While spending a rain drenched week in the Lake District last week, I couldn’t help sneeking the odd nervous glance at this site to see what was happening. It could have all gone Pete Tong, but I think the guys did me proud.
Thanks Dean Hunt, Barry Dunlop and Renegade PR Guy for keeping things ticking along. I had specifically requested that Dean should net be involved with the website in my absence – mainly because he’s far funnier and creative than I am. Who else would have thought of putting a popcorn-eating hamster balancing upside down on a piano, onto a website about conservatories and double glazing??
Renegade PR Guy’s post did get me thinking about whether uPVC windows and doors were a suitable choice for the Lake District – England’s largest National Park. I’m confident that Chris Wood from English Heritage will have his views on the subject, but I couldn’t help snapping away at some of the buildings in the area.
And, I came up with 10 reasons why I feel wood windows and doors are not always the best option, and uPVC should be considered a valid alternative, assuming they are of a good quality and sympathetically designed.
Reason 1
Reason 2
Reason 3
Reason 4
Reason 5
Reason 6
Reason 7
Reason 8
Reason 9
Reason 10
With all the negative publicity uPVC seems to have been getting recently, I think we need to remember uPVC is still by far the most popular option for the majority of homeowners in the UK. It is a cost effective and long lasting alternative to timber, without the need for continuous maintenance.
And in the Lake District, an area of outstanding beauty, I witnessed many examples of well designed uPVC windows and doors having been specified to some of the most beautiful buildings.
Tags: barry dunlop, dean hunt, Double Glazing, english heritage, Timber Windows, uPVC Doors, uPVC Windows
this is brilliant, you went to the lake district and took photos of windows and doors ?? was this a busmans holiday ?
i do agree with you though Timber requires a maintance program if its going to last. ( i was a wood machinest for 12 years before i hit the world of uPVC ) I like the pub door what was it like from the inside ???
Yes, Mel. I went to the Lake District and took pictures of windows and doors. Nothing wrong with that, is there?
Good to have you back Matthew
I was thinking that with your post and the Renegade PR guys post you really make a better case than most of the ‘official” PVC-U Window Industry bodies for the huge benefits of PVC-U that is of a good quality and sympathetically designed
We all know that softwood windows need a lot of maintenance, and in many instances UPVC is a great alternative. However, I would like to see what you would choose to replace the windows in reason 4 and reason 9, and still maintain the original character of the building.
As for taking pictures of windows and doors while you’re on holiday, I’m afraid, I’m just as bad. My wife won’t drive into London with me any more, because I insist on pointing out our products as we drive along.
Hi John
uPVC Vertical Sliding Sash Windows for 4 and 9.
My wife did get a bit irritated with me, especially when I kept stopping the car and jumping out to take the pics!
RCG
I agree that a sliding sash in UPVC, in the right place, can be very effective, but I’ve yet to see a successful radius head window. In most cases, the shaped part is covered by a panel.
So you’ve taken pictures of crappy old wood windows, Matthew. That’s not comparing like-with-like. Come and take some pictures of mine. A properly designed double-glazed window made of the right wood and finished with a modern micro-porous paint is the equal of pvc in terms of long-term durability, but its stiffness permits the slender frames that pvc just can’t achieve. Wood is also truly ‘green’, as it actually grows on trees and can be grown as a crop, supporting rural industry.
Hi Keith
The point I’m trying to make is that in the media uPVC is portrayed as being sub-standard – a ‘plague of plastic windows’ etc. I’m merely pointing out that wood windows don’t always look great, and they do decay if not maintained. I should know, I was filling and painting windows at my own property this weekend.
As you know, I was impressed with your wood window system. There are clearly different qualities of timber windows on the market, and your system is one of the best. My point is that the uPVC window industry shouldn’t always be considered as the poor neighbour to timber, when there are clearly examples that show they’re not.
I could have taken pictures of poor quality uPVC windows also, but that wasn’t the point I was making.
RCG
uPVC windows are an environmental nightmare that offer short term solutions. With modern paint systems that offer minimal maintenace programs timber windows will way out live uPVC.
By the time you have repainted your modern timber windows once you will be replacing all your uPVC.
Timber windows offer the security and thermal performance of uPVC whilst having flexibility in design.
The pub door and windows would look atrocious in uPVC.
Can you legally put uPVC into the lake district?
JB
Dear Sir/Madame,
I am a final year student, studying Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Aston University of Birmingham. I am currently writing a report on why PVCu windows should be used instead of timber ones. Also in the report I am explaining how PVCu windows lead to sustainable development. I was wondering if I could please use some of the pictures you have on here as a proof of the above points.
Thank you very much,
Odysseas Venieris
Final Year BEng in EEE
The above photos prove nothing. We all know that wood windows need painting. However quality wooden windows only need painting at the same frequency as upvc windows need to be torn out and replaced as we are already seeing the first generation of these windows coming to the end of their life. Wooden window frames on the other hand can last for many years if properly maintained.
The environmental record is bad too especially compared with wooden framed double glazing. The production of upvc windows produces a lot of toxic emissions which are bad for the environment. Also more wooden windows being used would means more trees being planted and therefore more Co2 taken out of the atmosphere during the growing process. Even A single glazed window can be as effect as a double glazed one either by adding secondary double glazing or even a thick curtain as was recently in the news.
Also the majority of upvc window frames are badly designed and do not fit with the original design of the buildings they have been installed in. Most of the ones I have seen look lopsided because the opening part of the window is much thicker than the rest of the frame. They look nothing like the original windows would have done.
Finally they do not have the strength that wood has when it comes to surviving knocks and bumps.
UPVC windows have rightly been described as a plague. The companies that produce them seem to be barely legal and use pushy marketing as opposed to local craftsmen. The product is short lived, tacky looking and bad for the environment.