46.0 Installing Windows in Shotcrete Walls

Installing the windows on our earth sheltered home...
We had no experience installing windows and I couldn't even find one about installing on a concrete and stucco home, so we figured it out. ;)

[@kenknutson1598]

Designed with a computer. Measured with a micrometer. Marked with a grease pencil. Cut with a chainsaw.

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

You win pinned comment of the month. ;) When we first started, I did a ton of research and found that certain countries tended to have certain level of accuracy. For instance, the German earth shelters were laid out to laser precision and used very thin (~25mm) and finely applied concrete. Meanwhile the Spanish (or Latin American) ones were laid out much more roughly and you would often see workmen just crafting the shape as however the rebar happened to bend in their hands and then slapping on concrete until they ran out. I referred to these extremes as "German vs Spanish", and wanted something that was in-between, something organic, but carefully planned with known radii. Here is where my ambition was a bit let down by my skill level and my house ended up a lot more "Spanish" than I expected. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@oakld]

@@SimonHomeintheEarth I'm used to "German" way, so your window quality is a bit painful to watch. Unlike your house, which is crazy complicated, but seem to be really well designed. Not really my style, but I mean crazy in very good way :-). I'm planning an earth sheltered house as well, that would be my 2nd house I built, but I'm in lengthy zoning permission process (which has to be passed before even applying for planning permission). As for precision, it's good to design precisely, if possible with reasonable buffer for impressions. Good planning make less gray hairs, bad planning leads to bad to catastrophic budget and quality scenarios... Keep up the great work both on your house and your channel! 👍

[@ForbiddTV]

Black eye for Pella. Thanks for exposing these major companies with shoddy workmanship or bad customer service.

[@GeorgeDayIV]

That's so unfortunate about Pella's lack of response to your quality issues. But, loved how you adapted to the situation. Thanks for all the work producing these videos

[@redneckmacgyver0073]

Great seeing an update! I’m invested in seeing this piece of art to completion!! Great work!!

[@Bill_N_ATX]

After looking at the dates on the photos, I was happy to see it didn’t take a half a decade to build the home but that long to edit the videos. I’m sure your family was happier too! Keep them coming.

[@TheMidnightModder]

You're telling me I've spent half a decade watching this house being built AND IT'S ALREADY PROBABLY DONE?!

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yea, we are living in it. I am just really slow making videos and took a two year break from youtube. I'm back at it now though. ;)

[@FreekHoekstra]

@@SimonHomeintheEarth looking forward to seeing the final result :)

[@elliotazus6258]

Glad your back, Simon. The most interesting house ever soon to be a home if it isn't already!! God bless and take care from your long-time California subscriber. Oh, Happy Father's Day!!

[@jlhenderson2]

Cross Pella off my list for window replacement. Thanks for the heads-up.

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

I'm not sure any other company is any better.

[@JeffreyFrazee]

Love it. It combines my two worlds: wood-built houses and concrete-built houses. If I ever build a house, I'm afraid it would take me a good bit longer than you.

[@Mrcaffinebean]

I know getting the windows in must have felt like a huge moment. That’s when it really feels livable!

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yup, for sure. It is also really important for an earth sheltered house because it keeps the humidity out and lets the light in. Before we added windows, the hot humid air from the Michigan summer would reach the cool walls and condense. Once we sealed it and the only way for air to come in was via the earth tubes, the house humidity dropped into the "ideal" range all on its own. Temperature stabilized also.

[@AaronPowellvox]

This house is going to be amazing!

[@linnja1]

Been watching this series and following the blog website since I was on a Deployment in 2018. Loving the progress and that you’ve come back to making videos. One really cool thing is that when I google earth tubes or earth tube efficiency calculator your website and work is one of the top results. It may not feel like it but you are leading the charge in my eyes on further proving subterranean and earth applications in modern architecture. You dont need to be a hippie in Arizona in an earth ship to use earth tubes lol. But i still want to be a hippie in Arizona anyway.

[@lynnmcclain2121]

I am so happy that you are sharing your home with us. It is truly an awesome concept.

[@yummboy2]

So much for Pella's customer service. I remember when Pella was considered a manufacturer of high end products. When I build my home, I will not even consider Pella. Fortunately, there are other options, especially at the price for these items, we are talking a lot of money. Shame on Pella!

