We start out our first hour of the show talking about Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors and if you know that they have a 10 year lifespan or less? Then we dive into some new Smart Blinds that hit the market and then our deeper dive into Windows and Patio doors with Erik Ashcraft from Milgard Windows who is now owned by MI Windows and Doors. Erik Ashcraft is the Product Manager for Milgard and we take a deep dive into whats new in the marketplace.

For more information about the blinds https://around-the-house-with-e.captivate.fm/lutronsmartblinds

For more information about Milgard Windows: https://www.milgard.com/

If you are on the East Coast the sister company is MI Windows and Doors: https://www.milgard.com/

Thanks for listening to Around the house if you want to hear more please subscribe so you get notified of the latest episode as it posts at https://around-the-house-with-e.captivate.fm/listen

We love comments and we would love reviews on how this information has helped you on your house! Thanks for listening! For more information about the show head to https://aroundthehouseonline.com/

We have moved the Pro Insider Special on Thursday to its new feed. It will no longer be on this page. You can find it and subscribe right here: https://around-the-house-pro-insider.captivate.fm/

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out our New YouTube channel @AroundtheHouse HQ

Make sure you subscribe and RING THE BELL for our brand new channel with 4k content! Click the link to take you there!

YouTube Around the House HQ

Take a second and leave us a review on your favorite podcast player!

Quick favor—if you're enjoying the show, the absolute best way you can support us is by leaving a quick review on your favorite podcast player.

[00:00:08] Erik Ashcraft: yeah, you can definitely be the overwhelming, especially from a homeowner perspective that, you know, may have never bought windows or maybe they bought windows a couple of decades ago, amount of innovation that's happened over the last 10, 15 years have been quite, quite extensive. So I think from a homeowner perspective, the first thing you want to do is figure out what your goals are with.

[00:00:46] Intro: when it comes to remodeling and renovating your home there is a lot to know and we have you covered. This is Around the House.

[00:01:04] Intro: Hey, how are you?

[00:01:18] Eric Goranson: Right.

[00:01:27] Eric Goranson: So much, it's just, it's a spring. It's for the, you know, feels good. Uh, we've got trees now in bloom here, we got, uh, you know, the cherry trees are coming out in the Portland, Oregon area. So it's cool. I know you guys had snow, but for us it was pretty good,

[00:01:43] Caroline Blazovsky: And now it's going to be 65 at, went from 75 to snow, to 65 and all the trees that buds and all the flowers are popping out of the ground. And.

[00:02:21] Eric Goranson: And they lost it on the freeway and it caused a multi-week vehicle pile up and somebody died from it. So I just want to make sure that people are taking the time using the right vehicle to haul a load with. And second of all, make sure it is well tied down before you head out to wherever you're going all

[00:02:43] Caroline Blazovsky: Like, I mean, from college kids piling stuff up on tops of cars, backs of trucks without any bungees, nothing tying it down. What do you recommend to tie things down with that you think are, and we always use bungee cords that kind of connect to the interior of the truck, but do you have a preference? Do you want to really [00:03:00] keep

[00:03:02] Eric Goranson: To be honest, really? I like ratchet straps because they are tight. The bungee cords, if you get wind under it can flax. And so in theory, it can flex just enough to let something slide out from underneath it. So I like a strong wide web. You know, Ratchet strap that you can get it tied down and tied down.

[00:03:40] Eric Goranson: I've had more stuff move around on a bungee in my history that I've gotten away from and went over to just a, like a two-inch ratchet. And then that way it's solid. It's rated for heavyweight. We use

[00:04:01] Caroline Blazovsky: So I think that's why everybody kind of turns to the bungee, but you're right. If you want it to be not moving, that's the way to

[00:04:09] Eric Goranson: Yeah. I actually took the bungees out of the truck and got rid of them. I just went, nah, I'm going to all ratchet strap and just made it so. Mandatory there wasn't another option.

[00:04:35] Eric Goranson: And so you gotta be really careful with that. And somebody died, even following those laws, you know, with those laws in place, somebody broke it and still, you know, someone died. So I just want to make sure that everybody is now that we're getting to spring projects are going on and we're going to see people more heading into the spring, cleaning, heading to the landfill, going to the home improvement store.

[00:05:20] Caroline Blazovsky: Absolutely. And, um, just for a FYI, those carbon monoxide detectors. They're imperative. You have to keep them, but they are set to go off at a really high level. So when death is eminent and you have to leave the house, but there's low levels of carbon monoxide that can be just as, um, affect or effect your health just as much at a very low level, for a longer frequency of time.

