My Windows Are Old and Drafty, Why Shouldn’t I Buy New Ones?

Historic Wood Windows


1. More heat is typically lost though your roof and
un-insulated walls than through your windows.
Adding just 3 and 1/2 inches of insulation in your attic
can save more energy than replacing your windows.

2. Replacement windows are called “replacement”
for a reason. Manufacturers often offer lifetime
warrantees for their windows. What they don’t make
clear is that 30% of the time, a replacement window
will be replaced within 10 years.

3. Replacement windows that contain vinyl or PVC
are toxic to produce and create toxic by-products.
Installing these in your house is not a ‘green’
approach.

4. If your wood windows are 60 years old or older,
chances are that the wood they are made of is old
growth—dense and durable wood that is now scarce.
Even high-quality new wood windows, except for
mahogany, won’t last as long as historic wood
windows.

5. Studies have demonstrated that a historic wood
window, properly maintained, weatherstripped
and with a storm window, can be just as energy
efficient as a new window.

6. According to studies, it can take 240 years to
recoup enough money in energy savings to pay
back the cost of installing replacement windows.

7. Each year, Americans demolish 200,000
buildings. That is 124 million tons of debris, or
enough waste to construct a wall 30 feet high and
30 feet thick around the entire U.S. coastline.
Every window that goes into the dump is adding to
this problem.

8. With a little bit of practice, it can be easy—and
inexpensive—to repair and maintain your wood
windows.

9. Not a DIY-er? There are people near you who can do
it for you. Hiring a skilled tradesperson to repair
your windows fuels the local economy and
provides jobs.

10. Historic wood windows are an important part of
what gives your older building its character.
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1. Rypkema (2006). 2. Sedovic (2005).
3. e.g. Calculations by Keith Heberern
available at www.historichomeworks.com/hhw/education/windowshandout/
windowenergyanalysis.pdf. 4. Hadley (2006).
5. e.g. www.historichomeworks.com

The above post was written by the National Trust for Historic Preservation
www.preservationnation.org