Apex is their contractor window. It is the 400 series (that is all that they offer) and it is for pick up at the factory. They don't ship them and I would confirm that you are getting the 500 series. It is my understanding that Apex is only the 400 series.

FYI.

I saw the apex windoww a year or 2 ago and it was made by another company; energy solutions or something. Unless there are two apex windows? I think it was called the insignia if i remember right.

The other Apex insignia window is a different company. You need to look at Apexwindows.com. Apparently, apexwindows sell their stuff from their retail locations in Bristol and Philly. The savings I received is markedly different from Okana dealer quotes.

This Apex and the one associated with the insignia are two entirely different products. I don't believe that there is any market overlap either.

It's not uncommon for manufacturers to "brand" a product line differently for various purposes, and that appears to be the case here. Apex in this case is the distribution version of the entry level Okna line.

To the pros- The window I got from apex are all Okna 500, foam filled, low-E version (see my windows NFRC picture) . Contrary to your belive, Apex definitely sells Okna 500 and other windows from Okna as well, in retail stores. So moral of the story, if you need Okna windows, buy it from Apexwindows! $390 installed for Okna 500 was a steal.

Sam,

Can you forward me a copy of the contract (redacted for your personal information). I need to talk with my inside rep about this. The 500 series is not supposed to be sold via the Apex portal. Apex is nothing new. It was their direct to contractor resource and is intended strictly for a stripped out 400 series.

Thanks. Feel free to email me: Info@windowsonwashington.net

Who was the installer? Apex, or a contractor that purchased the windows from them?

Im having a very hard time believing anyone could procure the okna 500 series for that price installed; the installer would be losing money at that point. 390 is probably what just the window was purchased for. Im sorry but i just dont believe it as it defies every law in economics. Thats not sarcasm either. Maybe you have a very good looking wife and the installer fell in love ??

Thank you master; not sure how to reply to your sexist comment. I do not have a way to verify (beyond the labels on the windows) if he lost money on a installation; I doubt he did. fridge- installed by a third party installer who was recommended by my neighbor who is a contractor himself. Personally, I don't think these windows should cost more than $200 to manufacturer. Rest goes to the profit margin.

Makes much more sense now. Has little to do with where the windows were sourced, and much more to do with your choice of contractor. He'd have likely installed any window in that same price range.
If you are into letting questionably qualified people work on your home and trust them with thousands of dollars, as well as the future well being of your home given that window and door openings are the number one source of water infiltration, then perhaps you did well. More likely however, you got a super low price on a very good window from a hack that will not be around down the road if and when issues arise.
On the profit margin comment, let's just say for the sake of argument that you are correct, and that window costs $200. Now the installation is say $150. That is $350, and you paid $390. That leaves $40 per window (slightly more than 10%) to cover all overhead expenses like insurances, certifications, equipment, vehicle, fuel for that vehicle, miscellaneous job materials, tools, experience and training, marketing (have to procure jobs), future service of installed jobs, TAXES, TAXES, TAXES, helper wage and other staff, perhaps a location so there is rent, utilities, etc. I could go on if you would like.
I am consistently blown away by the fact that people will pay $80 for a pair of jeans that cost $2 to make, or $12 for a hamburger at a restaurant, but a contractor is a crook if he tries to make an honest living since materials and labor must be his ONLY costs to consider, AND EVERYTHING ELSE IS PURE PROFIT !

And then people wonder why contracting has the highest failure rate of any small business sector and one of the highest complaint rates.
I sincerely and genuinely wish you the best Sam and hope that you have a problem free installation for years to come, but if you do, you will have had luck on your side.

fridge- I have dealt with one of the better contractor who literally screwed up work at my home. Contractors care just as much as my satisfaction as the burger flipper in MacD. Case to the point, a door installer came to give me a quote of $1400 for putting a $150 door in porch. I like contractors but I don't feel like getting the short end of a stick. So, cost vs work quality not always bear a connection.

To the point, can you explain how you can spend $150 on a replacement window installation? My home ownership is not too lengthy, but beyond caulk/shim/trim/insulation material, I don't see anything where you can splurge $150. Heck, the dealership quote was $70 for installation.

