly spaced?  That would be the easiest way to resolve this and prove that the layout is not per specification. 

Davesnave

Have you paid in full?

Maybe ask for arbitration via the GGF. I did, but I didn't get it because they knew I'd win! However I still had my £5.5k.

Alternatively, does Trust Mark mean anything?

Norman_Castle

They've tried to match the spacing of both the side windows and the frame joins. It doesn't work.

HHarry

I totally agree that it looks odd, but I’m not sure how they can fix it.  If you make the horizontals even on the main pane, the side windows won’t be even. Which may look better, it may not.
If you didn’t have the top openers, then you could make it work OK.

ytfcmad

You were never going to get equal GB sight lines because of the poor window design.
You dont really need those top hung over side hung casements, overkill and far to much PVC spoiling your view.
 Take the top hung's out and you would of got what you wanted, you could of even dummy vented the centre window so even the frames all matched exactly, 
There will be nothing in your contract that will help you, nor will the GGF. You could use the fact you owe money (if you do) to lean on them  but to have gotten to this point you would of signed off the colour, design, cost etc, poor service at the point of sell by them in my opinion.

DorsetLad

The company should have discussed the design of the window with you beforehand, because even spacing was never going to be possible with that overall window layout. The only way I can see to get even spacing would have been to have the layout of the side windows continued across all the window width, i.e. so it looked like 4 of the side windows together. I don't see how it can be rectified, unfortunately, although you could ask if they could retro-fit a thick horizontal bar onto the main window to extend the thick horizontal frames (sorry, don't know the technical term) of the side windows.

DorsetLad

As an addition: I actually don't think it looks that bad. It is a bit quirky, yes, but it gives it a bit of character, in my opinion (but then I am used to the uneven windows in our old house). I suspect many passers-by would not even notice, though I do appreciate that it is not what you wanted. Maybe you might learn to live with it?

Doozergirl

HHarry said:

I totally agree that it looks odd, but I’m not sure how they can fix it.  If you make the horizontals even on the main pane, the side windows won’t be even. Which may look better, it may not.
If you didn’t have the top openers, then you could make it work OK.

They should have advised on the window shapes from the start. You'll never get the astragals evenly spaced with an opening arrangement like that.  It was always going to be difficult with openers and non-openers on one window, but on your windows there's virtually no symmetry to work with.  

See here.  Four casements, same issue but it's not so pronounced because at least the window widths are the same and they've used dummy sashes to make the overall heights the same.  The only lack of symmetry is created by the top openers: https://pin.it/4Wf02X8

Experience would have told the surveyor that it wasn't going to work.
 

I think you need absolute symmetry in each pane, so a quadruple casement window, just side openers.  Plus dummy sashes, plus external astragals.
like this: https://pin.it/4pnz1iP

I'm even worried that the proportion of the windows means it's very hard to achieve vertical rectangles instead of horizontal without ending up with more plastic than glass.   I always refer back to the original window arrangement when ordering replacements.  The architects would have got the proportions correct!  

Their problem is that Safe Style know they'd have to order an entirely new window. The easiest compromise is to replace the glazed units with clear.   I've never ordered top openers and I always order dummy sashes to make sure the panes all line up.   

 

Did they draw the combination out for you, OP, before ordering?   How did you pay?  Finance? Credit card?  Can you put the onus onto a credit provider?   

I totally agree with you though.  I could not and would not live with it.   It is amateur and you won't have paid a small price through Safe Style.  😕

stator

How are these done? Isn't it just plastic stuck onto glass?