The Tri-State’s Most Common Window Questions

Material: The options are wood, aluminum, clad-wood, vinyl or fiberglass, and steel. These materials can be broken down further. For example, clad windows can be extruded aluminum clad, roll-formed aluminum clad, or vinyl/fiberglass clad. Aluminum windows can be thermally broken or non-thermally broken.

It’s important to understand the distinction between every type of material in order to find the right windows for your home.

Style: Make sure you understand your home’s aesthetic – such as modern or traditional – and then you can determine which window style suits your design needs. Window styles such as double hung, single hung, casement, awning, sliding or tilt-and-turn are the most popular.

If you have a traditional style home there’s a good chance most of your windows are of the hung variety, with a blend of casement or awnings. Modern homes tend to have large, fixed windows, with casements and big sliding doors for ventilation and egress. Keep functionality in mind as well. For example pushout casement windows above your kitchen sink or over the counter are difficult to operate.

Energy Efficiency: Some windows are designed to be thermally broken. That means they have a thermal barrier built within the frame and sash so heat or cold transfer between the interior and exterior of your home is minimized. In short, they help keep conditioned air from escaping your home and minimize “sweating” on hot days. During the winter, the thermal break keeps warm air inside and prevents “frosting” on the interior of your windows.

Ease of Operation: Don’t forget that your window is intended to be used. You’ll want to make sure that it opens and closes easily. We suggest visiting multiple local showrooms of various suppliers to operate life-sized windows before making any final decisions.

Every window brand we partner with has unique strengths. Look through our featured brands to view all your options and read about the advantages of different windows OR put us to the test and visit our showroom.

The most common window types are double-hung windows and casement windows. Double-hung windows consist of two moving parts – an upper sash and a lower sash – that slide up and down to provide ventilation. A casement window has one sash that opens outward (or inward) for ventilation. There are also sliding windows, awnings, fixed and shape windows. Every window type has an individual function and aesthetic.

Visit our window gallery to see examples of hung windows, casements, awnings, and more types and styles.

Aluminum clad wood windows have wooden frames and core components that are paired with an aluminum exterior shell. Aside from being aesthetically pleasing, the aluminum gives the window a low maintenance exterior while preserving the warmth, charm and character of a wood window.

All wood windows need to be repainted every few years. This can end up being costly and potentially void your window warranty. Extruded aluminum clad windows DON’T need this coat of paint AND are also stronger and more durable than wood windows. You can expect an aluminum clad wood window to last for decades without warping, expanding, or becoming worn down by weather changes.

Visit our window gallery to see examples of aluminum clad wood windows.

When selecting windows for a new home, it’s important to first establish a budget. This will narrow down your options. You can then focus on the material you’d like and the specific styles you want for each room of your home. Make sure to pay attention to things like energy efficiency and ease of use.

There are a few factors that determine the price tag of your window:

• Brand: Are you ordering a customized window from a high-end brand, or are you going with a more conventional manufacturer?
• Product line: Many commonly used manufacturers have premium product lines that are more pricey, and other product lines that are less costly.
• Material: Certain materials are more expensive than others. For example, a premium thermally-broken aluminum window is more expensive than an aluminum-clad wood window. Steel windows are the most expensive windows – both thermally broken and non-thermally broken. Vinyl windows are the least expensive option.

• What kind of warranty do my windows come with?
• How long will the whole process take – from ordering my windows until installation?
• What are the production lead times of the brands I’m looking at?
• Do you have a showroom?
• What materials are these windows made of?

The windows in your home can have a big impact on your energy savings (and spending), as well as your home’s comfort level. Poorly insulated windows, such as single-pane windows affect your home’s temperature in two ways.

Firstly, the air inside your home, whether heated in the winter or cooled in the summer, will leak out through your windows if they’re not designed to prevent that. Secondly, the outdoor air will infiltrate your home through poorly insulated windows.

We offer thermally broken aluminum windows from Ital Windows. Thermally broken windows are built with a barrier in the window sash and frame to minimize heat transfer between the interior and exterior of your home. This prevents unwanted heat loss and gain.

If the damage to your window is the result of poor installation, the installer is accountable for that. However, if there’s a flaw in the product itself, that’s the manufacturer’s responsibility. We have great relationships with all the manufacturers we partner with, and we work with them to get the full extent of the warranty coverage. We also have an after-sales service department that is committed to resolving any issues that might arise after installation.