Beautiful Windows :: Double Glazing Make Over

With the weather getting better and many proud home owners are having a chance to get in the garden have a good look at their property. Eyeing up the potential work needed will probably involve new double glazing or fascias.

Even if the windows that are fitted at the moment are PVC the chances are that they will need replacing if they are over 10 years old or more.

The benefits speak for themselves as windows and doors are far more insulating than ever before and it will be very beneficial when the colder weather comes in the autumn. Considering the winter just gone which lasted a month or so more than expected it would be a great idea to insulate more.

Easy to keep black with white available internally

Not only will the energy conservation be beneficial but the overall cosmetics of the property as there are many different colours and styles in windows available to give that bespoke look over your neighbours. 

Make your house stand out with Irish oak effect or be bold and go for the creams or greys. Or be conservative and clever with maintenance and cleaning in mind and go for the black grained windows.

Visit the website ::  www.southportdoors.com

Get a window or door quote of us here 

Double Glazing - Cold Weather Should Be A Wake Up Call For The Future

Blizzard conditions are an extreme example to suggest why people need to upgrade their double glazing to A rated, but the build up to these conditions are a wake up call as to how cold winters are going to get from now on.

Global cycles suggest that it will be more consistent than ever before that when winter comes the short extreme amounts of cold and icy weather will be colder than previously experienced.

The preparation for these winters are in the way of insulating, through cavity insulation, loft insulation and insulating double glazing.

Although lots of people opt for cheaper heat generating multi fuel and wood burners, the heat needs to be retained otherwise the whole process is pointless.

And with energy bills strangely always being put up at the colder times of the year, the long term money saving option is a viable one. Investment in the correct products is the only way that the family can be assured lower bills and a more comfortable warmer home environment in extreme weather conditions year in year out.

Upgrading the front door of your home to the newer composite doors which carry far better U values will prevent a large cold area in the hall way, as the front door which sometimes consists of side frames and fanlights cover a large area.
Any heat generated in the hall way will be pointless and lost, so the cold air will flow through the house eliminating any other warmer areas.


More interesting links:

Composite doors | PVC Windows Advice | Double Glazing General | Glazing Questions


For more advice read the archived blogs.

Time Off At Christmas Will Be An Eye Opener For Double Glazing Home Improvents

With an average of 2 weeks off at Christmas most people will start to get itchy feet around the home by the start of week 2. 

Pondering around the home will be an eye opener as to what most full time employed people miss concerning home improvements and double glazing issues.

Simple things around the home start to stand out more than  ever as time is usually short during normal work time and any time off is used as wisely as possible with relaxing or entertaining the kids.


Just hanging the window lights up around the inside reveals of the windows can be an eye opener as to how bad the condensation problem is and what damage its is doing to the wallpaper and the plaster work underneath.



It is also a chance to be around the house during the day in the coldest part of the year relaxing and realising how much energy is needed to be generated just to keep a room at comfortable temperature. 
Then the realisation that the bill for this is higher than ever and is on the constant increase. Promises of heating bills increasing next year by at least 5 % is already on the cards.

There is also the chance to realise that all the energy that is being generated could very easily be contained in each room simply by installing the newer A rated PVC windows and doors.

Not only will the aesthetics improve the appearance of the home but also give the new year 2013 an energy efficient start.

Lowering your carbon footprint, being greener and being energy efficient has been long associated with flower power green peace obsessive recycling tree huggers.
But slowly society is starting to realise that this saves lots of money and enables the family to live a better lifestyle and allows them to benefit more from life in general through less money being outlaid.

New effective double glazing Incorporated with other insulating techniques such as cavity wall insulation and loft insulation will give a much better home environment for the family to live in.

More interesting links:

Composite doors | PVC Windows Advice | Double Glazing General | Glazing Questions


For more advice read the archived blogs.

Think About Fire Escapes, Ventilation And Sash Usage Of Each Room.

