What type of sash windows should I get?

[Sashwindowsquestions]

I have a wall of single glazed sash windows in my living room (in a first floor flat of period conversion) and could really use some advice on what to replace them with if possible?

They are freezing in the winter and no amount of heating heats the room... soo, is double glazing enough or should I get triple glazed windows? (Double glazed works beautifully in my loft conversion but that's also better insulated).

And I'm also tempted by realistic looking UPVC sash windows but will these devalue the property? And do they actually look ok in person? (the original wooden ones I have now are beautiful and one of the main reasons I bought my flat).

I've also been quoted for just replacing the actual glass and surrounding wood (which is cheaper than fully replacing window) and I'm not actually sure what the difference is between that and fully replaced windows?

Also, do triple glazed windows protect against overheating if our summers get hotter in the future?

Ahh, so many questions, sorry! :) Any advice from someone who has replaced sash windows themselves (or regretted going for UPVC or wood) would be really appreciated.

I would go with upvc double glazed sash windows. They look great. I almost did this in our previous property. Moved to a new place and the sashes had been replace with regular upvc and casements, it’s on the list to redo them with upvc sashes but won’t be for a while as we have other priorities. Can be expensive though.

I don't know about triple glazing, but I know that when I replaced my single glazed sash windows with wooden double glazed the weight and depth meant I had to replace the surrounds too. Depends how big your windows are (mine were big). I've been looking at composite sash windows - expensive but seem to strike the balance between period look and thermal properties.
If it's a flat though they may be some rules about what you can do with the windows- in a period flat I own I can't change the windows without permission from the freeholder.

Don't put uPVC in a period property. It'll look wrong and potentially devalue it.
We replaced our very old, single glazed sashes with double glazed hardwood, painted white. They look so beautiful, the original design was copied so apart from the double glazing they look the same. They made a real difference to how warm the house is too.

Thanks for getting back to me on this. Does anyone know roughly how much really realistic looking upvc sash windows would devalue a place by?

I bought the freehold to the full building a couple of years ago, so no restrictions thankfully.

I have just had all of the windows in my victorian house replaced with upvc sash, sadly I did not have the original timber ones as they had been replaced with awful aluminium. The house is in a conservation area and the windows passed by planning. Not as nice as original but they look lovely IMO. Cannot see them devaluing my house at all considering what I took out.

Several of my neighbours have UPVC sash windows. We're in a conservation area.

They look very good and don't devalue the houses at all. I'm sure most people can't tell the difference looking at them from outside.

We are in a strict conservation zone and replaced our completely rotted out sashes with UPVC ones from Masterframe a few years ago.

They look exactly like painted wood and we have had many compliments from people loving the original look of our wood sashes.

What does the downstairs neighbour have? We were in the same position as you in a victorian villa of 4 flats. Everyone else had put in standard upvc windows in (not sash) and the window guy and a local estate agent said don't bother getting upvc sash windows as no one else has them and it won't add any value. So we went for the standard windows.

If the property is period with any value, I would fit good quality wooden sash, preferably made in the UK.

Helped fit removeable secondary glazing from this little company to a friend's very old and draughty sash windows for the winter. Was really impressed - they make a noticeable difference to the warmth, and reduce noise from the street significantly. Need to measure windows carefully and installation is really a two-person job, but easy. Took us maybe 10-15 minutes to prepare and stick them on?

You can order them in two parts if you want to be able to open/close the window, though in colder months you may not need to. And of course, it preserves the original windows.

No connection to company, just that my friend is a satisfied buyer, and has gone back to order more this year after success of last year's installation.

I assume it's not in a conservation area

There are a couple of companies whose UVPC sashes are allowed both in listed buildings and by English heritage

Do you know who those companies are @grannycake

I have an ongoing nightmare with cold draughty windows in a listed property and a Listing Officer who says I can’t replace them !!

Don't worry about triple glazing, these days deep double glazing with coated low emissivity glass and warm edges are just as effective.

Neighbour has had theirs replaced with upvc and they look fabulous. Really very good, used the original stained glass too. I was really surprised when she said it was upvc and I’m A real upvc snob.

Conservation officer has changed so I suspect we won’t get permission to do same and will have to use wood.

@Flyingsouthagain Symphony windows from the Bygone collection from Masterframe are the ones we have that are passed for use in conservation zones.

https://www.masterframe.co.uk

Thank you @ChequerBoard

Please Don't replace timber with pvc - they never look the same - you can always tell and they might look ok when you first put them in but they actually won't stay looking good as long as timber ones (despite the fact that they're plastic and will be around in the world forever!) - you'll actually have to replace pvc more frequently because they start looking to try really quickly.
We're about to have new double glazed sashes in the original frames - made to fit which has actually ended up cheaper than entirely nee windows (which you then have to change the surround for and, are deeper so you might also have to change cills).
Timber might be a bit more expensive up front (tho not as a big a difference in price as you'd think) but you can repaint it and it will be good as new but pvc will never look as good as when it first goes in.
We're paying about £800 a window for the replacement sashes (but our windows are massive)

You need planning permission in a flat to change windows to upvc. Flats don't have the same permitted development rights as houses.

But if the windows are the reason you bought the place, you will devalue it.

Secondary glazing will work. Draft stripping the windows can really help.

I am so surprised you can have uPVC windows in a conservation area. I live in one and we had to jump through hoops to replace our single glazed with double glazed wooden sashes.

I did look at uPVC for the back of the house but decided against it as they just didn't look that nice.

I am not sure if I was buying a flat, a uPVC window would be enough to put me off or devalue it. I'd probably look to remove them though.

Have you considered a ventroller system to reduce the drafts and then just replacing the single glazing with new super thin double glazed units in the original frames? We did this at our old house and it was lots cheaper than new windows and made a real difference. You want to find a sash window refurbisher.

Try Ventrolla - brush system. Much more sustainable than UPVC.

Also planning permission is required as others have said if it’s a flat.

UPVC doesn’t look the same as timber. It’s shiny and chunky and the double glazing is obvious. It’ll look odd against the other windows in the property.

@Littlecaf

Try Ventrolla - brush system. Much more sustainable than UPVC.

Also planning permission is required as others have said if it’s a flat.

UPVC doesn’t look the same as timber. It’s shiny and chunky and the double glazing is obvious. It’ll look odd against the other windows in the property.

Modern specialist UPVC sash windows like the ones I have posted about look exactly like timber. You clearly haven't seen them.

As I've said before I've had many comments about our 'beautiful wooden sashes' which are actually UPVC and thoroughly compliant in the conversation zone I live in.

Same. Replaced ugly aluminium frames with Upvc Sash... It only became a conservation area in 2012 so a lot of the damage has already been done on our street. I think only one or two houses have timber Sash and the rest are like ours. You really can't tell the difference and for cost, longevity, noise reduction and heat retention they win hands down (grew up in a house with timber sashes and it was always draughty and noisy!)

We used Charisma Rose and went for the wood effect.

Wood. Plastic is obvious and detrimental to the heritage value of a period property. The windows such as Masterframe Symphony are the worst of all in my opinion. They are fake and I cannot abide fakery. They have pretend wood grain and pretend butt joints and pretend putty beads. The wide frames may be passable aesthetic replacements for basic crude sashes but they have nothing that comes close to fine Georgian ones.