Locations: 8900 Wicker Ave., St. John; 9900 191st St., Mokena, Ill.

Brett Davis, retail sales manager for Schillings, explains that the Best of the Region award helps the staff to raise their expectations higher.

Every year, we set a bar with our goals, Davis says. When we are recognized for our excellence, it makes us want to try harder, to see if we can improve even more.

Quality brands such as Andersen, Silver Line, Therma Tru, and Velux provide customers the knowledge that they are buying the best door and window products available.

Knowledgeable staff is another important asset to the business, according to Davis.

Marketing director John White explains that Schillings places its emphasis on retaining customers and having them return for all of their home improvement needs. The combination of great prices and brands, and thorough product knowledge contributes to Schillings Best of the Region win.

Locations: 3488 Eagle Nest Drive, Crete, Ill.; 1877 E. Summit St., Crown Point

Phone: 708-668-4010 (Crete), 219-306-4702 (Crown Point)

Location: 235 Ridge Road, Munster

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Best Door & Window Replacement - nwitimes.com

NORWALK Window replacement will begin at West Rocks Middle School this summer as part of a number of major overhauls to Norwalk Public Schools over the next several years.

West Rocks phase one will be worked on this summer, said Michael Barbis, chairman of the Norwalk Board of Education Facilities Committee. Theyre doing half of windows this year and half of them next year. The windows were almost falling out. In the facilities study that was identified as the single-largest thing that needed attention at that building.

The Common Council allocated nearly $1.03 million in Norwalks 2017-18 capital budget for the first phase of the door-and-window replacement at the 61-year-old building at 81 West Rocks Road.

Were going to have windows that are not that old single-pane glass where you dont have that much protection from the elements, said West Rocks Principal Lynne Moore. Its really going to be an enhancement to the building.

Moore said window replacement on the front of the building will begin June 15 and be done by the start of school this fall. Windows on the Aiken Street side will be replaced in summer 2018.

Major construction on two other Norwalk schools is expected to be start by early 2019.

In April, the council approved $41.9 million in capital funding to build a new South Norwalk School next to the former Nathaniel Ely School site, which Columbus Magnet School will move into, and a $43.4 million to reshape Ponus Ridge Middle School into a pre-K through 8 STEM-themed magnet school.

The council advanced all three projects this month by authorizing the filing of grant applications for state reimbursement. June 30 is the deadline to apply for reimbursement, which Barbis anticipates will cover 32 percent of the construction costs.

The city will file the grant applications and learn early next year whether the reimbursement has been approved.

The State Bond Commission meets and votes in January, Barbis said. They have to review, they have to approve it. They bond it and then we get notified that its been approved by the state and then we move forward. In the meantime, we will put this out to an architect.

Officials would like to see construction start on the new South Norwalk school and new Ponus Ridge Magnet School by 2018 but that may not happen until early 2019, according to Barbis.

The goal is to have the classrooms up and running by September 2020 but that would be very ambitious, Barbis said.

The South Norwalk and Ponus Ridge Middle School projects are part of the school boards $172.8 million five-year capital plan.

Kevin Schultz contributed to this story.

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Improvements to begin with window replacement at West Rocks Middle School - Thehour.com

ASHTABULA A $108,000 window replacement project is in the works at Kent State University Ashtabula, school officials said.

Workers are replacing all of the exterior windows on the first and second floors of C-Wing in Main Hall,said Dave Schultz, director of business affairs and operations.

The project is slated for completion by June 30, he said.

"The current C-Wing windows are the original windows that were installed when Main Hall was built in 1966," Schultz said. "They will be replaced with new, high-efficiency windows, which will aesthetically blend with the windows installed during the recent A-Wing and Commons renovations."

The new windows are being installed in preparation for the renovation of C-Wing next summer, he said.

During the window replacement, the school will close the Main Hall South Lot the parking lot near the gymnasium, school officials said.

Last summer, the campus was the site of a$1.8 million project, which included a new sign and main entrance facing Lake Road West. The project also included resurfacing the east-side parking lot and adding more green space to campus.