Small details matter when making the decision to go ahead ahead and buy new double glazed windows. 

It is important to think about the actual function of each window in each room and make sure you get the full benefit of what is on offer concerning sashes , openers and ventilation.

not all windows in the house will need easy clean hinges as half of them will more than likely be on the ground floor and be easily accessible.

Easy clean hinges make it easy for you to open the window, press a button and slide the sash into the middle of the opening to enable you to clean the outside of that pane of glass and allows you to reach round to the fixed pane installed next to it.

The easy clean or egress hinges also double up into fire escape hinges which allows the hinge to fully extend in to a 90 degree opening and allow a person through or fire fighter in.
they are only technically a fire escape when the actual opening is 610 mm or more.




A standard PVC window will only normally open to around half of the egress hinge.

Normally any house would only need one of these windows in an upper room. Preferably on to a roof or something that can be climbed on to.

Looking at how the windows in each room open is important also as windows opening from the bottom are more suited to homes that have blinds so as not to disturb the blinds when opening.

Rooms with possible access from outside would benefit better from a smaller opener at the top as to put off any type of attempted burglary. Any sash in a window that looks like it can be climbed into and looks an easy target and in a shaded area is too tempting.

Use trickle vents in the windows that are in rooms that generate a lot of steam. These vents can be closed at will and allow a small trickle of air to slowly disperse moisture when the house is not occupied.



Dummy sashes can bring massive benefits in aesthetics. They are made in the same way as the actual openers but gives the frames a distinct dimension and bulk which looks better and suites older properties.

They don't actually open as the older timber dummy sashes didn't do either.This is slightly more expensive but benefits the appearance of certain properties.

Company information

More technical information on varying types of doors, windows and conservatories can be found here as we have been collecting knowledge and giving the professional finish for 23 years. Contact us or browse our website @    Southport Doors & Double Glazing

Interesting links:

New Rockdoors | PVC windows  | ultimate conservatories | high security door products 

More advice and posts on :

What is PVC ? and what does it stand for ?

combating condensation

Tips on how to re seal your own windows and get a professional guide

The professional view on how to sell your house and what areas to address

What benefits are there with PVC windows

Are the locks secure in your doors? check this post to see what we mean

Treat Timber Windows Every Year ...Alternatively Covert To PVC

Timber windows are the most natural warming effect that every home would benefit from, apart from the fact that they are not any where near as energy efficient and need constant attention, repair and maintenance.

If the wooden windows are not kept properly with the correct treatments the weather will get in and start to manifest itself slowly at first then gradually enough to become uncontrollable from an nonprofessionals capabilities.



Time consuming painting labour year in year out and mind numbing treatments are something that need to be gotten rid of especially for the middle aged and older home owner who isn't getting any younger. 

The prospect of climbing up ladders and perching in uncomfortable situations to weather seal timber frames is a daunting one, and its a good job there is an alternative.

PVC windows and doors offer all the benefits that anyone would need compared to timber.


Energy efficient

Almost maintenance free as they will need hinges etc spray oiling every 6 months

No need for painting and treating

No need for filling and sanding

Double glazed compared to many timber frames although some are double glazed but are no where near as efficient as PVC 

Easily wiped clean with a damp cloth on the internal side.

Highly insulated frames as well as the double glazed unit 

Lower your carbon footprint

Fully recyclable at the end of their life

Much more secure with composite integrated locking mechanisms and shoot bolts.

Handle locks on all functioning sashes

PVC will not warp or deteriorate in the wind, heat or extreme weather.

Available in all kinds of finishes to closely imitate timber windows and range in colours such as the reds, greys, blues, rosewoods, and oak as well as black and greens.

Stylish bevelled and scotia frame finishes with internal beds to match.

Night vents for bedroom venting in the summer months

A rated glazing available to combat condensation

A rated glazing to lower bills

A rated glazing to keep the rooms cool in the summer months as well as keeping heat in , in the winter months.

