The benefits: What you should know about wooden windows
We love wood. You probably guessed that already. But it’s not just the aesthetic appeal, warm charm and pleasant atmosphere that wooden windows give to a home that explain why we exclusively use wood. There are also solid scientific reasons why wooden windows are a smart choice for your building project.
Positive climate balance
Compared with PVC or aluminium-framed windows, wooden windows have the smallest environmental footprint. Wood-aluminium windows too are far superior to PVC or all-metal windows. The positive environmental balance of wooden windows is down to a number of factors:
- Wood is CO2 neutral, creates a minimal greenhouse effect, and is a sustainable, renewable resource.
- Wooden windows require a small amount of energy to manufacture,
- can be disposed of without harming the environment,
- do not contain any worrying chemicals,
- and have the best insulation values because wood is naturally an excellent insulator.
Incidentally, wooden windows made from native softwoods have the best ecological profile.
Durability
Although wooden windows may cost more initially than other materials, their longer durability and energy savings mean they are more cost-effective in the long term. As a comparison, wooden windows if cared for properly have an average lifespan of 60 years, whereas PVC windows only last around 20 years.
Various factors account for this longer durability. First of all, wooden windows can be repaired, and, thanks to new surface treatment processes, they have become extremely easy to look after and much more weather-resistant. But most importantly, they can be painted. That may represent a small expense, but it is a definite advantage of wood over other window materials like plastic. Moreover, if well cared for, painting is usually only required after many years.
Another benefit of wooden windows is that they are more robust. Wood naturally has excellent structural characteristics – which means wooden windows are dimensionally accurate and stable. They can easily withstand large stresses and even severe temperature fluctuations. In contrast, other window materials can undergo large dimensional changes when exposed to extreme temperatures, which means leaky, draughty windows that can be difficult to open or close.
Maintenance
Many people think that wooden windows are a lot of work to maintain. But new surface treatment methods have reduced maintenance requirements for modern wooden windows to a minimum, and made them much more weather-resistant. After cleaning, you can protect the window frames against the effects of the weather by simply applying a care lotion. Well looked-after windows will usually not need painting again for many years. If you want to avoid this task altogether, you can opt for wood-aluminium windows, which are extremely low-maintenance and weather-resistant. You simply clean the aluminium shell on the outside of the window using warm water.
Healthy housing and hygiene
Wooden windows are naturally able to regulate humidity in closed rooms because the wood absorbs excess moisture and releases it back into the room if the indoor climate becomes dry. Apart from maintaining a comfortable living environment, this also prevents eye and skin irritation, breathing problems, and mould growth.
Wood is also much more hygienic than plastic, for example. Multiple studies have shown that bacteria die quickly on wooden surfaces. Native pinewood has the strongest antibacterial effect. Bacteria are persistent on plastic surfaces, however. Even cleaning with disinfectant only provides short term relief.
Fire protection
“Wood burns easily” – or so you might think, if you watch a blazing log fire. In fact, however, wooden windows can easily withstand temperatures in excess of 200 °C, and they give off less smoke if they do burn. Plastic windows, on the other hand, start to melt at 110 to 130 °C. That means PVC frames deform more quickly, and the glass shatters sooner. The resulting inrush of oxygen may accelerate the fire.
Not only that, but burning plastics release dioxins – highly toxic fumes that are an additional danger to occupants and fire-fighters, and can make cleaning up after a fire difficult or impossible.
Special paints are available that further improve the fire protection properties of wooden windows.