With the addition of the Robert S. Morrison Health and Science building on the west side of the campus, college officials decided it was time to update the entrance.

Parking lots forboth the east and west sides of campus now extend from the new driveway, bringing students and visitors to the center of the campus before branching off to the various buildings.

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New windows installed in C-Wing at KSU Ashtabula - The Star Beacon

Like many young couples Lia and Warren Raum shared a dream of owning a beautiful home in a desirable part of town. But the Raums dream was complicated by the fact that their town was New York City, and their neighborhood of choice was the citys exclusive Upper East Side. In 1998, the couple bought a historic five-story brownstone fully aware that the only way they could afford to make it their home was to share it with others as a temporary home.

After we were married we bounced around a bit, initially living in Lias studio and my apartment, but we knew that we wanted to buy a townhouse, recalled Warren, a financial investment consultant who grew up in Connecticut. When we bought this place, our first daughter, Morgan, was nine months old. At first we lived on the third floor and began restoring the house. As the work progressed, we moved to different floors and rented the finished floors.

For the first five years, Lia handled most of the day-to-day managerial and housekeeping tasks for the 6,500-square-foot house herself, with Warren pitching in as much as he could. In the beginning, we had no administrative help whatsoever, and very little housekeeping help. The gals that helped watch our daughters also did a little housekeeping, she remembered. In 2004 we promoted our babysitter, a college student from North Carolina, to become our first part-time office assistant. Now our staff consists of a house manager who is responsible for the smooth daily operation and a housekeeper who comes in every day and stays as needed.

When the Raums had time to research their home, they learned that it was one of four rowhouses on the block designed by New York architect John Sexton in the Italianate style. It was built at 130 E. 62nd Street, between Park and Lexington avenues, in 1871, hence the dwellings name: The 1871 House.

We learned that it was originally part of some wealthy familys estate. Around the Great Depression, the house was sold and divided into rental units, explained Lia, a native New Yorker. When we bought it, it had been owned by the same family for about 50 years. Fortunately, it was structurally sound and mostly needed cosmetic workplastering, painting, updating bathrooms and kitchens. Much of the flooring is original, and we had it refinished. Whatever is not original is repurposed antique flooring, such as the wide-plank oak flooring in the foyer which came from a deserted North Carolina tobacco factory and we installed in 2005.

In 2005 the Raums undertook another major restoration projectthe replacement of 23 windows in the front and street side of the house. Since the 1871 House is in the Upper East Side Historic District, one of NYCs largest landmark districts, the Raums had to apply for a permit to proceed with the window replacement. Although their request was approved, Lia noted that she and Warren received no grant or tax credit for the $60,000 project but said they consider it a necessary investment in their historic home. The new divided-light Landmark-approved windows look much like the original wood windows and provide triple glass insulation and superior sound-reduction qualities, important factors when youre providing lodging in the middle of Manhattan, smiled Lia.

One of the most satisfying tasks that Lia has undertaken for the past 20 years is decorating and furnishing the 1871 Houses seven apartment-style units, which range from a studio with kitchenette to a three-bedroom suite. Every detail in each reflects her discerning taste and passion for creating serene, comfortable quarters that resemble a guest room in the home of a genteel relative. For example, the rear library suite, which overlooks the private terracecovered with snow during our visithas soaring windows, floor-to-ceiling bookcases lined with an eclectic range of reading material (biographies, art books, cook books, New York architecture and history, and fiction), an original marble fireplace (one of eight in the house) with a resplendent antique mirror over the mantle, original parquet wood flooring and sumptuous ecru cotton bedding with a lofty duvet. Just the tonic after a day exploring the bustling streets of Manhattan!

In the beginning we furnished the rooms with pieces we already had, but we also love to hunt for antiques for the house, Lia shared. I just found a wonderful table the other day.

With their youngest daughter, Natalie, a high school junior considering colleges, Warren and Lia will soon be empty nesters. Having lived in most of the 1871 House at one time or another, their private nest is now the entire ground floor level which is connected to a restored two-story carriage house not visible from the street.

