Look at this before spending money on replacement windows

[squattermadras]

I've done some digging after I received some eye watering quotes for replacing my perfectly serviceable Victorian sash windows with replacement DG sashes. Made even more eyewatering if I included Low E glass. I've found this: Results of testing by boffins at Glasgow Caledonian University on the efficacy of various ways to reduce heat loss through windows. It is an absolute eye opener. It proves that cheap secondary double glazing is more effective than ridiculously priced low E double glazing.

For about £3k, I can secondary double glaze the whole of my 4 bed semi Victorian villa as opposed to £25K for low e victorian sashes with worse performance! Frankly I am gobsmacked by their findings.

It never did sit easy with me that in order to save money, I had to waste money by ripping out pefectly serviceable 150 year old windows to replace them with ones which would never last that long, with a stupidly ridiculous payback time.

http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/gcu-technical-_thermal-efficiency-traditional-windows.pdf

This is the information you need when deciding if its worth spending daft amounts of money on double glazing, especially 'platinum priced' low E glass!

 

[God]

I think you may have needed to shop around, low e glass is the norm on upvc windows now and most companies should include it in the price of your new windows, it would not be an extra option.

 

[squattermadras]

Thanks, but my research tells me that if your current windows are sound, use secondary glazing rather than replacement double glazing.

The heat saving is better and it's the eighth of the cost.