Cold Wet Winter Inside? Are Your Old Windows Letting the Winter in?

Posted by: Ken Mariotti

Today.com

Tired of a drafty house?

Tired of taping gaps around your windows?

Tired of winter already when it’s only January?

Can’t see out your windows?

Condensation dripping down your windows?

Tired of winter already when it’s only January?

The weather outside shouldn’t appear on the inside. If you’re constantly chilly the culprit may be your old windows. If your windows are letting the winter in - it may be time to replace your old windows. Inefficient windows leak cold air and moisture.

There are many ways to temporarily fix the problems, but the permanent solution to drafts and cold wet windows is to replace your old and leaky windows with new energy-efficient products.

Drafty windows or cold windows are chief among the reasons to replace windows. When you sit next to your window in winter it’s colder than the rest of the house and the HVAC system works overtime. Simply put, your old windows probably provide little to no insulating value.

Andersen 400 Series

Double-paned glazing with insulating argon gas eliminates uncomfortable, expensive drafts. Todays technology also includes warm-edge spacers and new weather stripping materials to further insulate. Understanding the SHGC (solar heat gain co-efficient) of the glass options, allows you to further control how much heat enters and leaves your home during the winter. For example, in our northern climate you can choose a high SHGC glazing, which means the window will reflect heat back into the home, collecting more solar heat, for your south facing windows.

Condensation or frost build up can naturally be worse in the winter when the outside temperature is below the dew point of the indoor air. Water or frost appears when warm moist air comes in contact with colder dry air.  Older single pane windows provide no insulation allowing condensation to form on the cold surface creating water droplets or ice on the glass. Even early double-pane windows with aluminum spacers can experience condensation. If this describes your windows, like the drafty or cold windows above, upgrading your windows to today’s technologies will make a significant difference.

Today’s windows are engineered differently. Frankly, the most important part of the window to resist condensation is that spacer that keeps the panes of glass apart and seals in the gas. Today’s spacers are made of less conductive stainless steel, U-shaped tin steel, and foam polymers. Low-E and glass filled glass panes reduce temperature transfer between the inside and outside. With improved window frame technologies as well, new windows are sure to significantly improve if not eliminate condensation woes.

The good news is that you don’t have to suffer through another winter because winter is a great time to replace you windows. Come to our showroom to see replacement windows by Andersen, Marvin, Pella and more.

Want that model home feel? Focus on the detail.

Posted by: Ken Mariotti

Earlier this year our blog titled “Want that model home feel? Aim high”, suggested that the very act of creating taller windows and doors in your home increases the wow factor found in model homes. The desire to create that model home feel in your own home is a sentiment many homeowners express. Another design secret is the importance of detail.

Once a home’s style is determined, what makes that style come alive is attention to detail. It’s important that you take the time to select the windows, doors and other objects in your home beginning with three design principles.

Marvin Windows

Think about what you don’t see

Oftentimes design is about thing that you don’t add, rather than the material that you do create. In other words, good design requires you to consciously do less. I’m reminded of a couple that selected arched windows and then they proceeded to cover the beautiful design under lavish window coverings. It’s hard to design minimally because we feel that convention dictates otherwise. Try to resist the urge to over decorate. Remember less is more. Open space creates focal points.

Andersen A-Series

Refine to the finer details

Fine-tune a space, the elements, alignment or scale of your windows and doors with the size, shape and existing features in the room. Get the detail right by focusing on proportions and lines of sight. For example, window grills can be used discretely as design elements, rather than simply repeating the identical pattern throughout.

Borrow from what you see

Andersen Visualizer

Get inspired by studying spaces similar to the space in your home that you intend to remodel or build. Today, many manufacturers offer visual tools that allow you to be your own designer. Andersen provides a visualizer to select your trim and sash colors. Andersen Renewal products offers a visualizer that allows you to upload a photo of your home, replace your existing windows with Renewal windows to see the effect. Likewise, Simpson Door's visualizer lets you choose your home style and select from a variety of door styles and colors to create the look you want. It’s as though you have your own personal designer.

When you walk into a model home, you can be certain that professionals created that beautiful space. Becoming a professional at your craft means you’ve created a lot of bad work and made a lot of mistakes on your journey to becoming an expert. Build your skills by decorating less, creating focal points and experimenting.

If you want that model home feel focus on the details like a professional does. Visit our showroom to touch the products, see the colors in different lights and get advice from professionals who can help you avoid common mistakes.