[00:05:55] Eric Goranson: Nice. Yeah, I've got a couple different ones around the house. I've got, uh, [00:06:00] a one on each floor as well as I have the nest protect, which also has the, um, carbon monoxide built into that as well.

[00:06:24] Caroline Blazovsky: good. So it's not just when everybody has to leave the house, it'll give you a little bit lower

[00:06:32] Eric Goranson: It's got a, a split spectrum, smoke sensor. It's got, you know, all the different stuff in there. And then it's, you know, really meant to, to chase down that, uh, carbon monoxide. It's just like smoke. It'll tell you that you have a smoke that's rising before it sets the alarm.

[00:06:58] Caroline Blazovsky: It's going to give you a countdown and then you just [00:07:00] walk around with it, towards your sources and you know, anywhere where you could pop potentially have carbon monoxide, a furnace gas, water heater stove, and it should read 0, 0, 0 parts per million. And if it doesn't, that means you have a slow leak. If you have.

[00:07:25] Eric Goranson: Yeah. And by the way, it was smoke detectors and all these other things.

[00:07:58] Eric Goranson: And, um, you know, [00:08:00] you don't want to have one that's. You know, one that, that fails or isn't working correctly just because it's too old and they're not that expensive to go out and do it. And you know, one little trick that I want to talk about too, is if you are, you know, maybe you're elderly or you're not able, or don't have the ability to get up and get it in a high area.

[00:08:39] Caroline Blazovsky: can't all five foot, two of me.

[00:08:43] Intro: need a handsome fireman.

[00:08:52] Eric Goranson: Yep. I see how this is going to go. This is going to go well, Caroline, we were here two weeks ago and checked. I could you [00:09:00] just check it again?

[00:09:21] Eric Goranson: That's a smart home blind system that is out that I think is going to be pretty trick for people's houses. A little bit more expensive, of course, but it's something that can really help. As far as controlling light and energy to save you some money, let's do that just as soon as around the house returns,

[00:10:09] Eric Goranson: welcome to around the house with Eric G and Caroline V your source for everything. Home improvement, tear, design, healthy homes, construction DIY. It's all here for you today. This is. Your grandparents' home improvement show, but you know, if your grandparents want to check us out, love

[00:10:29] Intro: Of course. Oh yeah.

[00:10:51] Eric Goranson: And it's a good way to control heat and everything else. When you know, whether it's cold outside or hot outside, it's a good way to energy

[00:11:06] Eric Goranson: Nice remote control. Nice. You know, I just got to, it's funny.

[00:11:30] Eric Goranson: That's really tight. You know

[00:11:49] Eric Goranson: So they've got the roller shades, but this is the honeycomb style. So this is more of a dropdown than the roll up, but it's still

[00:11:55] Eric Goranson: still folds into itself, folds up and down. And has that honeycomb? What the cool thing though, is that [00:12:00] they actually built these. So if you want to control. These things are I, I haven't seen a blind out there that is really any better than this in blackout.

[00:12:29] Caroline Blazovsky: why would you want to have blackout?

[00:12:49] Eric Goranson: Anyway, that's really cool. They are not inexpensive. Let's be honest. Um, this, this is a very well done, smart home shade. So it works with, you know, your Amazon Alexa is your apple home [00:13:00] kit, Google assistance. Of course, the Caseta by Lu Tron widen controls. And so you can work with it with a lot of stuff. I have the roller shade in my house.

[00:13:36] Eric Goranson: Uh, Kia has got them and things like that, but again, you get what you pay for

[00:13:45] Eric Goranson: durability. Yeah. Even at Akia, if you were to go in there and get something where they have, you know, okay, this is your size, even a damn, it's still 160, 180 bucks for that same size.

[00:14:10] Caroline Blazovsky: my whole house is lit up like that. So, you know, you just sit there and you just can drop any shade that you want. If you want your slider to open, you can do that.

[00:14:29] Eric Goranson: What I like about it is in a TV room or your living room, family room, you can go TV and hit the TV button. It'll dim the lights down, or drop the blinds down.

[00:14:57] Eric Goranson: No matter what brand you go with [00:15:00] a hundred percent, but, and smart control can really save you money as well. Because if you set up the smarter ones out there, you can make it. So, okay. Four o'clock in the afternoon or three o'clock in the afternoon. When the heat's coming in on that side, you can shut those things down and really let that afternoon, summer heat not combusted in through those windows.