For us the house has always been a refuge from the hubbub of city life, and we hope that it provides this for our guests as well, Lia said. Its not just a business. We want people to be happy. People choose to come here because they want a home environment, not just a hotel.

For more information, visit http://www.1871house.com

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The 1871 Housea home away from home in bustling Manhattan - The Herald-Times (subscription)

Ever since the idea of holding an incentive auction to reclaim and repurpose broadcast spectrum for new wireless uses first surfaced, a major concern has been how to balance full power stations need to replicate their pre-auction signal coverage with low power television (LPTV) and TV Translator stations need for displacement channels in the remaining television band. Throughout the process, the FCC has announced a number of initiatives aimed at balancing those needs.

Included among these efforts is the FCCs creation of a new category of translator for full-power TV stations to fill in loss areas, a special filing window for LPTV, TV Translator and analog-to-digital replacement translator stations seeking displacement channels, and rules permitting LPTV and TV Translator stations to channel share, both among themselves and with full-power stations. Until last week, stations in these secondary services have had to stand on the sidelines and wait to see how these initiatives play out. That changed last Friday when the FCC released a detailed Public Notice outlining procedures and timelines applicable to LPTV, TV Translator, and replacement translator stations during the repack.

Most significantly, the FCC announced its intent to open a Special Displacement Window in the first quarter of 2018. The FCC stated that it anticipates releasing a public notice in November or December of this year that will give 60 days warning of the opening of the Special Displacement Window, which will remain open for 30 days.

Only LPTV, TV Translator, and analog-to-digital replacement translator stations that were operating on April 13, 2017 will be eligible to file displacement applications in the window. To be deemed an operating station, the station must have constructed its facilities and filed a license to cover application by that date. These stations can file a displacement application in the Special Displacement Window if they are displaced by a full-power or Class A TV station being repacked in Channels 2 through 36, or if they are on a channel higher than 36 and are displaced by the flexible uses envisioned by the FCC for the portion of the broadcast band repurposed via the auction.

In the filing window, applicants will have to provide interference protection to other users in the repacked TV Band and in adjacent bands, including land mobile operations, existing LPTV, TV translator and analog-to-digital replacement translator stations, full-power and Class A TV stations that were not repacked, repacked full-power and Class A TV stations as specified in the FCCs Closing and Reassignment Public Notice, and full-power and Class A television station facilities specified in applications filed in either of the two priority windows occurring prior to the Special Displacement Window.

Helping to balance those restrictions, displaced stations may specify as their displacement channel the pre-auction channel of a station being repacked or which relinquished its spectrum, subject to the condition that operations on the displacement channel cannot commence until the full-power or Class A TV station currently occupying the channel vacates it. To assist stations in developing their displacement proposals, the November/December public notice announcing the Special Displacement Window will also contain updated channel availability information identifying locations and channels that displaced stations cannot propose in their displacement applications.

To avoid a race to the courthouse when the window opens, all applications filed in the Special Displacement Window will be deemed to have been filed on the last day of the window for purposes of determining mutual exclusivity. In other words, an application filed on the first day of the window will have no higher processing priority than an application filed on the last day of the window. In cases of mutual exclusivity, the parties will be given an opportunity to resolve the mutual exclusivity among themselves via engineering amendments or settlements.

If applications remain mutually exclusive after the settlement period, the FCC will give priority to any application filed by a full-power TV station for displacement of an analog-to-digital replacement translator station or for a new digital-to-digital replacement translator station. The analog-to-digital replacement translator stations were authorized to fill in areas of a full-power stations analog contour that were lost in the digital transition. The digital-to-digital replacement translator stations are a new class of station intended to serve a similar role in filling in areas of a full-power TV stations digital contour that its repacked facilities can no longer reach.

