[Closed] How hard can it be to get some wood windows?!?

any decent joiner will fabricate and install.

Installation is relatively easy assuming the joiner hangs any windows/doors for you (coz thats the tricky bit IMO). Putting frames into an opening is a pieces of piss.

Just ask around builder mates for a joinery name or let your fingers do the walking. The glazing itself is very inexpensive and again, very easy to install.

Try a joinery manufacturer instead of a double glazing company.
I had mine made out of Accoya - that's just a brand name. It's actually just a softwood that has basically been pickled! Because of that it doesn't shrink or expand much, so the finish lasts a lot longer. It's supposed to last longer than oak and didn't cost a lot more.

Usually quite a few specialist sash renovators (like Ventrolla) can do this. As we both seem to have found a lot of the normal DG outfits are no use for it - but won't actually tell you that , preferring to flog you tat 👿

Or as suggested above find a local joinery workshop, maybe -> http://www.amljoiners.co.uk/products/windows.aspx

Aren't they better at keeping heat in as well?

as stoner said and you spec what glass only issue we had was making sure the joiner was up to date on building regs and opening rules as on one window copied what was there rather than what we wanted and it didn't meet current regs

I asked a neighbour for the wood windows they were removing to replace with plastic. They destroyed the frames removing them but I can easily mKe some more as there going in a shed don't need to be perfect.
Madness IMO though to remove and destroy these good quality windows to replace them with inferior ones.

Rowan bespoke ( Abergavenny area) and Parc Joinery ( Blackwood area) are both very good, you do realise how much this will though ?! ( not cheap)

After my parents experience, I'd think long and hard before getting wood. A few years down the line, shoddy paint job falling off and they are draughty as hell, far worse than the originals. So much so that they are thinking of getting another layer of glazing inside! Whereas plastic just works.

Buy crap pvc and your experiance will be the same. Material not important , craftsmanship and decent fitting is.

Wood will need maintained though.

Spend a weekend a year giving mine a rub down and a coat of butinox.

Have you considered aluclad windows? Timber on the inside, smart-looking PPC finish on the outside (and therefore great longevity, minimal maintenance). Velfac are normally pretty good on price, somewhere between timber and uPVC.

I had PVC Sash windows fitted when they first came out (1st house in Cambridge to take them according to Anglian Windows). That was 15 year ago and they still look pristine and work perfectly. Totally draft free, very insulated and way better than the original Victorian wooden jobs they replaced (which to be fair to them, were over 100 years old).

Velfac are excellent windows if you go down the alu-clad route...

In Ireland we used Munster joinery, I believe they also sell in uk now, or you could nip over on the ferry from south wales 😉

Aren't PVC frames hollow? Tempted to put some foam in there, ours are cold to the touch.

"Aren't PVC frames hollow"

as i said above - not all made equal. the cheapest will be hollow , my mates just had a quote for his gaff with insulated frames. - wasnt a bad price neither.

the cheapest will be hollow

This is a new build, so that's a yes 🙂

The coldness suggests they are.

Slightly off thread - try http://ccexhibitions.com/
They make stands BUT have a full fabrication shop and take on other projects.

If you do use wooden frames do some research into "dry glaze" sealed units as opposed to using putty - apparently the putty ruins the seals in sealed unit dg

I didn't think anyone used Putty anymore, you get Silicone based stuff for windows..

I was thinking of getting wooden rather than upvc/ally ones. Interested to see replies in this thread.

Well I sometimes make windows for people as a joiner. Someone up the page suggested Accoya; I looked into this stuff and found it's the same cost as Utile (basically an African version of Brazilian Mahogany)which will last forever. Most hardwood windows are made from Meranti which is Indonesian fake Mahogany, only vaguely hard and more durable than Pine but not much really.

Just ordered some hardwood windows to replace some of the softwood frames already in. For Georgian 3 casement windows it's about £700 per unit. Not cheap, but on older houses plastic windows can look really crap, and I would look at the plastic windows every day and regret buying them. Wood all the way. Did have to search for a decent joiner though!

Just way I started my first day at college today in Joinery!
Give me a couple of years and I'll make you the best wooden windows!

I used to live in a grade 2 listed building and wanted to keep things original,was pretty hard to get hold of

Here you go

http://www.benlowe.co.uk/s-259-benlowe-windows.aspx

Made in the village where I live. They've been going for years.

Lee Zak. Blackwood based. This is one of those "end of thread" bits of advice. I know two people who've had hardwood windows fitted by him and another who had a massive bespoke staircase. Absolute craftsman, judging by the quality of the work and the guy I'd get to do my windows if and when they ever need doing, without a second's hesitation.
Ask him for some customer references rather than take my advice and take a look at his work. No brainer.

rationel make some nice timber frame windows.
engineered frames with factory finish paint
with or without aluminum fascia.[url= http://www.rationel.co.uk/windows-doors/ ]rationel[/url]

As said above some good composite windows on the market at the moment,have a look at velfac,ideal combi,pro tec and rational.
You can have any ral colour on the outside,pine,clear laquer or painted timber on the inside and you can get triple glazed units too.
Not cheap but why anyone would replace crap timber windows with more crap windows when there are much better products on the market baffles me.

