How to Buy Replacement Windows

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm James, with JNC Home Repair. Today I'm going to tell you how to buy replacement windows. First thing you want to consider about buying a replacement window is different types of styles that you prefer. You may prefer a vinyl window, you may prefer an aluminum framed window. Most older type windows are aluminum framed, they're not real energy efficient, they don't hold in air very well, they let air inside the house. You might consider a double hung, double pane glass which is pretty common nowadays. It's going to be a lot more energy efficient, you're going to get a lot more bang for your buck as far as your energy bill. You're going to, your light bill is going to go down a considerable amount by using these types of windows. Also, when you're picking out your window, you want to make sure that you get the right size. There's basically two ways you can measure your window. You can actually measure the inside glass part of the window and then you can actually measure the outside edge of the frame included, that's the most common way you want to measure your window. It's also good to actually pull off your trim around the window on the outside and you can actually get a good accurate measurement of what the rough opening is and what your new window's going to go into. If you get a window that's too small you're going to have to overcompensate it with closing in your trim over the edges to close the gap. If you get a window that's too big then you're actually going to have to get in to where you're going to have to move maybe one of the studs on either side or maybe the header on the top or the bottom. So it's always a good idea to maybe remove one of your windows and get a good, accurate measurement of what your window is before you go decide buying windows and replacing them, because you might have a budget just to swap them out and you get a window that's too small or too big and then you're going to end up creating a bunch more work for yourself that's not really in your budget. So that's a couple things to consider when you're buying replacement windows."