[00:15:25] Intro: shades,

[00:15:49] Eric Goranson: You know, I do not like I rarely buy things from people that knock on my doorstep and are trying to pitch to me, windows pest control, [00:16:00] whatever they are, you know, paving, paint. You know, all those things and, you know, I'll get on my soapbox for a second, even more so when I have a no soliciting sign out front, and I think it's really good to find a manufacturer that has a warranty, I don't like small window companies.

[00:16:43] Eric Goranson: They were all smaller local companies. Well guess what? That lifetime warranty is worth nothing. If the company's closed. Exactly.

[00:17:02] Eric Goranson: some small company.

[00:17:21] Eric Goranson: You know, I've in the Pacific Northwest where I'm looking at it or the west coast mill guard. It's a huge company. Of course, we'll talk to them here coming up. But east coast they have, they're a parent company as well. It's a similar window. So it's something to look at, but really make sure when you're out shopping for windows, if you're going to replace just a few of them, make sure that they're going to match the look of your house inside.

[00:17:45] Caroline Blazovsky: outside. That's key. You have to go out and look at what this is going to look like people and how it matters. Sliders are like that doors. I mean, it's funny. Cause I ended up picking a slider because of the way it looked outside, like inside, it was sort of [00:18:00] irrelevant, right. It was going to kind of be one or the other, but the way it looked outside with.

[00:18:24] Eric Goranson: They would look sharp that would look at

[00:18:34] Intro: it's it looks awesome. Yeah. Just to look super

[00:18:43] Intro: returns.

[00:18:59] Eric Goranson: you're [00:19:00] listening to around the house with Eric, Jean Caroline, B I'm Z sky. And I'm going to show you how to shred it out while you're building

[00:19:13] Eric Goranson: welcome to around the house with Eric G and Caroline B. This is where we talk home improvement, interior design, construction, and healthy homes every single week. Thanks for joining us. Caroline's out on assignment today, but I have got a special guest in the studio, Eric Ashcraft from Milgard windows and doors, and then full disclosure.

[00:19:44] Erik Ashcraft: you

[00:19:53] Eric Goranson: And I know this goes across the country, but, uh, let's talk about Milgard for a little bit. And you guys have gotten [00:20:00] bought recently as well. And that's exciting news. It

[00:20:21] Erik Ashcraft: Um, so now we're, we're back to being a privately held company, but it's definitely exciting for, uh, uh, opportunity for

[00:20:43] Eric Goranson: But, uh, that's the exciting thing with some of you guys getting away from that. Uh, it seems that you can really dive in and make the products even so much better. And your, your ability for growth.

[00:21:04] Erik Ashcraft: Um, but yeah, it's definitely nice to be being. Owned by, like you said, a window and door company. Um, there's a lot, a lot of synergies between the two company. We're very similar companies as far as how we're structured and the products that we sell. So it's definitely exciting

[00:21:24] Eric Goranson: And let's, let's dive into some window one-on-one for people out there because. You know, a lot of people know you for the vinyl, windows and stuff out there, but you guys do so much more out there even getting into some, uh, aluminum metal stuff that might be different for somebody.

[00:21:47] Erik Ashcraft: Um, vinyl's definitely our core product. We've got several really nice product lines within that material type, um, that are built here in, in the, uh, Tacoma region, but also in, in each of our other, um, four manufacturing facilities throughout the [00:22:00] Western us. Um, and then we also produce the fiberglass windows, uh, here in Tacoma and, um, as well as in Simi valley, California.

[00:22:28] Eric Goranson: You know, it's funny though, the aluminum windows have been frowned upon in the industry as the vinyl sales people went knocking on doors for years and years out there.

[00:22:54] Eric Goranson: Yeah, we have

[00:23:14] Erik Ashcraft: So it, it makes it, uh, definitely more energy efficient than your standard aluminum window that doesn't have that break. It's still going to have some performance limitations. It's not going to perform the same as a, as a vinyl window can or has the potential to nor will it perform like a, like a fiberglass window, but for a customer that's looking for that true aluminum look that that thermal break product is available.

[00:23:56] Eric Goranson: Yeah, absolutely.

[00:24:16] Erik Ashcraft: So that black finish is powder-coated onto that on a fiberglass. It makes for a very durable finish. And then on the vinyl side of things, we have our, our V3 hundred product, which is our, um, uh, more of a contemporary look for a vinyl window. And, uh, last year we just launched our, uh, Uh, black cap stock. So rather than being that black finish being painted on or done as a laminate, it's actually extruded with the vinyl.

[00:24:54] Eric Goranson: Yeah, that, that, that color scheme is hot out there. And I'll be the first to admit it since [00:25:00] I was the one that painted my house black last year.

