How to choose a Window

Choosing the Right Window Style for Your Home

The positioning of windows will be informed and influenced by room layouts and the shape of the house itself but the shape and type of the windows themselves should be taken into serious consideration when deciding on the exterior and interior finishes.

For instance, a contemporary, single-story house is improved by similarly narrow, vertical windows but old cottages look odd with large glazed openings forced into thick stone walls.

Window Styles for Traditional Homes

If you’re building in a period style or renovating an older home, choosing appropriate materials and styles is a must — in most cases, this will mean timber casements or sashes. Modern window companies can replicate older styles where possible but unfortunately, you cannot effectively replicate wood grain with PVCu, although there are a few manufacturers might try.

Small casement windows are associated with cottages and there are some stunning offerings out there, but a trickier style to replicate with double glazing is a Georgian and early Victorian era multi-pan sliding sash as achieving glazing bars which are as elegant with modern methods is tough.

Window Styles for Contemporary Homes

Since 3500BC glass has been used to provide light, warmth and comfort to enhance peoples lives. Since then, the glass used in buildings has evolved and changed remarkably. In New Zealand, windows have become larger and generally contain low-e double glazing.

You could consider the more modern the house or build-style, the bigger and cleaner the glazing will be. Timber will soften a rendered exterior of a modern home, while aluminium windows create a perfect minimalist style.

Sash Windows

Sash windows are essential when renovating or replicating Georgian and Victorian housing, still widely used on traditional-style new builds. Sizes are typically not standard but windows need to be in proport­ion to the house, so are often bespoke.

Fixed Windows

Fixed windows are just that, fixed, so they don’t open or provide ventilation. However, they do maximise opportunities for natural light throughout a home. They also can: 

• provides light in wasted spaces
• allow for interesting designs

Bay Windows

A bay window projects outward from the face of a building, forming a recess within a room. A Bay window can span more than one storey, as seen in many Victorian and Edwardian homes. There are different types of styles of bay windows including:

• Canted. This means the window is formed of straight front and angled sides.
• Bow. Where the window structure is architecturally curved.
• Oriel. Starting above ground level, an oriel window is supported by corbels or brackets as it jetties out from the main walls of a building.

Choosing the Best Material for Your Style of Window

Plastic Windows (UPVC)

PVCu windows long reigned supreme as the dominant material for replacement windows and for good reason. A quick and easy option, plastic windows are low-maintenance and cheap.

Cons:

• Can look cheap
• Can reduce the value of period homes
• Not easy to repair
• Doors can be weak

Timber Windows (Wooden)

Timber’s main selling point is the feel and authenticity it offers to period-style homes: there is no real replacement for the warmth of traditional timber windows.

Cons:

• requires repainting every few years

Aluminium Windows

Cons:

• It has a low R-value because it conducts (loses) heat and cold easily. Therefore, aluminium is the least energy-efficient of all the materials. Some manufacturers offer frames with built-in thermal breaks between the interior and exterior surfaces to improve efficiency.
• Aluminium can be cold to the touch and is often prone to condensation.
• Can be susceptible to corrosion if exposed to saltwater and salt air. This can lead to problems with operation and overall performance.

Thermally Broken Aluminium Windows 

Steel/Fibreglass/Alloy Windows

Cons:

• Not as thermally efficient as wood
• Can be expensive

Choosing the Right Glazing for the Style of Window