front elevation dilemma
Pat
5 years ago
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tatts
5 years agoRelated Discussions
Casement or double hung window on front elevation
Comments (21)From Thermotech's website: Firstly a double hung window is not as air tight as a casement window. The double hung window has to slide, so its weatherstripping can't be as tight as a casement or it won't slide. That's obvious to most people. What is not so obvious is that sliding windows aren't as air tight as casements because the weatherstripping changes plane. Think of the bottom sash of a double hung. The bottom and side rails are weatherstripped along the edge of the rail. But what about the meeting rail? It's weatherstripped along the outer face. It is difficult, very difficult, to maintain the integrity of the air seal through this change of plane. Despite the fact that double hung windows are inherently draftier than casements, this does not have a major effect on your annual heating bill. The reality is that as long as new windows can maintain their tested air tightness (this topic will be the subject of a future column) very little of the window's heat loss is due to air leakage. Most of the annual heat loss from reasonably tight windows is from conductivity losses through the frame, spacer and glass. This is where double hung windows really fall down, (so to speak). All sliding windows have inherently cold frames compared to hinged windows, like casements. The sash in a casement window is "insulated" on the inside by the hardware cavity. The sash in a double hung window has no such advantage. Another inherent thermal weakness in any sliding window is the meeting rail. Thermally it is the weakest part of any sliding window. The upper sash in a double hung not only loses heat through its outer face, but also through its lower edge. It is cooled on two sides. That's why the bottom edge of the upper sash experiences condensation before the lower sash....See MoreElevated Tub design dilemma
Comments (14)We're talking about a total of 3 sf of tile. If I were tiling the walls around the tub I'd being doing things different and putting a walk in shower in. But we're not talking about that. We are talking about a retarded 6" strip of tile because a design pro thought that would be neato. This is a limited scope/limited budget project. The bathroom only needs to be clean, functional, and somewhat pleasing to the eyes. I'm not putting some spa/jacuzzi/take me away calgon bathroom sauna experience in....See MoreFront elevation and bathroom window dilemma
Comments (17)We have this issue in our current home! The original windows are high and horizontal/long - they make the house look like it's squinting if that makes sense. We're planning to enlarge both windows that flank the front door, including the bathroom window in our master even though it faces our courtyard (so not exactly visible from the street, but still visible from the front of our house). We're planning to install the same style of wooden shutters used throughout the house (bifold white wooden shutters), but a water-friendly version (assume they are PVC). Planning to keep the lower half closed most of the time to obscure the view into the window from outside while allowing light to come in through the top part. The current windows are reeded glass and I actually hate the look. Our windows, however, are not IN the shower - just in the bathroom. So that might make a difference. The windows on your house look really tall/long. Is it worth rearranging the bathroom floor plan so that the windows aren't in the tub/shower itself? We also looked at window films that obscure the view from the outside (make it look like a mirror) - there are several homes in our neighborhood that have this. It might be worth looking into - I have heard that at night, there might be some visibility, though....See MoreFront elevation help
Comments (10)You may actually be responding to the wrongness of the design and thinking it's flat, when that is not the problem. If anything, I would be looking to remove the smaller gable and the brick or stone under it (whatever material is intended there). It looks odd to emphasize a vertical area that doesn't include the front door. I would flatten the center gable or eliminate it. Is there some reason the windows on the right are paired together instead of singles like the other side? While you don't need to be a slave to symmetry (the garage is already throwing off the symmetry), unless there's a good reason to have different windows it looks like a mistake. The window over the front door looks like something from the '90's. In fact the whole design looks like something from the '90's. I love traditional, but if you like it too, go more traditional and don't repeat mistakes from thirty years ago. While everyone hates the look of a garage, this one isn't bad because it isn't positioned in front of the bulk of the house. If you eliminate the gables, make the portico more interesting and then you will have a beautiful, classic, traditional home. If you can afford to put brick or stone on the front, do the whole front, don't piecemeal it....See Moregroveraxle
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5 years agoHALLETT & Co.
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5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoPat
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