Full-power TV stations can apply for new digital-to-digital replacement translator stations beginning with the opening of the Special Displacement Window and continuing through July 13, 2021. Whenever filed, digital-to-digital replacement translator applications will have priority over all prior new, minor change, and displacement applications filed by LPTV and TV Translator stations. If applying this priority does not resolve mutual exclusivity among applications filed in the Special Displacement Window, the FCC will resort to conducting an auction among the applicants.

Stations that can avoid having to file a displacement application by making a minor change to their existing facilities prior to the opening of the Special Displacement Window are encouraged to apply to do so as soon as possible. A freeze on filing such minor change applications will be announced, likely in October or November 2017, in preparation for the Special Displacement Window.

Stations that are not eligible for, or that simply do not file in, the Special Displacement Window will have to wait until a public notice is issued after the close of the Special Displacement Window lifting the minor modification application freeze, as well as the freezes previously imposed on the filing of non-window displacement and digital companion channel applications.

Digital LPTV and TV Translator stations that receive a displacement construction permit will have three years to build those facilities. Construction permits related to an LPTV or TV Translators transition to digital operation, or for new digital LPTV or TV Translator stations, will expire on July 13, 2021. Stations that experience difficulties in meeting their construction deadline can seek a 180-day extension of time to construct. For permits expiring on July 13, 2021, requests for an extension must be filed by March 13, 2021. After March 13, 2021, stations needing additional time must file a request for tolling of the permit expiration date. The FCC indicates it will look favorably upon extension and tolling requests where the station is able to demonstrate that it is unable to procure resources to construct due to the demand for those resources by full-power and Class A TV stations being repacked.

Analog stations making their initial transition to digital operation must air viewer notifications during the time period when viewers are most likely to be watching if the station has the ability to locally originate programming. Stations that do not have local origination capability may use other reasonable means, such as notification via newspaper or a crawl on the full-power station being rebroadcast. Stations have discretion with respect to the frequency, length and content of their viewer notifications.

Finally, the FCC noted that LPTV and TV Translator stations can continue to operate on their existing channels until the initiation of service by a repacked Class A or full-power TV station or the receipt of a notice from a new 600 MHz wireless licensee that the station is likely to cause interference. Such notice must be provided in writing at least 120 days prior to the new wireless licensee commencing operations or conducting first field application testing. If needed, a station can seek authority from the FCC to go silent to prevent interference to the new user of its frequency prior to the station completing the move to its displacement channel.

While the numerous points discussed above may already have your head spinning, Fridays Public Notice actually contains many additional details that will be important to those seeking to navigate the repack. In particular, LPTV and TV Translator stations will now need to consider their options carefully. The good news is that with this latest release of information, they are no longer trapped in the role of spectators at the auction, and can begin taking the steps needed to assess the impact of the repack on their facilities and respond accordingly.

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Details of FCC's Repack Plans for LPTV and TV Translator Stations Emerge - JD Supra (press release)

(MENAFN Editorial) Superior Replacement Windows in Avondale, AZ has expanded their presence in the western part of Maricopa County, Arizona by renovating and growing the Avondale window and screen shop to include a showroom and customer services center.

Avondale, #UnitedStates - May 10, 2017 /PressCable/ --

Superior Replacement Windows in Avondale, AZ; a locally owned and operated residential glass service center, is excited to announce that its glass, window and screen shop has been expanded to include a showroom and customer services center. Superior Replacement Windows engaged in this expansion in response to the growing number of households and businesses in the Avondale area. The growing customer base for a products showroom and customer services center that will meet their product and service needs.

Superior Replacement Windows in Avondale was established with the primary aim of delivering premium affordable mobile residential and commercial replacement windows, glass shower doors and window repairs to customers scattered throughout Avondale and all its neighboring cities including Buckeye, Litchfield Park, Tolleson and Goodyear. Superior Replacement Windows specializes in delivering same day windows, shower glass doors, finest architectural glass, sliding glass doors, storefront glass and custom glass restoration for the residential and commercial buildings.