[@thechadwick22]

Back when I sold millwork, Pella was our competition for upper mid-level windows in both quality and service. What a shame to hear they aren't so much as returning phone calls. A full schedule purchase too! That's unconscionable, there's no reasonable explanation for that level of disregard and certainly changed my view of the company as an option. I hope he purchased through a major credit card and is pursuing a charge back for the damaged portion of his order. That's the sure-fire way to get a company's attention when it comes to customer support! I don't think anyone expects perfection or that mistakes/accidents don't happen. If I'm paying for a house-worth of windows though, somebody better darn well be picking up the phone when I call!

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Nope, I paid with a check and the customer service stopped when the check cleared. Yes, I totally expected that there would be an issue or two with that many windows, but Pella talked a lot about how there would be a Pella rep who would drive out and help me deal with any issues, any returns, etc. When I found a bad window, I'd set it aside and give them a week before installing (part of why it took me 4 weeks to get thru them all), but nope. They ghosted me. I guess they only lose money by answering the phone after the check clears. One other fact about the industry... Sizes. If you design your own home, you need to pick the window manufacturer at the very start. They all do different standard sizes. For instance, Pella might do 32, 34 and 36 inch wide windows as standard. Anderson would do 32.5, 34.5 and 36.5. And you will find the vertical sizes vary by even more. If you have your house plan drawn for Pella, you can't easily switch it to Anderson without buying at the significantly more expensive custom prices or you would need change the plans. If you have already framed, I suppose you could go one size smaller and switch. But they are clearly trying to be incompatible so you can't shop around after you design or start building.

[@yummboy2]

@@SimonHomeintheEarthThanks for this information. One can never know too much. Your home is innovative and interesting. Clearly a labor of love for you and your industious family, I have followed the build from the beginning and looking forward to the completion.

[@dougsmall4371]

Wonderful work. Love what you guys are doing. Really missed your videos during your 1 year hiatus.

[@toucannibal6956]

Enjoying the adventure. Thanks

[@ammelovmokum7346]

can, t wait to see the next one. Love this series and the house sure turns out pretty

[@gordonwd2]

I’ve always had good luck with Pella windows, never saw such defects. Hoping the stand up for you. The house looks great.

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yea, I am sure they don't do everyone this dirty or they'd be out of business.

[@phokingawesome007]

I’ve been watching this from the first video. I really enjoy your home. As someone who refuses to use any product owned buy Zuckerberg I only can see your home here. Please load more to KZbin.

[@paulkeffer7580]

Your filming and editing style make following your project fun. I've enjoyed your channel for years. Thank you for sharing your homebuilding adventure.

[@kevinosmundsen4057]

Good window install. Do what you have to do together a good installation.

[@BelieveTruthDisbelieveFallacy]

keep the videos coming! :)

[@BealyGood]

Looking good. KZbin is a grind for sure.

[@joelevi]

Good to know about Pella windows... I suspect most who watch this video will pass them by... Hopefully Pella sees this video and responds. If the do, let us know in a future video.

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yea, I don't think they want to bother speaking up now. I have long since stopped trying to contact them.

[@user-mc3hw1gd6k]

Love seeing the progress!

[@jcadult101]

Pella is just East of Des Moines. Sad to hear so many issues with them.

[@shanehodge2843]

Fantastic work 👍🏼

[@MrMOCENT]

years in coming congrats

[@redrockdesign966]

Been checking in on your progress. Good work!

[@gmiller125]

Loving every bit of your project, and Im glad to see that the project has been (largely) completed and you just fell behind on the editing. I did chuckle a bit when you called the one room the "playroom" since your boys have clearly outgrown a playroom at this point. However, they have absorbed so many skills and capabilities at this point that that seems to be entirely beside the point. Frankly, having them be old enough to actually help and learn through the project rather than being too little to really benefit from the experience makes it all worth it even if the "playroom" has to be re-purposed and renamed. I wish I could take on a project of this scale and give my boys this sort of education. Im sure it had its challenges and there were likely many "do I HAVE to go help at the house again?" complaints, but in the future, this is going to be something you all look back on with pride. Keep the videos coming, I think you have one of the most interesting builds on KZbin

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

They still hang out in there. Just last week they had a bunch of friends over and were using the game table at the back door.

[@gmiller125]

Makes sense, a game room is just another way of saying play room.

[@ima6leaker]

Love that we are seeing more stages in your progress. Even if it is years later!

[@fabiancbarrio]

A house begins to feel like a house when you install the windows.

[@UrsaMinor2010]

Nice work. Too bad Pella doesn't protect their reputation.

