When planning your next home improvement project this season, why not focus on your doors and windows? These essential components contribute significantly to your home’s beauty, comfort, and energy efficiency. That’s why you need to make sure they’re always in tip-top shape—and if they’re not, invest in replacements. Why should I get new doors and windows? Your exterior doors and windows will sustain wear and tear over time due to aging and constant exposure to the elements. This results in both structural and aesthetic damage. Replacing your old, worn down doors and windows ensures that your home remains secure, beautiful, and energy efficient. How do I know it’s time to replace my doors and windows? If you notice serious cracks, gaps, rot, and other damage to your door and window frames, this is a big sign that it’s time to invest in replacements. Old, failing doors and windows can also lead to higher energy costs, so if you notice an increase on your monthly energy bill, your doors and windows might be the culprit. Having trouble operating your existing units is another sign that it’s time to replace them—doors and windows that don’t close or open properly can be both a safety and a security hazard. As with most home improvement projects, door and window replacement requires careful planning. This handy three-part blog shares some tips on how you can get the most of your investment.
Part I: Ensuring Your New Doors and Windows Match Your Home Style
When choosing replacement doors and windows, it pays to make sure they complement the other design elements of your home, particularly your home’s overall architectural style. Some doors and windows work better with a particular home style, while others blend well with any style. Here are some examples: Casement Windows and Hinged French Doors + Cabin or Cottage Style. If you want to enhance the rustic look of your Cabin or Cottage home, you should consider the simple and classic design of casement windows. A tip? Choose ones with a woodgrain finish to boost the woodland feel of these home styles. Casement windows are hinged on the sides and operate via crank or lever, allowing you to open them outward. You can pair these windows with hinged French doors in the same wood tones. Their timeless look makes them an instant focal point in any room, plus their wide opening allows for easy access in and out of the door. Picture Windows and Sliding Glass Doors + Contemporary-Modern Style. Picture windows come with slim frames and expansive glass, offering panoramic outdoor views and enhanced natural light in your living space. Sliding glass doors offer much of the same benefits. The seamless design of these doors and windows is an excellent match to contemporary-modern homes, which favor clean, simple lines and a minimalist aesthetic.
Part I: Ensuring Your New Doors and Windows Match Your Home Style
Bay and Bow Windows + Georgian Style. A variation of Colonial architecture, Georgian homes usually come with tall double hung windows. If you want to make a bigger impression, however, consider installing lovely bay or bow units too. These window styles have a graceful curved shape, allowing access to natural light from different directions. Bay and bow windows are also big enough to provide extended outdoor views. What further sets them apart is their deep sill area, which can serve as a space for additional seating or storage. Double Hung Windows + Most Home Styles. Double hung windows feature a clean and simple design, allowing for greater versatility. Double hung units look good in traditional Colonial, Farmhouse, Victorian, as well as Contemporary-Modern homes. In fact, you can put double hung windows in any room and they will rarely look out of place. Additionally, double hung windows offer great functionality—they operate smoothly and provide superior natural ventilation via their operable sashes.
Looking to your home’s architectural style for guidance when choosing replacement doors and windows helps you make the most out of your project. We also recommend creating a stronger indoor-outdoor connection via your new window units . We’ll discuss this in Part 2 of our ebook.
Part 2: Creating a Better Indoor-Outdoor Connection via New Doors and Windows
Did you know that upgrading your old doors and windows can make your home feel more welcoming and open? You can use them to establish a seamless connection between your indoor and outdoor living spaces. This allows you to bring the natural beauty of the outdoors inside your home, opening up your home and resulting in smoother flow of movement. HOW DO I GET STARTED? The first thing you should do is hire a premier window company that offers high-quality replacement windows and doors. They should also offer extensive customization options, allowing you to choose the perfect doors and windows to achieve this goal. When creating a smoother link between your indoor and outdoor space, get replacement units with slim frames, expansive glass, and a wide opening. Check out some of our handy tips: • Use hinged French doors. Hinged French doors are available in double-door format and open outward, creating a wide opening for improved accessibility. This is especially handy when entertaining guests because the door allows the party to spill naturally from your home’s interior onto the patio or deck.
Part 2: Creating a Better Indoor-Outdoor Connection via New Doors and Windows
• Get sliding glass patio doors. These doors are good space-savers, but they can also blur the line between the indoors and outdoors with their sleek frames and large glass area. Even when they’re closed, sliding glass patio doors provide an expansive view of nature while letting considerable natural light flood into your home.
Stay tuned for Part 3 of our ebook, where we discuss how new doors and windows can further improve your home’s comfort and energy efficiency.
Part 3: Improving Your Home’s Comfort and Energy Efficiency with New Doors and Windows
Door and window replacement can increase your home’s curb appeal and open up your living space. One of the biggest payoffs, however, is the energy-saving benefits. Today’s replacement doors and windows are deliberately manufactured to improve comfort and energy efficiency, allowing for better and longer-lasting performance. Here are the essentials you need to consider when looking to invest in energysaving replacement units: • Framing Material. How long your new units last and how well they perform will depend on your choice of material. That’s why you need to pick a material that excels at both durability and insulation. The more popular options available today include wood, a traditional choice that offers great strength and airtight seals. Wood doors and windows add warmth and class to any room, but they’re costly and prone to moisture damage, requiring significant ongoing maintenance.
Vinyl windows and doors, on the other hand, are more cost effective and lower maintenance. They are available in a wide range of colors and finishes that aren’t prone to fading, so they tend to last a pretty long time. Unlike other framing materials, however, vinyl does tend to warp when exposed to extreme thermal changes.
Part 3: Improving Your Home’s Comfort and Energy Efficiency with New Doors and Windows
If you want something better than the former options, you should consider composite windows and doors. They combine the bestfeatures of other framing materials, without the drawbacks. Our composite material combines wood’s durability and insulating propertie with vinyl’s maintenance-free performance. Our composite frame material doesn’t crack, chip, or corrode, allowing for superior weather resistance. Because it has a tighter seal, there’s less potential for energy loss. • Glass. You can augment your composite doors and windows with advanced energy-saving glass. Top window manufacturers use modified Low-E (low-emissivity) glass, which filters the heat from natural light coming through your windows. This results in a brighter home during summer, minus the accompanying heat. At the same time, it prevents heating energy from escaping your home during colder months.
Because Low-E glass keeps your HVAC system from overworking, you can save considerably on energy costs. To ensure your new doors and windows are energy efficient, look for the white-and-blue ENERGY STAR label on any product you’re considering purchasing. Products that bear this label have met stringent energy performance requirements. Even the highest quality doors and windows, however, will require an expert to properly install them. Work only with a premier contractor who’s licensed, insured, and certified. Don’t forget to take into account the warranties included with your doors and windows, as well. This way, you can enjoy all the exceptional benefits your door and window replacement can provide.
Renewal By Andersen of Dallas / Fort Worth 1215 W Crosby Suite 180 Carrollton, TX 75006 (972) 301-8660 www.RBAOFDFW.com