Replacement Windows
in Ann Arbor, MI
New windows change how a house feels: drafts stop, street noise fades, and energy bills go down. Adkins & Sons has been replacing windows since 1979, with our own employee crews on every job and a 15-year labor warranty on the installation. Ann Arbor is in the area we serve.
Local Detail
Replacement Windows
in Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor takes its housing stock seriously: fifteen local historic districts, and a planning department with a published position on what a window is allowed to be. That suits us. We do not trim stock units to fit on installation day; every window is ordered to the measured opening, in vinyl, wood, or fiberglass, with grille patterns that can keep an older elevation looking like itself.
The lines we carry run from Pella and ProVia vinyl through Pella Lifestyle wood, which can be custom stained to match interior trim, to fiberglass that holds its shape through the freeze and thaw. Our own employees install all of it, the estimate is free and comes with the price in writing, and the 15-year labor warranty is ours, not a subcontractor's.
Choose a Style
Every Window Style,
Built to Your Opening
From double-hung to bay and bow windows, we install the style your home calls for, in vinyl, wood, or fiberglass, each backed by the same 15-year labor warranty.
Double-Hung
Two sashes that slide up and down in the same frame. Both tilt inward, so you can wash the outside of a second-floor window standing in your own hallway. The most common window on Michigan homes, and the safest bet when you want the house to look the way it always has.
Casement
Hinged at the side and cranked open like a door. Because the whole sash swings clear, you get the full opening for air, and the seal presses tighter the harder the wind blows. Good over a kitchen sink or anywhere reaching a sash is awkward.
Awning
Hinged at the top so the bottom swings outward. The open sash acts as its own little roof, which means you can leave it cracked through a spring rain. Often set high on a wall or paired underneath a picture window.
Sliding
One sash glides sideways past the other. No crank, no lifting, and nothing sticks out into the room or the yard. A practical choice for wide openings and for basements, hallways, and rooms where furniture sits against the wall.
Picture
Fixed glass that does not open. With no moving parts there is nothing to leak air, so a picture window is the most efficient shape we install, and the biggest view. Usually flanked by casements or double-hungs when you still want ventilation.
Bay & Bow
Several windows joined at an angle so the unit projects past the wall. It adds a shelf of usable space inside, pulls light in from three directions, and changes the front of the house more than any other single upgrade.
Our Work
Recent Work
in Ann Arbor
A few of the window jobs our crews have finished for Ann Arbor homeowners. Click any photo for a closer look.
Local Knowledge
Ann Arbor Historic
District Rules
Ann Arbor regulates exterior work more closely than most Michigan cities, and for windows the rules turn on two things: whether your address sits in a historic district, and how old the window is. Worth knowing before you pick a product.
Fifteen historic districts, and the first job is finding out
The city has fifteen local historic districts, ranging from a single property up to 344. If your address is outside all of them, none of the rules below apply to you. If it is inside one, they shape the whole project. You can check three ways: search your address on the City Assessor's property data site, turn on the Historic Districts layer on the city's Zoning Map, or look at the individual district maps the planning department publishes.
1945 is the line that decides everything
Inside a district, a structure built before 1945 is usually treated as contributing, and windows installed before 1945 on a contributing structure count as character-defining features. The city's position is that those windows stay and get repaired and refurbished. Only when one is deteriorated beyond repair can the owner apply to replace it, and then with closely-matching replicas. An approved application to the Historic District Commission is always required first.
Two approval routes, two very different price tags
A full Historic District Commission application runs $100 plus $25 per window on a single- or two-family house. The lighter staff-approval route costs $35 and applies to windows in non-contributing structures, and post-1944 windows on contributing structures can go through staff approval too. Both of the lighter routes still need an approved building permit. Which route you are on is decided by the age of the window and the status of the structure, not by who you hire.
Historic district approval comes first
The city is explicit that exterior work on a property in a historic district requires approval before the permit application, so the order of operations matters and getting it backwards costs weeks. A building permit is required for home improvements generally, whether you do the work yourself or hire it out, and permits are filed through the city's STREAM system. It is a fair question to ask anyone bidding your job: who is filing the historic district application, who is pulling the permit, and when.
Your Local Rep
Your Ann Arbor
Rep
DJ Brewer covers Ann Arbor and the rest of our western service area. Ask for DJ by name: DJ comes out for the free in-home estimate, measures the openings, walks you through the material options, and hands you the full price in writing before anything is ordered. If a question comes up mid-job, DJ is the person to call, and the phone rings in our Southgate office rather than a national call center.
Go Deeper
Replacement Windows in Ann Arbor,
Product by Product
Each of these is its own page, with the detail that only matters once you have picked a direction. All installed by our own employee crews.
- Energy-Efficient WindowsLow-E coatings, argon between the panes, and ENERGY STAR ratings explained.
- Pella WindowsThe line we install as a Pella Platinum Elite Certified Contractor, factory trained and audited.
- Vinyl WindowsColour through the extrusion, nothing to paint, the widest range of finishes we carry.
- Wood WindowsThe real woodgrain interior, custom stained to match the trim you already have.
What Sets Us Apart
Why Choose
Adkins & Sons
The crew that measures your openings is the crew that installs them, and the warranty comes from the same company that sold you the job. There is no handoff to a subcontractor and no second number to call.
Employee Installers
Factory-trained crews on our own payroll, never subcontracted for the week.
Measured Twice
Every window and door is built to the exact opening, so nothing is trimmed to fit on the day.