In order to achieve this worthy aim, the glass services company gathered experienced and well trained window glass experts coupled with the highest quality and cutting edge glass replacement and installation equipment. Through a perfect blend of expertise, experience and advanced equipment, Superior Replacement Windows Avondale has earned a standing reputation in the successful delivery of the most elegant glass, window repair, window replacement and installati services to the highest level of customer satisfaction, positive reviews and referrals.

"The company provides repair, restoration and replacements services for all types of glasses including custom glass, tempered glass, laminated glass, insulated glass and tinted glass" stated Mr. Peterson, the spokesman for Superior Replacement Windows in Avondale. Mr. Peterson continued, "We opened the new showroom and customer services center to ensure that we meet and surpass the needs of our valued customers. The showroom is for products display while the customer services center is the contact point of our valued customers".

The qualified and experienced team of experts at Superior Replacement Windows takes pride in the delivery of quality custom home and architectural glass, window repair and window replacement services. The team works with only the best residential and commercial glass and frames which exceed the builder's specifications.

"Our certified installation is supported by a lifetime warranty and we offer speedy and easy appointment setting and mobile technicians who bring the glass and materials to your home to seamlessly complete the installation job" stated Mr. Peterson, spokesman for the Avondale location of Superior Replacement Windows.

For more information about Superior Replacement Windows and its repair and installation services in Avondale, Arizona, please visit http://replacementwindowsavondale.com

Contact Info: Name: Todd Peterson Organization: Superior Replacement Windows Address: 103 West Lower Buckeye Road, Avondale, AZ 85323, #UnitedStates Phone: 1-602-492-9074

For more information, please visit http://replacementwindowsavondale.com

Source: PressCable

Release ID: 198314

MENAFN1005201700703638ID1095473589

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Superior Replacement Windows Avondale Announces Expansion of Window Glass Shop - MENAFN.COM

Now in its second century as a Madison public school, Lowell Elementary is honoring its historic roots with a new cafeteria that sets it apart from any other lunchroom in the Madison School District.

Formerly two kindergarten classrooms, the new cafeterias centerpiece is a large, original fireplace with tiles that illustrate the Jack and Jill story. The fireplace is flanked by original, built-in bookcases.

Across the room a wall of nearly floor-to-ceiling windows and an alcove overlook the school courtyard, which has been turned into a mini forest. Underneath the windows are built-in seats with drawers still featuring the original pulls. Decorative tile surrounds a pair of drinking fountains.

When we look out the windows we can see most of the mini forest, first-grader Georgia Klipstein said.

Kindergartner Ione Courtier-Hewson said she likes the space because its smaller and less loud than the old cafeteria, which was in the basement. Others were excited about the fireplace and student artwork that was displayed, which is easier to do now that the cafeteria is across from the art room.

When its not raining outside, we get to open the windows, kindergartner Hazel Gunneson said.

Its also a nicer place to work, food service worker Kim Ryan said.

When the school was undergoing renovations to make it more accessible, Principal John Burkholder suggested the cafeteria switch. While an elevator now goes all the way down to the lower level, putting the cafeteria on the ground floor makes it more accessible for everyone, including parents dropping off their children in the morning for breakfast. It is right across from the front door and a short trip from the playground, so the transition requires less staff supervision and its quicker to access, leaving more time for students to eat lunch.

Burkholder pushed to save historic features like the window seats when their removal was proposed to gain more floor space.

When a more energy-efficient front entrance was installed, which necessitated the replacement of a half round window with a new replica, Burkholder asked that the old one be mounted over the archway between the lunchroom and adjacent kitchen.

Burkholders appreciation of historic buildings may have been planted when as a youngster he attended Dudgeon Elementary School, a 90-year-old building that now houses the private Wingra School. He also said he became impassioned when he gave tours of Lowell for the schools 100th anniversary last year and some early students talked about assigned drawers in the window seats where they kept their sleep mats.

Once others saw the space firsthand they realized how the original features made the space special, Burkholder said. Chad Wiese, director of building services, said the project cost $100,000. Mindful of the historic nature of the project, district crews paid special attention to details like staining the new baseboards to match the old, he said.

They really made this vision become reality, Burkholder said about the building services and food services departments.