"Not cheap but why anyone would replace crap timber windows with more crap windows when there are much better products on the market baffles me."

thats what they said about aluminium when it came out - it wasnt

the same about upvc when it came out - it wasnt

[url= http://www.evolutionwindows.com ]Linky[/url]

These look ok, not wood though. However, we have a few wooden windows left (including our bottom bay with 48 little windows), and they are a pain. Noisy, cold and need constant maintainance. We really like our painter, and he is very good, but I still think we see too much of him.

Top bay window replaced 15 years ago with upvc, it's quiet, warm and I have so far just had to dust the frames.

The alu-wood thing sounds interesting though...

Simone

Sashworks based in Lockerbie are fantastic people. Ask for Val or Bruce.

They cover a hell of an area and are Ventrolla agents. Not sure if they are too far away but I know they custom make in their workshops and maybe you could get a local compant to fit.

If you really want to save energy then triple glazed with German PVC frames is the best bet. They do finishes other than white but the price premium is prohibitive IMO.

The PVC frames are honeycomb and insulate better than wood. UW is .7 for the glass and under 1.1 for the whole window and frame. The frame is still the weak point but better than wood or aluminium. The frames are 70cm deep and designed to be used with interior wall insulation which cuts the the thermal bridge.

No idea how long they'll last but the energy payback is at least thirty years compared with basic double glazing, I doubt I'll live to find out.

Sounds like people comparing. Old wood windows with new PVC . Our newish 10yrs wood windows are better than most PVC., look better and are just getting their first reprint now.

If you really want to save energy then triple glazed with German PVC frames is the best bet

Just cycled to work past a neighbour having his original Victorian sash windows replaced with new wooden sash windows, look very nice too (sat on the pavement).

GF's father's business, little way from you in Cardiff but an excellent finished product.

[url= http://www.oakwrightsbath.co.uk/ ]Oakwrights Bath[/url]

Wolbridge ltd, based in Wolverhampton.
01902 408277 ask for Bal.

Unfortunately he doesn't have a website but I fit a lot of his products, from sliding patio doors, front doors, roof lanterns windows etc.
Once it's fitted, if it doesn't look and work 100% right then it's something I've done in carrying out the fitting.
The finish is 1st class and It's a pleasure to fit anything he does as you just know it's going to work.
If I'm honest I'm not 100% sure he deals with the general public but he would definitely be worth a call to find out.

Live in Victorian double bay terrace, not conservation area but nice looking houses with turrets etc. original sashes were drafty and rotten, sills beyond repair etc.

Priced up wooden replacement sash versus PVC sashes and came out 3 times as expensive. Refurb of old sashes and new sills was about 1.5 times the price of PVC, and we'd still have single glazing.

A lot of people have said how nice ours look, maintenance free, warm and quiet.

The energy ratings are a nonsense though in an old house, you'll have super efficient glazing and frames and this is all set in a stone wall that in our case has a massive void to the exterior stone, that's where the energy is lost!

This lot are a uk based pre-finished timber window manufacturer.

http://www.georgebarnsdale.co.uk/

Other than that, or the likes of Rational for v large projects, then I'd usually recommend the local joiner route for this sort of thing.

http://www.croxfords.co.uk/

These are very good ask for Ralph

We buy from Rationel quite regularly & they are very well priced actually for such a good product.
Email me with the sizes & opening styles & can at least get you a ball park price (supply only tho).

We have used Apex joinery in Newport on a number of buildings.
Also recommended to friend (for a block of flats), they were also happy.

http://apexjoineryandshopfittingwales.co.uk/

I'm in Denmark at the moment and all the windows are wood, usually with coated aluminum cills. The quality looks excellent and I've not seen much flaking paint in fact most are so pristine you'd think that they were upvc 😀 The Danes use a lot of wood on the exterior of their houses but the roofs generally have large overhangs protecting the frames from the worst of the weather.

We had our windows (Victorian terrace) replaced about a year ago. The choices were from UPVC (cheap), to solid wood (over 3 times the cost). We live in a conservation area, which makes repairs/alterations tricky. We made a point of looking around the local area, and decided that UPVC windows generally look shit, so we went the full wood route. This included the tricky replacement of two large sashes with all the weights and cords. The brass fittings were also expensive!

One year on, and we're more than happy we spent the extra. The windows look fantastic, the frames are exactly the same style as the originals, and apparently we've added 'value' to the property (not that we're planning to move anyway). We've also seen a significant reduction in our heating usage, so they're doing their job well.

Look up synseal plastics warm core if you want a great product. Brother in laws design. And just because window frames are hollow doesn't make them cheap. Some reet bobbins being talked as usual. Edited because I typed in the original lot he worked for 😳

Highly recommend Nordan (both timber and Aluminium clad timber)

if you want high performance they are a good option

In theory you need to make sure that your new windows comply with current U values. Some local joiner who can knock one up in his workshop probably won't be able to afford to have them tested if he isn't already an accredited manufacturer.

Given the age of this thread, the OP's new windows will be due for replacing soon.

I'm closing this off now, it's a spam magnet. Windows and kitchens, who'd have 'em eh?