Don Young windows

Milgard also has a color called Twilight. I was under the impression the fiberglass/wood line is called Essence. Anyway, Twilight is darker. You should be able to see a sample

Bronze will be brown black from anyone and while a sample may look black once installed in your home will obviously be brownish rather than blackish.

You will need to see actual samples of all the colors but bronze for sure will not be black.

@lc Thank you, you may be right! I went to Milgard's website and downloaded the brochures for the Essence and Ultra series and Ultra doesn't mention anything other than fiberglass. Not sure why our rep would have said that, but I'll definitely ask.

J. Clark,

We are trying to decide between those windows as well. Because our reno dragged on for so long, we are trying to rein in the budget as. At least in my area, southern California, there does not seem to be less expensive options that are viewed favorably by the pros here. I also saw millworkman's recent posts about keeping away from Milgard because it got acquired by MI. The pro recommended brands are all quite a bit more expensive in my area. What can we do? The budget constrains our choices.

@lc Not sure either. I have someone coming to show me some Don Young windows tomorrow. I don't think Jeldwen does a black/black option. What do the pros recommend besides Marvin?

J. Clark,

I think there are more options if you are willing to consider vinyl. More vinyl manufacturers are offering black/black. As for brands, I am sure the pros will chime in.

We wanted thinner profiles to better fit the style of the house, so we had asked about aluminum and clad suggestions. If I am not mistaken, Marvin, Loewen, Kolbe, Anderson E, Fleetwood, etc. are pretty well regarded.

Pella black on black windows.

We have custom windows and love them, but ours are older and all wood. Good luck!

https://www.pella.com/blog/black-window-frame-inspiration

Personally anything Pella is in the bottom of anything I would use at the same level as Jeldwen. I did not say not to use Milgard just I would be cautious as MI is not know for great customer service, but the purchase was recent so I would think they have not had time to mess the product up yet. Marvin Fiberglass, Kolbe Fiberglass, Andersen 100's are not awful. Don Young would be a good choose and glad to hear they are in your area.

@millworkman, doesn't Home Depot use/or sell Jeldwen? So this would be above Pella in quality?

I agree about Anderson 100's. we got a quote for those in our home and it was 40k to do all our windows. Since we have custom wood frames, we just replaced the glass. We had Pella in our old home, but did an Anderson 100 door to replace the slider. We loved it.

Marvin does black/black in several of their lines.

"@millworkman, doesn't Home Depot use/or sell Jeldwen? So this would be above Pella in quality?"

Yep and Lowes sells Pella. In my opinion they are on the same level floating just above the bottom the barrel. Neither would be considered a quality product in most every pro I know of's opinion.

@millworkman, good to know. Thanks.

Don Young offers both bronze and black. Black is slightly higher in price, but it’s going to be one of the more affordable options for getting an all black window - as long as you’re not wanting SDL’s.

Both Andersen and Pella have "lower" lines; the Andersen 100 is considered its budget or builder grade line and was introduced in 2009 after Andersen got hit hard by the housing crash. Pella's budget line is Encompass (or called ThermaStar, depending on where it's sold) and it doesn't have good reviews.

We have a long history with Andersen and the window industry overall, and I'd always buy an Andersen product before Pella.

@Ultra Windows we just had Don Young aluminum windows quoted and saw samples which I liked but the SDLs are a deal breaker for me. I know I know, I can't have it all.... black/black, high quality, affordable price, SDL, etc etc etc but it won't stop me from trying!

I have yet to lay my eyes on the Milgard aluminum anodized bronze frames yet. Still holding out hope that they look more black than bronze.

So the Anderson 100s are still a top contender. We have someone coming out tonight to show us the Kolbe Forgent line and get us a quote... not sure what kind of price point to expect.

SDL’s are not available on the Andersen 100 series either.