[00:25:04] Erik Ashcraft: yeah, it's interesting. We, you know, we, we looked at it as a trend, you know, five, six years ago, but it's one of those trends. It's, it's not really a trend anymore, cause it's not going on. It's hanging out people, people really like it.

[00:25:25] Eric Goranson: Well, that's interesting a contemporary style house, so I can pull that off. You know, it's, it's very much a, if you're on the west coast of Northwest contemporary style house, so I can get away with some bold colors like that, but it does make an interesting cause. Like I couldn't go down and just put white vinyl windows in it I'd need to do something to make that look correct.

[00:25:54] Erik Ashcraft: people are, are, um, can be a little skeptical in the black color if they're, if it's not really their [00:26:00] cup of tea, at least initially, but I think people are generally very, very surprised and impressed with how elegant a black window can look in a house.

[00:26:12] Eric Goranson: Yeah, it just kind of disappears instead of being that, uh, that bright, you know, highlight around the outside with it, which was great. Exactly. You

[00:26:21] Eric Goranson: for the window. No question, you know, I've loved you working with you guys over the years because I love doing business with window companies that have a long legacy.

[00:26:49] Eric Goranson: That's got their salespeople there and they're doing their thing, but I think finding a company. That knows the area you're in, you know, knows the, you know, like you guys are growing across the [00:27:00] country now, but you guys really developed your system for those harsh conditions up here in the Pacific Northwest, where water's hitting it and wind and snow and all that stuff, they take a beating.

[00:27:27] Erik Ashcraft: Yeah. We, uh, our engineering team has done a great job over the last 50 plus years of really working to, to innovate and develop a product that we are going to be happy with, that our customers are going to be happy with and that we're going to be able to stand behind.

[00:28:01] Eric Goranson: Excellent. So if you're a homeowner listened to the show out there right now, and you're looking at your windows and it's, you're coming out of winter time and coming into spring and you're like, okay, I know I've lost a lot of energy out of these old windows that I have.

[00:28:30] Eric Goranson: Sure.

[00:28:55] Erik Ashcraft: Um, like I said, you can be very overwhelmed by all of the different options and, [00:29:00] and, you know, colors and grid options and, and energy ratings and material types, et cetera. So if you, as a homeowner, you have a clear understanding of what you're looking to do with your project that will help narrow down.

[00:29:34] Erik Ashcraft: So that may cut out aluminum from. From your list of options to consider, and you want to consider, you know, a vinyl or fiberglass product, um, at that point, you know, consider what your goals are on the energy side of things. If you just want your house to be, you know, comfortable all year round, maybe you're looking to hit, you know, energy star performance numbers, um, and [00:30:00] we have different products for that different packages for that.

[00:30:25] Erik Ashcraft: So you really need to just overall consider what your goals are. If you're just trying to refresh your house. You're looking at, you know, you're going to be looking more at probably some more color options, some more grid options to just try to change the look overall design, look of your house.

[00:31:01] Eric Goranson: Do you guys have anything like that with, uh, with installers out there?

[00:31:26] Erik Ashcraft: Um, We have, we have a list of certified dealers on our site. You can go on there and put in a put in your zip code and it will give you a list of customers that we are confident in, that we know are going to give the homeowner the best experience possible to make it as easy as possible for what can be a very

[00:31:44] Eric Goranson: The older the project, sometimes the more difficult you've got with, uh, you know, in, in the, on the west coast, we'll see homes are, and I'm going to call homes that are old as is 1920s here, where. You know, we get out into Pennsylvania and stuff out there where we've got a lot of listeners as well on the [00:32:00] radio.

[00:32:15] Eric Goranson: Right. Getting things done. Right. So you've got a really good window installation, the windows going to operate, right. And then it'll be sealed up to the weather and all that stuff outside that you don't want inside

[00:32:35] Eric Goranson: So what are you seeing in window technology out there? I mean, probably, you know, if someone hasn't looked at windows. 20, you know, 20 years out there and they were experienced back then they had kind of Lowy glass argon and it was vinyl. And as we got, I know it would get into fiberglass. Now you've got all these other different products out there.

[00:33:02] Erik Ashcraft: Sure. Um, so there's definitely been innovation on the, on the Lowy coding side of things. Um, you know, initially we had single coat Lowy that would be. No surface to going from the exterior to the interior surface, to within that, that insulated glass unit.

[00:33:38] Erik Ashcraft: Ever increasing energy performance requirements, um, seeing innovations in space or technology. Um, so the, you know, the spacer piece that goes between the two pieces of glass that creates an insulated glass unit, uh, we we're using stainless steel on that, or we're using foam, um, to help just help improve that installation even [00:34:00] further, um, on the windows side of things, uh, Itself has not changed a whole bunch.

