A.While advertising "lifetime" guarantees, most window replacement companies actually ensure their product for between 5 and 20 years. But the existing windows in your home have already lasted between 75 and 100 years! When properly restored, the life of these same windows can be doubled--another 75 to 100 years. How is this possible?

As argued earlier, the craftsmanship of the mortise and tenin joint remains the strongest joint on the market. We use epoxies and wood hardeners to restore the strength of window parts, taking apart loose frames and regluing them with state-of-the-art wood glues to recover the original strength of these hand-crafted windows, windows that won't warp or wrack.

B. If the eye is the window to the soul, then the window is a pretty important part of any architectural design. The Secretary of the Department of Interior, the office which specifies the criteria for establishing historic status on the National Registry, clearly recommends the preservation of original windows during the restoration of an architectural structure.

The installation of replacement windows inevitably results in alterations which compromise the integrity of the original architectural structure. Common alterations (adopted to economize on the manufacturing process) include: downsizing, simplifying shapes, altering thickness, and enlarging muntins. Replacement windows are often "tacked on" over original casings, creating an artificial rather than an integral fit. Another common simplification is alteration of the shape of the window profile because the manufacturer doesn't have the cutter shape which was used to mill the original windows.Finally, the difficulty in procuring thick stock has resulted in the manufacturing of smaller frames than were crafted for the original windows.

C. Houses are like trees in many respects, one of which is the organic way in which the parts of the house grow together as they age. This fact creates problems for major facade alterations such as window replacement entails. One thing leads to another so that what originally was an isolated alteration of the windows leads to unintended alterations in other aspects of what has become an organically integrated whole. Even when the window replacement process involves reinstallation of the window casings, these casings never fit with the same tightness that was their original fit. Whereas a skilled craftsman might be able to eventually make them fit, this would make the window installation process exhorbitantly expensive. Window casings, then, are typically tacked on quickly with pneumatic hammers without concern as to the gaps that have suddenly appeared where the formerly tight-fitting casings no longer are square and/or do not fit snug against the walls. As is the hidden secret of many a poor trim carpenter, the gaps are often left for the painter to caulk and/or replaster (which only leads to more problems--see our section on trim refitting above).

D. New technology is not always an improvement. For instance, the automatic lock system which used to allow me to lock and unlock the doors on my van with the push of a button worked like a charm when it was new. Now that it has failed, though, I am worse off than I was when I had to manually lock my car. Now this system locks some doors, but not others. Since it is an automatic procedure, I am stuck having to walk around my car to manually lock several doors.

The same is true of the new, much lauded window balance systems which allow for the tilting of windows inward for easy cleaning. These systems work fine when they are new. But how long does this last? Even the best of them are warranteed for only 20 years. Properly restored weight-and-chain balance systems, on the other hand, will last a hundred years without need for repair.

E. Replacement windows typically have gas permeable window units. Once again, these work fine when they are new. But even the best are only waranteed for 20 years. The windows themselves are substantial--its the window seals that break. When they break, moisture seeps into the units to create fogging, cracking and loss of insulating value. At this point, it is cheaper to replace the replacement windows than it is to fix them. Buying replacement windows then baloons from a single instance of replacement into a replacement cycle which results in additional cost. What one thought was a once-and-done (expensive) replacement cost turns into just the first installment of a life-time subscription to window replacement.