How much did you pay for new windows?

[HoggleHoggle]

If you don't mind answering a nosy question, could you please tell me how much you paid for new windows if you re-did the whole house at the same time? We're looking for 10 windows to be done - upvc, double glazed, with Georgian bars. Thanks!

I don't know much about the price of UPVC but just wanted to suggest, if you are replacing old windows, that you might want to look into the cost of renovating/restoring them.

It tends to be far less expensive than buying new ones, will keep the character of your property (and increase the value) and look a whole lot nicer to boot.

UPVC tends to decrease the value, and isn't a great long term solution especially for older properties.

Just my tuppence worth - feel free to ignore.

Why are they not a long term solution?

Thanks queen but my fault for not being clear - we're replacing shite late 80s plastic windows...can't afford timber so would like good quality upvc. Not a period property so upvc should look fine.

We paid £6250 for 13 windows, including a bay, last year.

Individual windows ranged from £298 (small bathroom window) to £894 (bay).

Thank you

12 windows (some very large and low so toughened glass) and a patio for approx £8000

Oh fair enough - I should learn not to jump in with my assumptions! You may find wood is as cheap as good quality UPVC in any case, but still, it won't matter if you are replacing UPVC.

Sorry for being officious.

VN - briefly, because they cannot be maintained like wood. People often cite the low maintenance of plastic as a reason to have it, but that's the whole issue - you can maintain wood when it needs it. Plastic needs ripped out and replaced again when it goes wrong (which it usually does in the end)

Sorry for hijack.

I know what you mean queen, the windows at our last house were over 100 years old and were beautiful! Some of the upvc companies we've had round have had colours like sage green etc, which although lovely, I was thinking how expensive they would be to replace if you got sick of the colour.

We've been quoted £6000 for 10 windows with Georgian bars. I think this is at the higher end but it's a company that makes all its own windows from scratch and they have vvv good security features and a long guarantee. The same company did our front door and were good. It's a national (although local) company so will meet with some smaller local companies to see the comparison. The windows I've been quoted for would be amazing but if other quotes come substantially lower then realistically we'll probably go with those. You cut your cloth and all that!

I saw some new build houses with green windows the other day and really liked them - much nicer than white/grey!

Hope you find something suitable.

We've now had 3 quotes - £3500, £6200 and £14500. Huge differences. The highest price company are maniacs if they think that's in any way a good deal, he was also a terrible salesman who left no info on the products or even showed us a window sample. I prefer the mid range company but the cheapest one is also a good product with lots of positive reviews for both window and company so given the huge difference in price, dh keen to go for the cheaper ones . He's probably right though.

My opinion would be go with the cheapest if this is not your forever home or you are on a tight budget. But go with what you prefer if you are staying for many years and don't have a tight budget. I'm thinking of having nicer windows at the front of the house than at the back!

Thesilentone we think we'll be here about 10 years...so I think the cheaper ones will do their job in that time and they come with a 15 year transferable guarantee so should be able to sell the house with time on that left. I think if this was a house I loved I would get the windows I preferred but it's very much a 'head', practical house for the medium term.

First double glazing in wood (at least last time I checked!) will only be guaranteed for 5yrs - because of the nature of wood the sealed panels tend to fail...mist up - although it is relatively cheap to replace a glass unit in a frame ...and wood is more maintenance than upvc/composite. It does need painting!!
And where I live (colder!! ) original windows are less of a selling point than good sympathetic double glazing...
And yy to colours - we have awful dated fake mahogany upvc. And some windows that badly need replacing (more of later) but we are stuck with replacing with more (yuk) mahogany which will need to be a good match or replacing them all ... expensive cos we have big windows (although I found out you can paint upvc frames - mixed reported success - which might be an option to try...)

The most important thing however is the fitting - way more important than the quality of the window units. Make sure whoever you go to has good customer feedback, preferably longer term feedback and the guarantee is under a larger umbrella/insurance than just the company who fit them.
I am speaking from experience - this house apparently has really good quality upvc double glazing units - one of the highest specs you could get at the time, good quality manufacturer ...but was fitted by cowboys.
They had a 10yr guarantee and were 8 yrs old when we bought the house - but the company who had fitted them had disappeared several years before. Funnily enough a new double glazing company operated from the same building ...but our guarantee was with the other company...

Several of the units have warped - they are usually supplied as intact windows, they should be 'toe and heeled' - braced square - with blocks inside, but they sometimes move during transit/installation - so should be checked after fitting - ours weren't.
This means the weight of the glass can bend the frames - we discovered we had big gaps between the window openings and the frames - one window became so bad I could fit my little finger through the gap.
And in our case - some were too warped to sort out by re toe and heeling (if it had been done by previous owner when problems first started they might have been salvageable - but it wasn't ) and regulations (and cost) means you can't just replace the frames around the glass - the whole window unit has to be replaced. (And like I said ...yukky mahogany ...also the glass units are still perfect, no misting etc - such a waste to bin them)
And avoid anyone who puts any kind of 'trim' around units, get them plastered in properly. We have extensive wooden trim around all ours. If you take it off you find that it is stuck on with grip adhesive and it covers up inch plus wide gaps into the cavities/outside - the only barrier to outside around the units is the 2mmm thick decorative hardboard and the bead of silicone seal around the units outside ...which makes a joke of having A++ rated glass units in insulated frames...

we've just paid £6500 for 14 upvc windows, french doors to garden and composite front door with side panels. Installation was a dream but we have used a local company and not a national big one.

We've just had 11 windows (woodgrain uPVC sash) plus composite door put in for £8500. We are in Scotland and used a local company, we got quote from a national company (£18000) and a local joiner (£10000) as well. We also visited the factory where the windows were made before we decided.

Unlucky that sounds a flipping nightmare! Interesting you mention re instance, the cheaper company we're going with are registered with CERTASS and as part of that has 10 years insurance in case the original company disappears. Hadn't even thought of it beforehand.

Sayrra your house is absolutely gorgeous!

£5.5k for a composite door, 11 upvc windows and a upvc door in SE London

I have learned to live with them - I've spent a fortune and lots of time replacing gaskets and draughtproofing, buying thermal linings for curtains etc, the worst one (kitchen) I've completely sealed off - filled inside the frame with expanding foam and siliconed around the edges!!!
Money wise I've had a quote for this house - just 8 windows and 2 doors - £11k !!! But most of them are big windows - 4 of them are 2.5m by 1.5 m plus one just short of patio door size - and one of the doors has a big side panel too...so the opening for that door is 3 times the size of a single door.
I did have double glazing put in another house - basic white upvc , 6 average size windows, 2 small , a patio door and a back door and that cost about £7k - cheapest quote was about £6k, most expensive was £8.5k. (I went with a local firm, lots of good recommendations and insurance. The most expensive was similar, the cheapest was a bit 'fly by night')
I'm in Scotland too - reason I made the comment about sympathetic double glazing (like Sayrra's) - mine isn't one but lots of stone Victorian houses locally and I know it adds to the value here...comfort and cost-saving valued over 'style'.

I had my horrible plastic windows replaced in 2009, and paid about £1000 per window. But I don't regret a penny of it, even though the replacements are also plastic. I went with Masterframe upvc sash windows, fitted by a Derbyshire firm, and they still spark joy every time I look at them!

Make sure you go with a company who will offer deposit protection scheme (a friend of mine got stung a little while ago!). There's an organisation called the GGF which is a good place to start www.myglazing.com/find-a-member/