To replace my old sash windows with replica upvc?

Check with your conservation officer, but uPVC sash windows are a good option. We used these ones: weatherseal.com/upvc-windows.

I was a bit wary of uPVC, but I didn’t want the endless maintenance. In the end, they are way better than our old windows!

IMHO the good quality upvc look far better than wood, which always ends up looking tatty.

My dad had some good quality upvc windows fitted in the late 1980s and they're still going strong. Some of the glazing units need replacing due to condensation, but the frames look absolutely fine.

We replaced our original Victorian sash windows with upvc sash copies last year and they look fantastic and our house (country farmhouse) is way warmer. The originals were warped, rattled like buggery, had been repainted so often we couldn't actually open any or them except one. There was really old crappy secondary double glazing, which I couldn't clean the inside of, and was also very heavy and difficult to open. In spite of all this our house was freezing in the winter, and ventilation was difficult as we couldn't open the wretched things.

We got them via a local supplier but I believe they came from Victorian Sliders. I had wanted wooden ones but was warned that these days its very difficult to get good enough quality hard wood and that the more recent ones are not as good as 5-10 years ago.

We are not in a conservation area but I have heard that the local planners are allowing these windows in a conservation area near us. Check with your council

They don’t look at all the same, and you will almost certainly need planning permission.

You can get double glazed wooden sashes - we have them and they are toasty. Also look much better than plastic, and last longer. uPVC has a lifespan of 10-15 years, IIRC. Wood will last decades if you repaint it every 5 years or so.

New wooden ones with double glazing would look much better than plastic and still work just as well. Will be more expensive but if you can afford it I’d go did that.

I live in a conservation area and windows are fine to replace oddly

We used to live in a conservation area, council would not let us replace with UPVC 😔 our house wasn't even that old 😒
So please check before you do anything, as someone said upthread you can be made to remove them and put wooden ones back in.

You'll be lucky if you get planning. Timber sash and case windows are available by most big glazing companies. You can also repair the existing ones. The best way to fraught proof is to get big curtains.

Your old windows when maintained will last far longer than any new upvc ones you install. Plus you likely would need planning permission and if your council is anything like mine, it will be turned down.
Old style single glazing really isn't that energy inefficient. Join the Your old house- repair and conservation Facebook group as they give excellent advice.

Fwiw we also live in a house with the original single glazed sash windows, in a conservation area. We're getting ours refurbished. Draught proofing will also help.

I’d prefer upvc windows to a cold and draughty house. My friend opted for upvc sash windows for her new build Georgian style farmhouse. They’re beautiful. I would have loved them but they were much too expensive for us when we were building our house.
I grew up in an old farmhouse with sash windows and shutters. As they got older and expensive to repair they started to look less attractive. My parents couldn’t afford the upkeep or replacement so they were eventually replaced with upvc.

We just replaced wood with upvc and very happy with the results and the look inside and out. We have an old property but just outside a conservation area so didn't need planning but in our old flat we wouldn't have been allowed to replace with upvc due to planning so definitely check

Done it in conservation area. You need white wood grain. Planners still don't like but can't tell from a distance. Used in Liverpool.

We live in a conservation area and our old sashes were rattling, draughty and mouldy. We replaced the downstairs sashes with new local joiner made wooden sashes with new lead weights. All very nice but a faff to fit and paint. We decided to put the upvc roseview sashes upstairs as we didn't want to be up ladders every couple of years to repaint wooden ones. As the roseview have a woodgrain effect you cannot tell the difference from the joiner made wooden ones.

We did about 25 years ago - they were stunning - very expensive. 3 sash windows were the same price as 6 standard windows and a set of French doors.

My DM house is in conservation area and we aren't allowed to replace her windows with UPVC unfortunately.

I've had double glazed wooden sash units put into mine plus the boxes refurbished and the price was similar to the pvc sash ones. Look for a small local company who specialises in wood ones and the cost won't be much different. The original ones that were there when i moved in had lasted over a hundred years - there's no reason why these won't also. They're better to look at, from inside especially, better for the planet, better for being in keeping with the house and the area.

If you are planning to sell I would think twice.

I hate UPVC windows and they never look like real wood.

Planning permission is not required to replace existing timber windows with uPVC for a single dwelling house (the design of the new frames do not have to be the same as the previous ones). Planning permission is require for the same situation on buildings in use as flats or commercial properties.

Round here the best company by far is called Derwent Sash windows- not sure exactly which heritage windows they use, but I think they look great. My parents have them. They are NOT cheap though.

We replaced old out-of-keeping aluminium windows with double glazed wooden sashes in our Victorian house. What a pain they are. Most of the windows now won’t open or close because the sash cords have broken - I think due to the weight of the double glass. And they still are draughty. And the maintenance… The upvc sash windows weren’t around then but now most of our neighbours have replaced their windows with these and they look great.

We have had no condensation either. So I think there may be a range of different qualities out there.

We did but for each quote we got we did what we called the ‘road test’ - we found out where the windows had been installed and if we could walk past the house and tell that the windows were upvc not wood they were rejected. We have not had the upvcs for 8 years and so pleased with them, they look like the old sash but we are warm!

We had some fitted in a flat. The quality was excellent and far, far superior to wood.

Unless you're in a listed building, I'd definitely get good quality uPVC sash windows.

We paid around £800 per window, but that was 10 years ago.

We had the glass replaced in our sashes - double glazed panels made to fit. We had to as in a conservation area. It wasn’t any more than replacing whole units and took a day to do