[@jonathancook4022]

I feel like I want to see a completion-percentage graph for the interior & exterior work and the garden to see how far we are along……that always brightens my day if I know a project is over 51% complete

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yea, I'd like to see a graph like that too ;) One way to think of it is that we started in 2014 (broke ground) and this video was from the summer of 2019. We moved in the summer of 2021. So this video is 5/7ths of the way through or 71% towards occupancy? In reality, even living here, there are a lot of unfinished jobs that I am chipping away at. You can see that sort of stuff on the Facebook page at facebook.com/HomeintheEarth/

[@914Catfish]

Too bad they paella are more interested in making the sale than customer support. As always I love what you guys are doing. I can't wait for the final performance numbers.

[@waynecummins9713]

Great video 👍 🇬🇧

[@critical-thought]

So … Pella is off the list. Thank you for letting us know.

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

They talked a big game about how they had someone who would sign off on the windows after they were installed, and look after us every step of the way. In reality, they didn't return a single call or email after delivery day.

[@critical-thought]

@@SimonHomeintheEarth We are in the design and engineering phase of a home that will have a lot of glass. Pella was on the vendor list. Will talk with the architect, but your experience pretty much scratches them. It is hard to respect any company that abandons the customer like that.

[@president2]

Love it keep it up as always 💘

[@Krakkel]

Amazing work

[@mikesimpkins7919]

Really impressive project.

[@stetee4238]

2019 yikes I knew we were playing catchup but dang well at least Pella cant turn round and say pandemic what can you do

[@MoondyneJoe]

What a huge amount of work Simon, you and the family work well together, how many windows all up are you installing? Next question is will the kids want to move out before the house is complete and you both end up with empty nest syndrome? Great video as usual that you for the effort you all put in Tony from Western Australia 🇦🇺

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

This video was from 2019, so the kids were barely teenagers then. We have been living here for a couple years now (I am just way behind on the videos) and it looks like they kids have at least another year before they move out. But yea, kids grow up and move out fast.

[@JamieDPS]

I hope those window opening/closing cranks hold up. A couple of mine on the rainy side fell victim to moisture.

[@pauldrake2170]

lookin good

[@jcadult101]

When you said 1/4" I thought "here we go". You can do it, but best to have infill with 2x or plywood to ensure sizing.

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yea, I'll probably do a few things differently if I ever try again.

[@pippaseaspirit4415]

I hope your window supplier realises how many people are looking at their shoddy work and hearing about their even worse customer service!

[@barthanes1]

👍

[@Miss_Judy]

yeah - definitely not getting Pella windows - ever!

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yea, I don't know that any other company would be much better... But Pella did claim they would be better and they were not.

[@Miss_Judy]

@@SimonHomeintheEarth - still a lovely and interesting house! :)

[@kschleic9053]

A question that came to mind watching this: are there any architects or existing projects that specifically inspired your design? I am immediately reminded of the earth sheltered Apses at Arcosanti in Arizona

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

I think it is pretty unique. I have only seen one other radial vault structure like this (sort of) and it was in "Agent Cody Banks". It was the bad guys lair 😜 I hadn't seen the movie until I watched it with my kids many years after I started building. I have never seen anyone else use those Euclidian egg shaped arches or the toroidal vault or a few of the other features.

[@kschleic9053]

@@SimonHomeintheEarth your place is unique in modern architecture... It blows my mind that you hadn't seen paulo Solari's work, not much of it has been built besides Arcosanti, but his drawings parallel a lot of what you have done... I feel like he would have LOVED your house if he was still alive. If you are ever in Phoenix, the drive out to Arcosanti would be absolutely worth it, I think you would appreciate it!

[@simonr6793]

The biggest mistake you made with the windows is that you shouldn't have installed any of the damaged or broken windows as the company will either ask you to return them so they can replace them etc, but once you've installed them then the company will more likely try to say it was you who did the damage whilst installing them. Plus by the sound of thing's and the fact that they aren't returning your emails or calls etc then honestly I don't think you should trust them as it seems more like they have the attitude of once you've received the order then their warranty is ended !!! Either way it seems like you have a battle on your hands getting this company to do the right thing. One last comment is you mentioned about using expanding foam around the frames, to be honest a lot of installer's do use expanding foam simply because it seals the windows stopping any air ingress around the frames, last thing you'll need is a gale blowing through around the window frames in winter month's!!! As always guy's 💯% 👍 🇬🇧.