Guarantees that cover the windows for 10 years-  so no worries about performance or 
functionality.

Added option of easy clean/ fire escape hinges for multi purpose sashes. 




20 real reasons not dig out the paint brushes and start the dreaded climbing up ladders to treat timber windows and doors.


Company information

More technical information on varying types of doors, windows and conservatories can be found here as we have been collecting knowledge and giving the professional finish for 23 years. Contact us or browse our website @    Southport Doors & Double Glazing

Interesting links:

New Rockdoors | PVC windows  | ultimate conservatories | high security door products 

More advice and posts on :

What is PVC ? and what does it stand for ?

combating condensation

Tips on how to re seal your own windows and get a professional guide

The professional view on how to sell your house and what areas to address

What benefits are there with PVC windows

Are the locks secure in your doors? check this post to see what we mean

  

So Many Conservatories Ready For Next Generation And Will Be Cheaper Second Time Round.

Around the country there are so many conservatories that are in desperate need of a replacement.

 As the standard guarantee on a conservatory is a 10 year from any installer there is a lot that are out of guarantee, unmaintained , unsightly, not very well insulated and still just about standing.

Not only that but the ones that have been either done badly or or wrong will start being detrimental to the home they are attached to.

Double glazed PVC conservatories were considered a luxury only a few could afford,  then  planning relaxed on them and the prices came down enough for them to start popping up in virtually every other garden.

The only problem with the conservatories that were installed so quickly over a short space of time is that the majority were in white PVC and some used cheap materials. The building regulations on conservatories aren't the same as within the house boundaries so they don't need to fall in to insulating guidelines.

Most earlier conservatories used the cheaper versions of the polycarb roofing panels which are useless at withholding any heat at all.



There are improvements on the panels but they are still a mile off the A rated glass units installed today. Which have the added bonus option of them being self cleaning.

The glass in the frames will usually be toughened safety glass as this is the normal mandatory rule of glazing in a conservatory as the dwarf walls fall short of the 800mm height requirement.

The new A rated options of glazing will make massive differences in the winter months and also help keep cool in the summer. Altering the style of roof such as gable conservatory roof can give a different dimension and outlook.

Sun Damage  

Sun damages PVC  throughout the year and older versions of roofs and their parts start to perish and become brittle,  therefore creating problems with the rain.

The PVC  is constantly expanding and contracting throughout its 10 year guarantee and moving all the time. Newer second generation PVC roofing systems are manufactured to withstand far more weather through innovation and design.

Cheaper To Replace Second Time

With an already standing base to build off then the cost of having the lower building work carried out is not there.
 As long as the base is level and has sufficient drainage for the escaping rainwater and no sign of damp or water damage it will fine.

The average cost of a simple average sized base is going to have cost around £ 4000 to 
£ 5000 so its a good saving initially. 

It will also have the advantage of speeding up the job as the only thing that needs carrying out is to De construct the existing conservatory and install the new one. 

No more waiting around for the weather to pick up so builders can turn up to start digging and laying bricks.

So many people move in to a property and accept that the conservatory they have acquired is there for the long term. Even though they can only use it in the warmer months of the year.

There is also the option of styling the conservatory space in to a new more modern style of hybrid orangery with columns and internal soffits for small sunken spotlights creating an environment you want to be in.

Upgrading a conservatory is an investment in usage of space and investment into a better lifestyle through out the home.


Company information

More technical information on varying types of doors, windows and conservatories can be found here as we have been collecting knowledge and giving the professional finish for 23 years. Contact us or browse our website @    Southport Doors & Double Glazing

Interesting links:

New Rockdoors | PVC windows  | ultimate conservatories | high security door products 

More advice and posts on :

What is PVC ? and what does it stand for ?

combating condensation

Tips on how to re seal your own windows and get a professional guide

The professional view on how to sell your house and what areas to address

What benefits are there with PVC windows

Are the locks secure in your doors? check this post to see what we mean