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Choosing New Windows for Your Home

A guide to the maze of decisions that you'll be making

By John Swanson

Most of us look through windows, not at them. As a result, the number of decisions which need to be made when the time comes to buy new ones for a major remodeling project or for a new home can be a surprise. The style of the window may be dictated by your type of home or personal preference, but many other issues also have to be considered. First of all, what material will the windows be made of?

Framing Materials
Windows today are constructed of wood, vinyl, aluminum, fiberglass, and other materials. Wood windows are most commonly used, but vinyl window sales have grown dramatically in the past 10 years. Both materials offer good insulating values, and offer more-than-adequate structural performance for most residential applications.

Wood continues to be preferred by many for its natural appeal, warmth, and good looks. Vinyl offers the advantage of low maintenance. Unlike wood, vinyl does not need to be painted or stained, a particularly important factor on the outside of your home.

Combining wood on the interior with a vinyl or aluminum exterior cladding offers the benefits of a low-maintenance exterior with the look and feel of wood on the interior. Although these types of windows tend to be the most expensive, they are very popular because of their practical features. Some vinyl windows are also available with a wood-grain finish or real wood laminated to the interior surfaces.

Aluminum has become less popular for residential windows because of its lack of thermal insulating properties. Aluminum windows continue to be used in some milder regions of the country, as well as in commercial applications requiring higher strength.

Another material emerging on the market is fiberglass. This new window material is touted as combining the higher strength and stability of aluminum with the insulating properties of wood and vinyl. Like vinyl products, fiberglass windows are sometimes laminated with a wood veneer on the interior. Fiberglass is also being used as an exterior cladding on some wood window models.

Energy Efficiency
Most residential windows today incorporate what the industry calls insulating glass. This is simply two pieces of glass with a sealed airspace between them. Combined with a wood or vinyl frame, this creates a window that far outperforms most of what was installed before the energy crisis of the '70s. For even greater insulation, most window manufacturers offer such high performance options as low-emissivity glass (shortened to low-E-think energy efficiency), which is a very thin coating put on the glass that reflects heat while maintaining the visibility of clear glass.

In fact, low-E glasses are available today, and they are geared for both hot and cold climates. Depending on whether your heating or air conditioning bills are higher, you may want to look at a low-E product specifically designed to meet your needs. Whichever type of low-E glass you choose, argon gas is often offered as part of the same high-performance package. This heavy, inert gas is used in place of regular air between the two panes of glass to further enhance the window's insulating properties.

Another feature manufacturers are highlighting these days is warm-edge technology. This means the traditional aluminum spacer used in the insulating glass has been replaced with a spacer offering greater resistance to thermal conductance. The overall improvement to a window's thermal performance may not be great, but this feature is effective in reducing the condensation build-up on a window's perimeter, a problem in some colder climates.

Divided Lites
Before the 20th century, glass could not be produced very cost effectively in large sizes. To create larger windows, therefore, smaller panes of glass were mounted in muntin grids in the window sash. Today, the divided-lite look associated with older architectural styles remains popular in many regions of the country.

One of the least expensive ways to create this look is with a decorative muntin grid between the two pieces of glass in the insulating unit. Although the look is less than authentic, this method makes the window glass easy to clean. With the grid sealed between the glass, it requires no cleaning either.

Another popular option is the decorative wood grille attached to the interior side of the window. Providing the look of real wood, pop-in grilles can be removed quickly for easy glass cleaning. Unlike the grids sealed between the glass, these grilles on the outside do require cleaning and, possibly, refinishing.

For a more authentic look, some manufacturers also offer true and/or simulated divided lite windows. True divided lite windows-ones which actually use individual pieces of glass or small insulating units-can be expensive. This type of construction also has its limits in terms of the window's structural performance and resistance to air and water infiltration.

That is why more manufacturers are turning to simulated divided-lite looks which combine a grille attached to both the interior and exterior of the window. In some cases, these units also feature a grid between the two pieces of glass that make up the insulating unit to further enhance the illusion. Both of these options are definitely more authentic looking, but cleaning becomes more time consuming.

If ease of cleaning is important, you'll want to check to see if the windows tilt in or open to let the exterior glass be reached from the inside. This is particularly important for windows installed above the ground floor.

You might also want to try the hardware. Does it unlock or turn easily? This is not only a good way to check the hardware, but you can also get an overall feel of a window's quality by checking how it opens and closes.

So much to think about, but so much reward when you choose that right window and see the beautiful results in your home. And think of all those years of use you'll get out of the windows until they have to be replaced again.

John Swanson is editor and associate publisher of Window & Door magazine, a National Glass Association publication that serves the residential window and door market.

Source: Consumer Guide to Windows, Glass Magazine, December 2000.