Installing windows, doors and a balcony: what to state to compare fairly
Products and installation: what you are ordering
In this category you are looking for installers, not just products. There are three scenarios: buy windows or doors from a company together with installation, have installed the products you have already bought, or glaze and insulate a balcony or loggia.
It is important to say this at the very start. The price depends on whether you buy a ready product or only the installation service, and on who takes the measurements.
What to put in your request
- What to do — replacing windows, new doors, glazing a balcony, removing old ones.
- Quantity and sizes — width and height of each opening, or approximate measurements.
- Specification — profile, glass type and number of panes, colour, opening style.
- Whose products — yours or the contractor’s.
- Extra work — finishing around the frames, sills, drip edges, mosquito nets, removal of old frames.
- Property — apartment block or independent house, floor.
- Address, timing, budget.
Example: “Pune, apartment on the 8th floor. I need three windows of about 1.3×1.4 m replaced: uPVC profile, double glazing. Remove the old ones and fit the new ones with finishing around the frames and sills. Finish by the end of the month, budget up to ₹45,000.”
How to compare offers
The installation price is set by complexity and height, and the price of the product by the profile and the glass. So compare using a checklist:
- which profile and how many panes, and whether the glass is energy-saving;
- the hardware: which kind, and whether it has a warranty;
- installation with proper sealing tapes, not just “with foam”;
- whether sills, drip edges, finishing around the frame and cleaning are included;
- whether the measurement is free and the sizes are written into the contract.
How it works on BlaBlaPrice
You write a request on the home page, and companies and installers in your city reply in chat: what they offer, the price, when they can come to measure. Each sees where their offer stands and can improve their terms. You see reviews next to the offers, and your number stays hidden until you choose a contractor. More on the “How it works” page.
Common mistakes
The most common mistake is wrong measurements: a product is ordered in the wrong size, and redoing it is expensive. So leave the measuring to a specialist rather than doing it by eye. The second is saving on installation: even a good window fitted without proper sealing leaks air and water in the monsoon. The third is not agreeing on the finishing and the removal of the old windows, which brings extra costs.
For a balcony with a metal frame you may need welding work, and for finishing the windows inside, finishing work. It all comes together in turnkey renovation.