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yea, in most cases I took the photos as I opened the packaging and gave Pella about a week to respond before I gave up and installed them. In a couple cases (such as with the window mechanism), I couldn't find that issue before installing, but Pella could have just replaced the component after installing. There is no way they could blame me for glue squeezing out of the joints or other clearly manufacturing related issues. Waiting months to fight with Pella over minor issues (that I could fix myself) would have been a bigger mistake and they probably still wouldn't have helped me without spending a lot on lawyers, etc. In the end, Pella did what most window companies would have done... They talked a lot about quality and customer service before the check cleared and then ignored my calls after they already had their money.

[@simonr6793]

@SimonHomeintheEarth it's sounding like this is a major problem in the USA. It just doesn't happen that often in the UK. Once a company shits on its customers that's when there sales drop dramatically especially since the invention of social media!!!

[@BadUncleIke]

Et tu, Pella?

[@kevdel]

would you have any recommendations for a flexible stucco? I need to stucco the outside of a pizza oven but it expands maybe 1/4 inch during the heating cycle.. I wonder if you have any material choices i could use? thank you!

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yea, "flexible stucco" is not actually stucco. That is like saying a "flexible brick". Look into it and you will find it is usually an "elastomeric" covering, like a thick latex stucco paint, that you put over the concrete or stucco. I don't think you should put that on a pizza oven unless it claims it can handle that temperature. I'd go with regular stucco or tile or something like that, and just control the cracks. Smooth it off and then cut in crack propagation lines in some nice pattern, like an igloo or get artistic and draw a turtle shell pattern or something like that. When it expands, the cracks will be hidden by the pattern. Also, don't put the stucco all on in one layer. See our videos about stucco and you'll see we do several layers of different hardness, applied several days apart. Our temps are very stable, but none of our stucco has cracked.

[@kevdel]

@@SimonHomeintheEarth appreciate that!!

[@Reidbit]

Is there no recourse for Pella's actions. Could you not file a claim or anything?

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

My guess is that the lawyers would be the only ones who would win in that scenario. I have fixed everything myself since then and just moved on. I just couldn't resist complaining a little via the video ;)

[@toddincabo]

killer

[@fintan3563]

Pella USED to be the best windows money could buy. (Or at least I thought). It’s a shame their quality has deteriorated so much over the years!

[@scottmorgan3879]

C'mon Pella. I need to replace a few and was looking at Pella because of the name recognition. I think I'll be looking elsewhere .

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yea, I'm just not sure that anyone else would do better. I am guessing they all play a similar game.

[@codyabel4766]

can we see the final result already!!!

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Check out the facebook page. It is further along.

[@dper1112]

comment

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Thanks, I appreciate the "engagement" ;)

[@richardshaw3094]

I am building a house and need alot of windows which equates to alot of money. After seeing how crappy Pella treated you, I will not buy my windows from them. Once they got your money they didn't give a dam about you or their product. Piss poor customer service tells me that they know their windows suck. If they had good products, they would be happy to answer their phones.

[@CharlesRyann]

hi youtube al gore ith um

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Thanks for feeding the algorithm... ;)

[@iteerrex8166]

Being nice before the sales, you make money, after the sales you lose money. It’s just business, nothing personal. I thought Pella was a good company.

[@thechadwick22]

That's true for timeshares and snake oil maybe.. A major window manufacturer? Give me a break. Their money is made in servicing large development's worth of sales and support. Jeld-wen at least picks up the phone b/c they understand a contractor isn't going to order from a company that doesn't stand behind their warranty. Otherwise it's the contractor on the hook, and nobody's paying for a window (or their bond) twice because the manufacturer offered a good sales price without the backend support. At least no contractor who's going to stay in business.

[@iteerrex8166]

@@thechadwick22 I was just messing around, of course that will hurt their reputation.

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Yup, exactly. I don't know that any other window company would have been any better. But Pella did talk a big game before the sale about how they would have a pella rep on call after delivery to answer questions and take damage reports and there would be a final inspection of the windows to look for any issues, etc. They made a big deal about how the sale wouldn't be complete until we were satisfied. Nope. After delivery day, they didn't reply to a single email or phone call and there was no Pella rep who checked in on us.

[@michaeldeighan8294]

Nice to see you back.

[@donmiller2356]

Good to know info on @pellawindows. Will shy away from those products.

[@ebjamville]

comment

[@SimonHomeintheEarth]

Thanks for feeding the algorithm (and for making it to the end of the video) ;)