[00:34:29] Erik Ashcraft: Uh, it's a very durable product. Um, Is incredibly strong. It's not going to, you're not going to experience any, um, you know, warping, twisting things like that. Like you would with a, uh, a wood window potentially. Um, and you can do very large sizes with it. So that's a product. Potentially can replace your aluminum windows because you can go so much bigger with it and do a narrow frame and, [00:35:00] and it's gonna hold up like an aluminum window does we're also seeing, uh, more composite type windows come out, uh, that are, uh, not necessarily fly, not necessarily fiberglass, but kind of a mix of, uh, of material.

[00:35:25] Eric Goranson: Yeah. I first ran into fiberglass because I was doing a window in, on a project in Tacoma and it was, it was big enough that we were concerned that the vinyl was going to move around in the wind exposure that we had with that project.

[00:35:51] Erik Ashcraft: Yes, it is. It's yeah, it's, it's a great product. Um, we've been very happy with it and, you know, continuing to innovate and focus on [00:36:00] that product line to, to develop more, more solutions for our kids.

[00:36:26] Eric Goranson: Yes, it can.

[00:36:48] Erik Ashcraft: On our final product, um, before you step up to that, that fiberglass line. So yeah, there definitely is a step up to go to fiberglass. And it's one of those things where you, you know, you get [00:37:00] what you pay for. Um, you're getting a, a very durable product, um, some nice paint options or, or powder-coat options that that's gonna hold up for a very, very long.

[00:37:32] Eric Goranson: When people are looking at patio doors, what should they be?

[00:37:53] Erik Ashcraft: Uh, so if your goal is that, then you're probably going to want to look at as big of an opening as you, as you can get [00:38:00] with the door size, um, and as much glass as you can get. So you're going to be looking at. Probably eight foot tall panels. And as wide as you can get, you know, 16 feet, um, or we've got a product called X five 50, that is a, uh, um, big moving glass wall.

[00:38:39] Erik Ashcraft: So at all, you know, tuck away into the wall and open up that huge space, obviously that is. High-end or top end of the budget situation. So that's always a consideration. Um, but like I said, we do have options for, you know, every step of the way from, from mild to

[00:39:06] Eric Goranson: I've used the kind of the other guys out there before you guys had that out there, but. It is amazing. Now there is a ton of structure you have to deal with before you put one of those in, but oh my gosh, you can create that outdoor living space and make it seamless from inside to outside if you want it to be.

[00:39:25] Erik Ashcraft: unreal. Um, it can, it can absolutely change a room change of house, um, to put a door like that in and it, yes, it takes a lot of engineering there. They're big, heavy doors and you want them to roll absolutely perfectly. Um, so there does, there is a lot of work required for that. Um, but the, the payback for it is just, it's amazing that they look

[00:39:49] Eric Goranson: Yeah. And, and when you're having that outdoor party or event like that over at your place, and you can open that up and it's, it's basically like taking the backside of your living space and removing. [00:40:00] And, and, and, and opening it up. And now you just have this big, wide clear entry outside. And if you haven't seen those before, out there in our audience, it is something that is just a game changer on taking the indoors and, and dragging it right back outside.

[00:40:16] Erik Ashcraft: absolutely. It just, all it does increase your limits.

[00:40:36] Eric Goranson: That's true. Absolutely.

[00:40:39] Eric Goranson: a good one. When did you guys come out with that? Was that something over the last few years? Because quite frankly, I missed it. It's just in the

[00:40:49] Eric Goranson: Nice.

[00:40:51] Erik Ashcraft: Yeah, it's been good. People have been, been looking for it for a long time. It's something we spent a great deal of time of working on, and I'm really happy with the, with the results. [00:41:00]

[00:41:11] Eric Goranson: Correct.

[00:41:30] Erik Ashcraft: Um, so we do see people doing that a lot, particularly with doors we'll do, you know, one type of windows and then a different, uh, you know, a fiberglass door or, you know, one of these 50

[00:41:50] Eric Goranson: Cool. Well, Eric, is there anything else we didn't touch on today, man? This is great. You guys have got some new stuff that, uh, that's exciting. Um,

[00:42:13] Erik Ashcraft: It can be very overwhelming and we want to be there to, to help them through the process. So, um, homeowners should feel comfortable reaching out to any of our customers. Um, it can even get millibar to call and ask the questions that you, any questions that you have, and we'll, we'll do our best to get those answered and help you through your process.