Guide to what to look for in your windows when buying a home

When you’re looking for a new home there’s plenty to consider – although the windows & doors installed are not always deemed to be the most important aspect we would argue that your list of criteria should stretch far beyond the well known mantra of ‘location, location, location’.

This article is intended to give you 4 valuable pointers to help you judge the quality of the double glazing installed in your potential new home to avoid any unforeseen costs in the future.

1) THE LOCKS – at Finesse we believe that the most important aspect you need to consider is the effectiveness of the windows & doors’ locking hardware at keeping intruders out of your new home.

A home with poor windows & doors is not a safe place to be. Don’t be afraid to open the windows & doors first of all to judge the locking system for yourself. It’s easy to do, turn the handle, open the window or door and count the number of locking points that you can see on the frame once the window is open.

As a rough guide, one or two locking points is very poor, three or four is better but ideally you want to see five or more locking points and ideally they should be spread around the entire perimeter of the frame – not just one edge of the window or door frame.

2) EXTERNAL GLAZING – again this is a very important aspect to consider to help judge the security of your new home. There is a simple rule to follow:

Externally Glazed = poor & vulnerable to attack.

Internally Glazed = better security & more resistant to attack.

To determine this – look carefully at the window from the outside of the property. If the window is externally glazed you will see that the glazing beads are visible around the edge of each piece of glass. If this is the case – it’s important to consider that a potential burglar can gain access to the home relatively easily by flicking out the beads from the outside and simply removing the glass to gain entry.

3) CONDENSATION – there’s nothing more annoying than constantly having condensation forming either on the inside of the sealed unit or on the inside your home.

Modern, correctly specified windows should not have condensation on the inside of the sealed unit at all – and condensation on the inside of the room should be minimal or non-existent. If there is a large amount of condensation forming on the glass on the inside of the room you need to be asking questions as to why this is happening. It may be that the windows are very old and are not benefitting from modern technology that is designed to help with this. Or it points to a larger problem of poor ventilation or poor heating in the home in general. Either way – the presence of condensation is a warning sign that you need to pay attention to. If there is condensation on the outside pane – then this is a good sign that the home is well insulated so don’t be concerned at all if you can find condensation externally on the double glazing.

If you do find condensation in between the two panes of glass it is a sure sign that the sealed unit has broken down and needs to be replaced. This can be costly. In our experience, if one pane has broken down you will find that more will follow within a year or two. Bear this in mind as the cost of replacing multiple sealed units can add up to a large investment.

4) MATERIAL – it’s very important to consider the material that your windows or doors are made from. If they are wooden, you must factor in that your windows and doors will need a lot of TLC and maintenance over the years if they are to remain in good condition and looking nice. If they are UPVC or aluminium you can be more confident that they will need minimal looking after over the years.

By reviewing these 4 areas when looking at a home purchase should hopefully save you money in the long-term. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact one of our Design Experts here.

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