Ram aluminum windows offer SDL bars, and they have an anodized bronze color that looks black. They are more expensive though, and they only offer casements, fixed and awning windows; no single hungs, double hungs or sliders. They are a Houston based company.

Hi J.Clark,

It sounds as though you have got a lot to consider with lots of helpful options.

If you're looking for something that's aluminum and a solid black on black color this is something I am more than happy to advise on. Let me know if you'd like any information.

Marvin Essential fiberglass -- what Marvin refers to as Ultrex -- windows are available in Ebony if both interior and exterior are this color. Scroll down the Casement page for options.

@j.clark - am wondering what you ended up using? I too live in Houston and am looking for the same. Got COMPLETELY screwed over by Milgard as we placed our order in March, kept getting the runaround about delays due to covid and just 2 weeks ago found out that the Texas factory is closing and NO windows! So now I am months behind on our project and don't know which way to turn 😡

My Marvin windows are being delivered this week so someone is making windows.

@HU-28348099 we ended up going with Anderson because I wanted a true black frame and it was within our budget. I have seen several new builds in our neighborhood with Milgards and do think they look good too but wasn't as impressed with the quality. Trying contacting BMC... that's who we ordered ours through and their pricing was competitive.

Black interior can make a room look dark.

I got several Milgard windows and hate them. They botched the screens (which were very-very low quality) and were a terrible company to communicate with. Black finish was poor and scratched easily during install. I'll be replacing them with Marvin soon. ... My two cents.

@hu-28348099 who did you end up getting windows from? We’re building in DFW and are struggling to find black/black outside of Andersen. Trying to see if there’s anything a little more cost effective.

That’s a wide looking casement.

We came very close to doing a black exterior but we worried it may just be aa short term style.

@hu-590544710 we ended up ordering the Anderson 100s for our windows and should be installed next week - I'll take a picture once installed... It was a struggle honestly to make the choice. We actually did go with different sliding doors as many said the Anderson were not the best for the price. Even when we went up to a more expensive line they were made with wood (internal or external) which can be difficult in the Houston weather especially for the sizes that we were needing.

@HU-28348099 we decided today to go with Andersen as well. We got slightly better pricing for Kolbe but their delivery time is 8-9 weeks and that’s not feasible. The pricing was only $15-$25 less per window so not significant enough for the almost double delivery window. What door did you do? That was the biggy we have been torn on. We are likely going to do the Andersen 4 panel “French” slider in 12’ and it’s the narrow line. We looked at the Kolbe as well as the western window system. Kolbe’s price was better for the composite but worse for the aluminum clad/wood. Western has this large 2 6’ panel door that is really nice but they don’t do a true black. It’s price is about $100 less then andersen but I’m worried about them not matching and then we’re back to the problem of the delivery time. Needless to say this has been a little stressful trying to decide lol. We’re doing our guest house now and then the main house while we live in it so the decisions we make now will dictate the design in the future.

Black exterior looks sharp.

@HU-28348099 Do you mind sharing how do you like your Anderson 100 windows? We are almost ready to place order but just read mixed reviews online. We chose it for the black color minimalist look.

I am having the same problem. Yesterday I got a price for Anderson new construction Black Interior/Exterior windows. I was astonished how well priced they were. Today I priced Milgard 100 Ultra series in Black Bean Interior and Exterior. I received a price double the Anderson price.. I even took the Mullions of the Milgard bid to bring the price down. I love the look of the Anderson black color and window but have read the doors are not too good. I do not know what to do. I was trying to stay with the same company so the windows all match form the interior and exterior.

@Mia Smyth: "I love the look of the Anderson black color and window but have read the doors are not too good. I do not know what to do."

Our 10-unit condo building installed Provia Heritage fiberglass doors a few years ago. They have performed very well. They're available in Coal Black.

Black on black looks sharp! I wanted to do that on my new build 8 years ago, and both my husband and the window guy looked at me like I was crazy! He’s never heard of it. It was impossible to find… I still wish I had done it.