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Once in the basement, Lowell Elementary cafeteria now a room with a view - Madison.com

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 15 at 8:00AM EDT in effect for: Fountain, Parke, Vermillion, Warren

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 15 at 12:30PM EDT in effect for: Parke, Vermillion, Vigo

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 15 at 2:00AM EDT in effect for: Lawrence, Martin

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 14 at 11:06AM EDT in effect for: Jackson, Lawrence, Washington

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 16 at 8:51AM EDT in effect for: Lawrence, Martin

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 14 at 5:00PM EDT in effect for: Daviess, Greene, Knox

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 14 at 4:00AM EDT in effect for: Lawrence, Martin

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 17 at 2:00PM EDT in effect for: Parke, Vermillion, Vigo

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 14 at 8:00AM EDT in effect for: Fountain, Parke, Tippecanoe, Vermillion, Warren

Flood Warningissued May 13 at 11:07AM EDT expiring May 14 at 12:00PM EDT in effect for: Daviess, Greene, Knox

Flood Warningissued May 12 at 10:39PM EDT expiring May 13 at 12:26PM EDT in effect for: Jackson, Lawrence, Washington

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Call 6 helps woman lower misquoted repair bill - TheIndyChannel ... - WRTV Indianapolis

OTTUMWA Andrew Birch, building maintenance manager at Wapello County Courthouse, promised to take contractors to the dreaded fifth floor Wednesday to see how bad the windows are.

Douglas J. Steinmetz, an architect out of Cedar Rapids, and Victor Amoroso Jr., president of A and J Associates consulting firm, examined windows at the courthouse, inside and out, and took copious notes for a project years in the making.

In March, the county board agreed to have Supervisor Chairman Jerry Parker contact Amoroso for advice on replacing the windows. Because the building is on the National Register of Historic Places, there are certain things we can and cannot do, Parker told the board.

I think its a timely project, said Steinmetz Wednesday. These windows have served their purpose.

Steinmetz estimates that the current windows were installed in the 1970s. [They] dont reflect the character of the building at all, he said. The goal of the project is to give the courthouse windows that will reflect the character of the building and still be energy efficient.

Steinmetz said the contractor will attempt to keep the new windows historically accurate. Fortunately we have drawings of the original building, he said. The drawings and photos will be used as a reference and will be the basis of design of the new windows, he said.

The project will not require any additional money from taxpayers. Weve been saving every year out of our sales tax money, said Parker.

Supervisors contracted with A and J Associates in March to prepare a study that would address the historical requirements of the window replacement, grant options or other financial incentives for historic preservation, window options, lead time for the windows and estimates of construction costs.

A and J Associates is in charge of the specifications; Steinmetz makes sure the designs meet the standards of the Secretary of the Interior for historic buildings.

We want to retain as much historic fabric as we can, Steinmetz said as he examined the windows.

Amoroso said the contractor will try to get the windows back to historic relevance. He thinks the study will be finished in a month or so, and then the designing process will begin.

Amoroso hopes the project will be out for bids in the fall. That will allow the windows to be manufactured over the winter months.

Steinmetz estimated that making the windows would take about three months. The windows would be installed when the weather allows in the spring of 2018, Amoroso said.

Parker said the county has more than $700,000 in sales tax money available for capital projects. Weve been able to accumulate it every year. Thats an accumulation from just 25 percent of the sales tax. The other 75 percent of the sales tax is earmarked for other uses.

Parker said the county has kept the cost of capital improvements low enough to save part of the money each year; that means the county wont have to levy more taxes or pass a bond issue and pay interest.

Parker doesnt know how much the windows will cost, but he said, Wouldnt surprise me if they [were] half a million."

Reporter Winona Whitaker can be contacted at wwhitaker@ottumwacourier.com and followed on Twitter @courierwinona.

The rest is here:
Window replacement begins with study - Ottumwacourier

By Stephanie Vanderbilt

Q: My home exterior needs some updating, but Im not sure whether to repair or replace. Im specifically referring to our windows, roofing and gutters.

