Most timber used in crappy windows and doors is cheap old fast grown pine, which used outdoors painted or not rots in no time. Joinery made with Douglas fir or next grade up lasts a lot longer. You get what you pay for.
ken
Count me out of the "people" party then. ;-(
I'm in Bristol. We were one of the main ports for that trade.
Yeah. I'm from there too. I suppose dodgy wood was somewhat more ethical than our previous biggest cargo.
Good quality (British) oak is your only option then.
Unless you regard phoning up the window company arranging for complete replacements every ten to fifteen years and then staying in while they replace them as maintainence free.
Why would British oak be any better than French ?
I have aluminium frames wih teak surrounds. Not bad for proportions, and they're still in decent nick after 25 years, apart from a couple of broken handles and a broken seal or two on the double glazing. Still, the design is soulless, big unopenable picture windows, with a couple of openable tiny counterlights above.
In future, I shall look to replace them with wood. My remaining wooden windows are OK, though lack of paint meant I had to replace a section of one with new wood. This modern softwood quality troubles me though, I've looked at the softwood frames in Wickes but I'm not convinced of the quality. They also only seem to do windows that sit proud of he frame, not flush as my remainingwood windows do. Also I'm not 100% happy about the proportions.
Would like to get bespoke wooden frames made in a decent quality softwood ( or hardwood if possible ) but don't fancy shelling out huge amounts. Has anyone gone via the bespoke windows route?
Andy.
It isn't - provided it's from Northern France. But if it's imported it's harder to prove where it's really from.
Colder weather, cooler summers, slower growth, more growth rings per unit diameter, greater strength, doesn't stink of garlic ;-)
What staining/weathering issues? Cif cream cleaner keeps them looking good as new.
MBQ
I always wash the one ground floor UPV window and patio doors I have with plenty of warm water and a drop of washing up liquid. And do the frames at the same time. So far, they still look like new. Paintwork done at the same time they were fitted looks like it'll need doing again this year.
I haven't so far had a pvc frame warp on me, I wish the same were true for wood, even when new!
Regards Capitol
A bit counter-intuitive but oak is stronger when it is grown fast - with fewer rings.
But this is not an issue with oak for windows. British, French (they do say the best is kept for wine barrels), Polish, Hungarian, it will all do fine. But don't use American - it is not as durable.
I use English oak from a local sawmill for the windows that I make.
Oh, and you don't need to paint them. They won't rot. They will last a couple of centuries longer than UPVC.
I'll give you an interesting comment about Jeld -Wen
I have been in the window industry all my life some 32 years as a working man. mostly as a window fitter and recenly as a service engineer.
Jeld-Wen are responsible for manufacturing the most atrocious frames i have ever encountered .
IMO PVC is fine if it is A Manufactured properly B Fitted properly
If you want a really good looking PVC frame get a look at a Decurnick window.
I have no direct link with that company and my opinion is unbiased from the point of view that i service all makes and models from Ali swing doors in schools shops and restaurants etc to more upvc Window ,Patio and Resi Door Frames than i care to mention.
Not so much for oak - it's mainly ash where this makes a big dfifference. It's not so much the number of rings that's at issue, it's the ratio between early and late wood.
If oak is too fast grown you can start to see problems with shake (delamination between rings). No one really understands why oaks shake, but it appears to be related to soil conditions. Those light soils that are most encouraging to fast growth may also give less stability and may (as I said, no-one really knows) give rise to wind damage in young trees.
UPVC is the Turkey Twizler of buildings.
LOL !
hello
I have tried to find the Decurnick window on google but no luck......................can you point me to a web site??
thanks
Barry
In message on Sat, 16 Apr 2005, bs wrote
Check spelling and you'll find Deceuninck
Thanks Colin
but that link doesn't work.......the elusive strangely spelled windows :) not sure what the name is now
Barry
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