I dont believe a word you are saying, no offense. The numbers you are stating are Impossible.

You just said contractors dont care about your satisfaction but then you go and hire one????

You have more stories than Dr. Seuss. Whats next, the contractor is going to throw in a free trip to disney world while he is losing money on your job ?????

By the way, i am betting you took that Okna sticker off a sample. I dont know what your alerior motives are here but we dont have time for your nonsense.

For the installation cost, one or two qualified professionals for 1-2 hours to install a window and trim, plus about $25-$30 in caulk and trim coil. That will be in that range, give or take a few bucks.
I don't think you are understanding what I was saying though. I'm not saying that you should feel sorry for poor Mr contractor that can't make a decent living. I'm saying that YOU are the one that will be on the short end of the stick, as THAT contractor is the guy that probably takes short cuts and can't manage finances to run a business that will be around for long. I gave you a laundry list of expenses that a legitimate business has, it is not debatable, nor is it even comprehensive. If you choose to do business with someone that is not legit, that is your prerogative, just don't say nobody warned you.
I do believe that you probably got that price on that window, I just think its a shame that you would do enough homework to find a great product, and then use a highly questionable installer.
As I said before though, I genuinely hope all goes well and you are the exception to the rule.

Sam,

Did you see my previous message? I didn't see an email from you and my vendor is very interested in the information you are referencing.

@WonW Ltd, did not see your email until now. I will send you a link to a redacted version of the contract with all possible identifiers removed.

@Master You do not have to personally attack me, since I did not. I am sure you never own a penny in a betting game. There is no nonsense here, if you read my first post. You invented your own nonsense; so, excuse me.

@fridge, thank you and I agree with you.

Thanks. I will confirm when I get it. Be sure to leave any information on it that the manufacturer would need to ID the order but you can certainly take anything off that pertains to you. This information, FYI, will be privileged.

WoW, you got mail.

Got it. Just emailed you back as well.

I thought that I would circle back and post up a summary of what happened behind the scenes.

Fact 1: The Okna 500 is not available via the Apex portal. The only window that is able to be sourced via Apex is the Okna 400 in a non-deluxe variant.

Fact 2: The windows that were installed in "Sam's" home are Okna 500's, but were sold outside of normal protocols and under false pretense.

The windows that were installed in "Sam's" home were sold as a 1-off situation to an employee at an Employee Discount and were intended to be installed in a family member's home. The windows that were supposed to be installed in that family member's home went to your contractor and were installed in your home instead.

You did get the deal of the century as a result of a heavily discounted sale price and being sold outside normal protocols.

Hopefully this clears everything up.

So it looks like Sam’s crowing here may have gotten someone in trouble.

To the best of my knowledge, nobody is going to loose their job over it. Management was pretty well steamed, but I told them that I was sure it could be explained well enough on here so that people would get the full and more factually accurate picture.

So you are saying that I can't get the 500 deluxe at employee discount simply by calling Apex? Lol

My question to Sam is why he stated that everyone should go buy these windows from Apex if he got them through a back door employee discount.--- and for what it's worth, still used a high risk, low overhead pickup truck contractor to install? To each their own I guess, but I would have probably paid another $X per window to purchase and install legitimately through a reputable dealer.

If this is all true and an employee pruchased these fraudulently, I'd imagine that he or she will be in some deep doo-doo, and rightfully so. I might even worry about warranty coverage, as these windows are essentially "black market" at this point.

His post seems like a moot point because an Apex employee used a " family discount" under false pretenses and sold the windows to a home owner instead? He is lucky he didnt get fired. If i did that at my company, my boss would throw me out head first and ive been with them since i was discharged from the service.

MWM,

They were supposedly purchased (via employee discount) for the employee's nephew and it sounds like he was the one that installed them. I don't know for certain but it sounds like the nephew had some plans in the works long before to work with Sam all along.

Yeah WoW I read it wrong and removed my post

I'm glad we got to the bottom of this.