A: Beautiful weather makes most New England homeowners want to boost curb appeal from every angle. This time of year, an exterior home remodel is an excellent choice. Not only does it make your home look more beautiful, but it also increases home value and energy efficiency.

With that said, sometimes it can be difficult to determine if your exterior home remodel project requires repair or replacement. These are the top signs to keep in mind for windows, roofing and gutters.

1. Repair or replace worn out windows?

Should you repair or replace your windows? This is one of the most-common questions for any replacement window companyin New England. The truth is that this question is best evaluated in person by a professional. A replacement window company can help you determine if your windows need replacement or just a quick repair, but these are the top signs that replacement is in your near future:

-- The window frames are deteriorating. Many old homes in New England have wood window frames. Although wood frames complement the character of homes in our area, deteriorating frames wont do you any favors. When your old wood frames are deteriorating and the wood is becoming soft, thats an indication of rot.

-- Your energy bills are skyrocketing. As temperatures rise with summer approaching, escalating energy bills are a common sign that its time for new window installation. New replacement windows can save you up to 40 percent on your energy bills.

-- You constantly feel drafts. Drafty windows are inefficient windows. Choose new energy-efficient windows with low air-infiltration ratings.

What qualifies for a window repair? This depends a lot on the condition and age of the window. Seal failures can sometime be fixed under a manufacturers warranty. Other times, you might be better off replacing the entire window, especially if its old, inefficient and no longer under warranty.

2. Repair or replace damaged gutters?

Gutter repair or replacement is essential to keeping costly clogs at bay. There are numerous reasons why gutters get damaged, including ice dams from the winter or brackets pulling off the side of your home.

How do you know if your gutters need replacement? Some telltale signs of gutter replacement include:

-- Water damage occurring directly underneath the gutters, which is damaging to soffit and fascia board.

-- Sagging gutters that pull away from your home.

-- Large sections of rust spots.

-- Eroded landscaping.

-- Peeling exterior paint.

If the condition of your gutter system isnt up to par, gutter replacement may be in order.

What qualifies for a gutter repair? If your gutters are leaking, you can repair just a section by adjusting or adding gutter hangers as needed. You can also patch small holes with roofing cement and smooth it out with a putty knife.

3. Repair or replace roofing?

Whether your roof needs repairing or replacement, this is a big exterior home remodel for any homeowner. The rainy spring season isnt the time to let roof damage linger, but it can be tough to determine if you need a whole new roof or just a couple new shingles.

How do you know if your roof needs replacement?

If you need to replace the entire roof, youll notice numerous danger signals such as:

-- Large dark patches that span over your roof, which indicate moisture damage.

-- Excessive growth of mold and moss.

-- Interior damage from water leaks.

-- Aggressive staining from lichen and algae.

-- Exterior decay of your home siding.

-- Shingles that break or crack at the touch of a hand.

-- Numerous shingles are missing.

-- Shingles are cracked, buckled or curling.

-- Your home is losing excessive amounts of energy without explanation.

-- Roof is 15 years old or older.

What qualifies for a roof repair? You can typically get away with roof repair when youre missing a couple shingles here and there.

What should you look for in a new roof? Key components include quality asphalt shingles that are extra durable, to ensure they will hold up against the elements. Furthermore, investing in roofing that can withstand 130 mph is smart for any New England homeowner, especially if you live along the coast. In addition, adequate ventilation and insulation are important, as well as all six parts of a roofing system, as it's more than just applying new shingles.

Dont forget that you should never hire a roofing contractor in Massachusetts who is not fully licensed, insured and trained by factory regulations.

-- Stephanie Vanderbilt is owner of Coastal Windows & Exteriors. She would love to answer any questions that will help you make your home beautiful, warm, safe and energy-efficient. Do you have other home improvement questions she can help answer? Ask her atsvanderbilt@mycoastalwindows.com or call at 978-304-0495.

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AT HOME WITH STEPHANIE: How to decide on home remodel - Wicked Local Saugus