15-Year Labor Warranty
On the installation, on top of the manufacturer's coverage on the product itself.
Three Generations
Family-owned since 1979, and a lead installer is on every job to check the work.
Is It Time?
Built for Michigan,
Installed for Life
Michigan weather is hard on a window: hard freezes, humid summers, and the freeze-thaw cycle in between work on seals and frames year after year. Fogged glass, sticking sashes, and drafts you can feel from the couch all mean the same thing: the window has failed. Replacing it gives you a tighter home, quieter rooms, and lower energy bills.
47+
Years replacing Michigan windows
15
Year labor warranty on every install
10+
Certified installers on staff
Checkable Proof
Our
Credentials
Anyone can say trusted. These are the marks that other organizations put their own name behind, and every one of them can be checked without taking our word for it.
Pella Platinum Elite Certified Contractor: factory training and audited installation quality, certified directly by Pella.
BBB Accredited Business: our record and reviews are public on the Better Business Bureau's own site.
GuildQuality member: homeowner satisfaction surveyed independently after the job, published under our name.
Pella Certified
Employee Installers
We install Pella® windows as a Pella Platinum Elite Certified Contractor, a status earned through factory training and audited installation quality. Every crew is an Adkins & Sons employee: the people who measure your windows are the people who stand behind them.
View Our CertificationFactory-Trained Crews Certified Directly by Pella
Our Own Employees, Never Subcontractors
Our Process
From First Visit
to Final Walkthrough
Window replacement should be simple. Four steps, one point of contact, and a clean home when we leave.
01
Free In-Home Estimate
We come to your Ann Arbor home, measure, listen to what's bothering you about the current windows, and give you straight numbers.
02
Precise Ordering
Every opening is measured twice, and every window is ordered to the exact size of your opening, so installation day has no surprises.
03
Employee Installation
Our own factory-trained crew removes the old units, sets and seals the new ones, and protects your floors and landscaping while they work.
04
Walkthrough & Warranty
We operate every window with you, haul away the old ones, and register your 15-year labor warranty before we leave.
Warranty
Adkins & Sons
Warranty Guaranty
15
Years Warranty
Every installation is backed by our industry-leading 15-year labor warranty, on top of the manufacturer's coverage on the window itself. If the workmanship ever needs attention, one call and we make it right, at no cost to you.
180 Month
2
Years Warranty
Most window companies stand behind their installation for only a year or two. Once that coverage runs out, drafts, leaks, and seal failures become the homeowner's problem to fix.
24 Month
One Real Place
Visit Our
Southgate Showroom
Every window, door, and siding sample on our floor is one we actually install. Open and close the real thing, compare colors in person instead of from a chip, and talk to the family that has run this company since 1979. The phone rings at this address, not at a call center.
- Showroom
- 13789 Dix Toledo RdSouthgate, MI 48195
- Hours
- Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Phone
- 734 283 7120
Questions
Window Replacement
in Ann Arbor, Answered
Do you actually come out to Ann Arbor?
Yes. Ann Arbor is named in our service area alongside Downriver, and the in-home estimate is free wherever the house is. Call the office and we will get you on the schedule.
What if my house is in a historic district?
Then the city has a say before we do. Ann Arbor has fifteen local historic districts, and inside one the Historic District Commission reviews exterior work before you apply for the building permit. Windows put in before 1945 on a contributing structure are expected to be repaired rather than replaced, and replacing one takes an approved application. Check your address against the city's district maps first, then we can talk about what is actually on the table.
Can you match an older window instead of modernising it?
Often, yes. We order every window to the exact size of the opening rather than trimming a stock unit to fit, and the lines we carry cover a wide range of styles, grille patterns, and materials including wood. What we cannot do is promise a specific unit will satisfy a historic district review, because that is the Commission's call, not ours.
Can you replace windows in a Michigan winter?
Yes. We install year-round and work one opening at a time, so your home is never left open to the weather. Cold-weather installation is routine for a crew that has worked Michigan winters since 1979.
Which window brands do you install?
We are a Pella Platinum Elite Certified Contractor, and Pella windows make up most of what we install. We also install vinyl windows from ProVia. At your estimate we'll match the right product line and material to your home and budget.
Who actually does the installation?
Adkins & Sons employees, factory-trained installers on our own payroll. We don't hand your home to subcontractors, and a lead installer is on every job.
Can I see the windows before I buy?
Yes. Our 4,000 sq. ft. showroom in Southgate has full-size windows on display. It is a drive from Ann Arbor, and worth it if you would rather open and close one yourself than judge it from a brochure.
Do you offer financing?
Yes. Flexible financing options are available, and every project starts with a free in-home estimate so you know the full number before deciding anything.
Areas We Serve
We Serve All of
Southeast Michigan
One family company out of Southgate, working across Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, and Washtenaw counties since 1979. Find your city below for local details.
- Allen Park
- Ann Arbor
- Auburn Hills
- Berkley
- Beverly Hills
- Birmingham
- Bloomfield Hills
- Brownstown Township
- Canton
- Detroit
- Ecorse
- Farmington
- Farmington Hills
- Flat Rock
- Franklin
- Gibraltar
- Grosse Ile Township
- Grosse Pointe
- Lincoln Park
- Livonia
- Melvindale
- Northville
- Novi
- Oak Park
- Plymouth
- River Rouge
- Riverview
- Romulus
- Royal Oak
- South Lyon
- Southgate
- Sterling Heights
- Taylor
- Trenton
- Woodhaven
- Wyandotte