GETTING YOUR WINDOW REPLACEMENT RIGHT Window Replacement Tips

SYNOPSIS How to Find the Top Replacement Window Company The Power of Low-E Glass in Windows How to Compare the Cost of Different Replacement Windows Will Energy Efficient Windows Lower Heating Costs? Consider Decreasing or Increasing Your Home’s Window Sizes Why You Should Consider Adding a New French Door to Your Home Choosing Between Sliding and Double Hung Windows Why You Should Consider Multi-Paned Windows with a Replacement

HOW TO FIND THE TOP REPLACEMENT WINDOW COMPANY  Window Availability  Talk with any company you are interested in about the type of windows they offer, as well as the different varieties that they have. They should have a good range of brands, as well as different window types and materials to choose from. Some will even offer custom window services to help you get special windows made up for your home. Make sure that you have all the important features and services available to you from a company that you hire, otherwise you’ll be left making compromises.  Window Quality  It doesn’t matter how many different windows the company has available for you if they are all low quality. When browsing through the library of windows that the replacement window company has available, make sure that there are quality brands present. Don’t go with poorly rated brands just because an affordable company offers them, instead look for a business that focuses on quality and value more than offering the lowest possible cost.  Warranties and Guarantees  Most of the leading window companies on the market today offer top level warranties and guarantees around their installation work. This is an important consideration and something that you should really look for when picking out a company to work with.

HOW TO FIND THE TOP REPLACEMENT WINDOW COMPANY  The best companies offer the most comprehensive warranties and the best guarantees. The guarantee should make you feel good about your business relationship and give you help if you run into problems in the future, even if it’s a year or two later.  Experience  Experience should be a deciding factor when you are trying to decide on the company that you hire to install new windows in your home. Properly installed windows will function smoothly and improve the value of your home. Improperly installed windows won’t function right and they can actually hurt the value of your home and lead to costly repairs that you have to deal with as well. Always look at the background of the company that you are considering to see the type of work they have experience doing, and only hire companies with years of experience installing the type of windows that you are interested in.  Availability  Finally, you have to think about the availability of the window company that you are going to work with. If you want to have windows put on your home in the next month or two, it’s important that the business is available to do the work for you. If they are not available then you will either have to wait for the work to be performed, or you will have to hire a different company to do the work for you instead.

THE POWER OF LOW-E GLASS IN WINDOWS  What is Low-E Glass?  Low-E glass is specialized glass that comes with a microscopically thin coating that effectively reflects infrared light. This protective coating is completely see-through and it doesn’t stop any of the rest of the sunlight from making it into your home. This means that the glass will help protect your house, and help maintain internal temperatures, but it will also allow your home to remain bright all throughout the day.  Benefits of Low-E Glass  Low-E glass does a few different things at once to help your home remain comfortable throughout the day and to help lower your cooling costs throughout the year. The protective coating on the glass keeps out warming infrared light from making it into your home by reflecting it back out. This minimizes heat generation within your home from sunlight. It also helps reflect internal temperatures back into your home, serving as an insulating barrier to keep cold air in, or warm air in depending on the time of year that it is.  Choosing Hard-Coat or Soft-Coat Low-E  There are two different types of Low-E coatings available today, soft-coat and hard-coat. Soft-coat low-E tends to be more expensive and difficult to manufacture, and it’s installed within the insulating part of the window itself. This coating offers the very best level of protection, but it’s more fragile. Hard-coat Low-E layers are easier to manufacture, far more durable, more affordable and slightly less effective. When deciding between these two options you need to look at prices very closely and decide using the cost difference and durability difference of the two options.

HOW TO COMPARE THE COST OF DIFFERENT REPLACEMENT WINDOWS  Think about All the Costs  Many homeowners make the mistake of looking at the face value of replacement windows when figuring out how much they are going to cost, but that’s not the real cost of a replacement window. It’s important to factor in every single element of a window replacement, including additional material costs, labor costs and time involved to complete the work. Some windows that seem affordable are actually more expensive than the mid-priced windows that seem expensive at first glance.  Consider Brand Reputation  Brand’s have reputations for a reason. Some windows are well- known for being high quality and offering a good value for the money, and others aren’t. It’s best to go with reputable windows whenever possible, but it’s important to think about reputation when looking at prices. Windows that are well known for being high quality and holding up over time, are worth spending a bit more money on. Low cost windows might not be such a great deal if they don’t

HOW TO COMPARE THE COST OF DIFFERENT REPLACEMENT WINDOWS  Consider Maintenance Requirements  Wooden windows are often more affordable than materials like aluminum or fiberglass, but they require more maintenance to keep in proper working order over time. Think about the maintenance requirements of windows when purchasing them and factor those costs into the costs of your windows as well. You might not want to perform maintenance regularly on your windows, which means that you’ll have to spend the extra cash for low-maintenance windows instead.  Think About the Warranty  Warranty is another important consideration when buying windows and considering the cost of them. A comprehensive warranty is worth added money on top of the price of a standard window. A good solid warranty guarantees that you’ll enjoy long-lasting performance from your new windows after they are installed. Without a long-term warranty there’s a better chance that the windows will fail prematurely and that you’ll be left paying the cost of repairs in the future.

