Or actually northern states. Or better “Any part of the world that has more heating days than cooling.” This simply means homeowners in these climates heat their homes more days out of the year than they cool them.

There really are many reasons people replace windows in their home. I will address what I feel are the three most important. These address the efficiency, comfort, and indoor air quality of the home.

1. Old windows are not insulated. Glass has virtually no R-value. An old window with a single pane of glass and a storm window has very little resistance to energy loss. The heat created inside the home (which costs $$) escapes quite easily.

2. Old windows allow wind to enter the home. Most old windows have little or no weatherstripping. Wind blows through making the home feel colder yet. This makes the homeowner feel like she must constantly tweak the thermostat to be comfortable.

3. Condensation is hard to control. Because the glass is so poorly insulated, inside glass temperature is very cold. The moisture in the inside air will always be attracted to the coldest surface in the home. This leads to condinsation and even frost. A wood window with moisture on it always leads to mold and mildew problems. This in turn causes air quality issues.

Quality replacement vinyl windows, when installed properly can easily handle all three of these concerns. We will discuss how this works in an upcoming post.