Windows in Texas fail from sun, from impact, and from water driven sideways, and those three do not look the same on the glass. West and south walls take a long bake that ages seals and frames. Hail can crack a pane or stress a dual-pane unit so the seal fails later and the glass fogs. On the coast, wind-driven rain finds a bad sill, a clogged weep, or flashing that was never tied into the wall. Name which force hit your opening.
Fog between panes means the seal is done, even if the glass is still in one piece. A crack that runs from a chip is impact or stress, not a film you can clean. Water on the stool after a storm may be a flashing leak, a failed frame joint, or simply indoor air condensing on cold glass during a short freeze. Wipe a test area and watch whether the water returns from outside or from the room.
Older brick and wood openings need a careful look at the brickmold, the sill, and the gap behind the trim before anyone talks about a new unit. A replacement that skips the sill pan and the flashing repeats the leak in a nicer frame. Stucco and stone openings crack at the joint if the new unit is forced in without room to move. Talk about the rough opening, not only the glass size you see.
Hail-pitted screens and cracked lights are easy to spot. The quieter damage is a sash that no longer locks, a balance that failed, or a frame that took a limb in a brief ice storm. Coastal houses should ask how the unit handles wind-driven rain, without turning the conversation into a slogan. Inland houses should ask how the glass handles the west sun that runs for months. One product pitch does not cover both porches.
Count the openings that fog, leak, or will not lock, and note which walls face west or take the weather. Say whether you want a repair of the glass and hardware or a full unit set in a flashed opening. Have the address ready. A short, specific list beats a request to do every window because the house feels drafty. Call the number on this page.