WILL ENERGY EFFICIENT WINDOWS LOWER HEATING COSTS?  They Won’t Save You a Fortune  Low-E windows will keep hot rays from intense summer suns out of your home and minimize how much your home heats up during the day. Sure, excellent multi-pane windows infused with insulating gases will minimize how much heat is lost during cold months when you’re trying to heat your space, but in most homes windows only take up so much space. The rest of the space is occupied by walls, doors and other surfaces. Each of these surfaces come in contact with the outside air more than windows do, so excellent windows won’t save you much if you have poor wall insulation. They also won’t help keep out the heat that’s soaking through that flimsy front or rear door.  They Will Improve Interior Comfort  Low-E windows help keep hot sunlight from warming up the surfaces around your home and creating hot spots that make you feel uncomfortable. This helps create a more even feel throughout an air conditioned home. The same goes true for heavily insulated windows. They minimize drafts in cold or hot weather, so that you have a more even feeling interior that you can sit in comfortably.  They Will Save Your Furniture and Flooring  Another major benefit of high quality Low-E windows that you don’t hear much about from window specialists is their ability to keep harmful UV radiation out of your home. Your flooring won’t fade and wear as fast. Your furniture won’t fade and lose its color and your home will stay youthful for longer in general.

CONSIDER DECREASING OR INCREASING YOUR HOME’S WINDOW SIZES  If you’re looking for a change in one of the rooms of your home, there’s no better way to transform your space than by resizing one or more of your windows. If you want to create a darker space, or make more wall space for cabinets, shelves or other accessories, shrinking windows down can be a valid approach. Decreasing the size of your windows can also lower the cost of your replacements, making them much more affordable.  If you’re looking to open up a space and bring more sunlight into your home, increasing the size of your windows is a worthwhile approach to consider. Though it’s more costly, the reward of larger windows is a feeling of openness that many homeowners fall in love with.

WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER ADDING A NEW FRENCH DOOR TO YOUR HOME  Enhance Home Security  Upgrading to a high-quality French door made with a solid core can enhance your home’s security. The right door will be much more difficult to break down, and when installed with the proper hardware will hold up to invaders better than your old door could ever dream of doing. If you choose one of the high security French doors when upgrading you can rest- assured that your home will be safer and that you can count on the door to hold up when you want it to most.  Get a Custom Look  While there is a wide variety of different colors and styles of French doors, it’s also possible to go with a completely custom door for your home or business. If you’re going for a very specific style, you can accent your space nicely with just the right look to suit your tastes. Custom doors are made to order and they can be matched to most color schemes, even if they are very different compared to the stock options sold in most stores.  Increase Property Value  French doors are highly stylistic and attractive and add lovely curb appeal to your home. That’s one of the most important reasons to consider adding one to your property. By choosing as stylish French door that matches the design of your home, you can make it look better, help your property stand out and increase your overall property values as well. If you ever decide to resell your home that improved front door could help you sell the house faster, and could increase the perceived value of your space as well, which is an excellent bonus.

CHOOSING BETWEEN SLIDING AND DOUBLE HUNG WINDOWS  When to Use Sliding  Since sliding windows tend to be wider than they are tall, they are best for wide walls. If you have a very wide space that you want to open up with a window, or you want to add a window up above a door, a kitchen sink, or another compact space at the top or bottom of a room, a sliding window is the best option of the two. It can be operated comfortably even at height, and is adjustable enough to offer excellent ventilation.  When to Use Double Hung  Since double hung windows are set up in a vertical orientation, they are best used on narrow walls where you have more vertical space to cover than horizontal. They can be accessed comfortably, cleaned with ease and offer excellent ventilation, even when they are the only window in the room. Consider adding double hung windows to bedroom walls, bathrooms and any other space where you have a narrow wall that you want to open up with a window.

WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER MULTI-PANED WINDOWS WITH A REPLACEMENT  Why Additional Panes are Beneficial  Window panes themselves offer minimal protection, which is why a single pane window is known for being drafty and not really helping the comfort of your space all that much. Even doubling the thickness of your traditional window pane wouldn’t do much to help improve your home’s comfort, it’s the space between window panes that is so important. If you opt for dual pane windows, you’ll get windows that have two panes of glass with a sizable space in between them. This space creates an added layer of insulation, and it’s actually the air inside that’s doing most of the work. Adding on additional panes of glass creates more pockets of air, and offers even more insulation.  Insulating Gas Pockets are Particularly Helpful  While standard multi-pane windows are good for keeping cool or hot air out of your home because of the pockets of air, there are special windows that have insulating gases like argon in between the glass panes of the windows. These gases are even more effective for insulation purposes than standard air is, and you can improve your home’s insulation by investing in them.

WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER MULTI-PANED WINDOWS WITH A REPLACEMENT  Double Your Protection  Dual pane windows are good for improving a home’s insulation if you are used to single pane, but they aren’t the best solution that you can get today. Going with three or four panes can potentially double the overall insulation that you have available. Three panes will give you two air pockets instead of one, and four panes will give you three air pockets instead of two. Either way, you’re going to make your windows more effective, and reduce drafts significantly. Not only that, but you’ll minimize your utility costs with such an investment, and that’s one of the biggest benefits of all.  Examine the Options  If you are planning on getting replacement windows, talk with a specialist about the different options that you have available. Look at the advanced energy-efficient models that are available today, and talk about the different values that the windows have to help you figure out which are worth the added cost and which are not. You don’t need triple or quad pane windows to save on energy costs, but they are a pretty darned good investment that can really improve the quality of your home as well.

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