Rehabbing a house with McCann – one room at a time for 20 years
Apr 01, 2024It’s like night and day. Our house is beautiful…like a new house. It was a magical transformation.
—Lourdes Ryczak, Chicago
Find out what a real homeowner like yourself says about working with McCann Window
Second in a Series: We don’t like to brag. Yes, we can talk all day about the benefits of choosing McCann to replace windows or doors. However, we would rather have real clients share real stories about what it’s like to work with us.
Choosing the Right Window
Lourdes Ryczek of Chicago first learned about McCann Windows 23 years ago in Evanston at the World’s Largest Garage Sale. “I was looking for a specific window manufacturer, which Kevin (McCann) happened to represent in his display,” she says. “We started talking to him about our needs as homeowners with our rehabbing projects. He explained how he could make what we want to happen.”
They met for a consultation and hired McCann to install several windows. Then when it came to replacing the dining room window, Kevin helped them choose a window that was not on their original list. “He helped us choose a more aesthetically pleasing window than I originally picked,” Lourdes says.
One Rehabbed Room A Year for 23 Years
The Ryczek family continued to hire McCann for about 20 years, rehabbing about one room each year. Throughout the years, they got the window installation process down to a science.
“My husband would have the window framed,” Lourdes says. “Then Kevin and his crew removed the old window, put in the new window, and then insulate it. My husband would finish the job on the inside, and McCann would clad the window on the outside.” (Editor’s Note: When you hire McCann to replace your windows, you don’t have to do ANY of the work. In Ryczek’s case, they chose to do some of the work because of the ongoing rehab in their home.)
Time for an Exterior Makeover
Four years ago, a hail storm damaged the siding on the Ryczek’s house. This was actually a good thing.
“We had been waiting 20 years to replace the most hideous green siding we’ve ever seen in our lives,” Lourdes says. “Because we had such a successful relationship with Kevin, we called him to give us an estimate for the siding. We also got other estimates, but we were confident that even if his price wasn’t the lowest, we knew we could trust him and he would provide us with a good job.”
Lourdes and her husband hired McCann for the siding project, and Kevin and his crew did not disappoint. For starters, Kevin offered a lot of useful information to help Lourdes and her husband choose the best siding. He recommended websites where they could look at ideas, and he suggested looking around the neighborhood for inspiration. His advice was: “When you’re driving somewhere, pay attention to what you like and don’t like on a house exterior. He said it was important to take pictures, so we could show him the ideas we wanted to use for our own home.”
Kevin also recommended molded millwork above the upstairs windows to give the home a bit of an architectural accent. “This was a piece that I never thought I would need or want,” Lourdes says. “But aesthetically, it added more color and more dimension to the job.”
The Work Begins
When it came time to begin the work, Kevin’s crew removed the green aluminum siding and took it away for recycling, which “was a big deal for me,” Lourdes says.
Underneath the aluminum siding, the house was covered in thick, wooden shingles, which also had to be removed. The final preparation step was to insulate the house before “the real artistry began.”
“Kevin’s workers came and didn’t just side at will. They set up scaffolding. They were as responsible as could be.” Lourdes says. “We had put on a deck before that process began, and they had to go around the deck. They were able to make that job look flawless like it had all been done together. That was good for us because it looks like it was well orchestrated.”
The end result? “It’s like night and day,” Lourdes says. “Our house is beautiful…It was like a new house. It was like a magical transformation.”
Thank you for the Referrals
At some point in every rehab, you’re sort of done with the work, Lourdes points out. “I don’t have any more windows to replace, no more siding to do. But we’ve had several friends we’ve recommended to McCann. We were really glad we could extend [what we knew] to friends who were taking on a big project. It’s a big expenditure and you don’t want the risk of not having any information about your contractor.”
What Did Lourdes Love about Working with McCann?
“Kevin is incredibly honest and decent and somebody that you can trust. He’s not trying to take advantage of us,” Lourdes says. “When we didn’t know something, Kevin would explain it to us. His team provides quality work and they do a good job.”
