CRAWFORD DOOR & WINDOW

They replaced the door sweep and did not do it right. I tried to open the door while they were there, and it was so tight that I almost broke the doorknob. They then told me that they do not adjust the door in the frame and that I needed a new door, since it was over 10 years old. I will never hire this place again. They are the only Pella servicer in the Capital area. So I will never buy any Pella products, either.

They are the only company that services Pella doors in the Capital area, so they have a stranglehold on the market. At first I left a message for them for service. Didn't hear from them for months, so I called again, and this time they scheduled someone to come out. They finally came out and did some measurements and charged me. Then, apparently, they scheduled someone else to come out and do the work. The following month, someone showed, but was doing measurements again, and I was hit with another charge! I called to let them know what happened, and they said that I would not be charged again. Finally, after two more months, they scheduled another visit, this time to do the work. Apparently, the parts had come in. They came and did not replace a glass panel that I requested to be replaced, and they replaced weather stripping on the top and sides of my outer door. They put weather stripping on the bottom of my inside door and shut the door. I almost broke the door knob trying to open it, because there was such a tight fit. They refused to adjust the hinges and said that I needed a door person to do it. What? Aren't they door people? They ended up putting the old weather stripping back on the door and telling me that I need a new door, because the old one was from 2004. OK. It won't be a Pella door, though. They do not stand behind their products, and the only company available in the area does shoddy work. Currently I am disputing the charges.

This review is mainly about the service side of Crawford Doors and Windows (518-286-1900). Of all the contractors we have hired while gut renovating our home, this company is the worst by far. Not only have we had numerous issues with the quality of the windows (of the 17 Pella windows we bought through them, 3 have broken in 5-10 years while others have had issues that made them unusable without service. Some under warranty and some not, although I would argue that clearly Pella needs to consider a longer warranty period since their windows clearly have issues), but if you are unfortunate enough to have to contact them for service, prepare to wait. And wait. And keep waiting until you wear someone down. We have been trying to get our current issues taken care of since the end of September '17. Two windows broke so that they wouldn't stay up and one was actually pulling out rather than staying in the frame. It's now the end of February '18 and our windows are still broken. First it took over a month to get someone to call back. Then they rescheduled their initial visit twice. When we finally got them here and they discovered what was wrong they said they had to order parts, and that they'd send two technicians to fix the windows because of their size, the base cost of which was going to be $500. Parts ordered in December finally, service scheduled for January and...they didn't show up. When I called to find out what happened, the woman said she didn't know and rescheduled for the middle of February. Despite charging us for two technicians, they sent only one. Somehow during the two hours of work to get one window fixed, it was further broken and the tech (who was perfectly nice) had to use the parts from the second window just to get the first window to close in 20 degree weather. But he left the parts that seal the window off so now we have wind whistling through our dining room. It's been 9 days since he said he had to order new parts and five voicemails later, I still can't get anyone to call me back to tell me when they will finally come fix these windows. We even contacted the sales side who directed us to contact the manager, Paul. I called him today and left a voicemail explaining everything and have yet to hear back from him, either. Now I realize some companies have rough patches, but we have had abysmal response from the "service" side of Crawford Doors and Windows going back 10 years. I have given them the benefit of the doubt, but that's over. And the WORST part is that they are the only Pella service providers in the area (although when I went to Pella.com to find someone else it shows "no certified contractors in my area".) You can bet Pella Corporate is going to get a full download of all this atrocious customer service, not that it will do any good. I would avoid this company at all cost, and it will cost you plenty of money, time, stress and frustration to deal with them.

I am beyond frustrated trying to get a door panel replaced. It failed just out of the warranty period, so I have to buy a new one. Getting return phone calls from this company is a nightmare -- nobody ever calls back. And all I am trying to do is place an order! Will update when the transaction is finished, but so far it's been about two months with no luck. I was told by the window guy in my local big box hardware store that also carries Pella that they are famous for not returning calls. Finally getting back to this review over a year later. I did finally get my French door replaced. The installer was fine -- efficient and polite -- and the job went well. We will see if it holds up. I hope so, because even though I had to replace the whole door panel, I don't get a new warranty since I used my old jamb and framing. Many of my other Pella windows are showing signs of problems (e.g. black marks inside the glass). I would avoid Pella windows and this company specifically at all cost.

Of the 5 ?pre-painted? windows I purchased, in every case when a trim piece was cut, the cut end was not painted. In addition the finishing nail holes they had painted over without filling them first. A short while after my new Pella main entry door was installed by Crawford Door and Window Sales/Pella Doors and Windows (Albany and Rensselaer, NY) I was having trouble opening and closing it. The service man said 3 of the 4 screws in the top hinge were shorter than they should have been. A little while later I noticed that from theh inside I could see light above the right third of the door between the top of the door and the door frame. If light were coming in, what else could come in during the cold winter months? A gentleman came and informed me that the door was warped and said a replacement panel would be ordered. That door arrived damaged and the next door was not painted the appropriate color. On the next attempt to replace it the service man could not figure out how to remove the deadbolt lock. After he left I was able to figure it out myself. For the next attempt no one appeared on the appointed day nor did anyone call to say the repair person would not be able to meet the obligation. I only succeeded in getting the door replaced by submitting an official complaint to the local Better Business Bureau as well as the Pella Complaint Department. Another annoyance involves the door handles and deadbolt locks for which I had to pay my locksmith $110 to have some of these items installed correctly so that they would work properly. Throughout this entire experience my calls were never returned and I was forced to ask the salesman to get someone to call me back. Each time involved several weeks before anything was done. Needless to say, I tell anyone who will listen to avoid Crawford/Pella completely. After this experience I have been left to wonder if the Pella warranty means anything, or is it only as valuable as the piece of paper on which it is printed.