Commanche, What's up chief? I saw your comment about using untreated pine - now thats something I never heard of before. I suspect it would not pass building codes, but you do have me thinking about it. Its just hard to beleive that stained untreated pine would hold up to any adverse weather/sun conditions. What stain did you use? Anybody else ever try this? On the other had, it does seem that the (questionable) protection from today pressure treating has the adverse effect of making the wood very high in moisture content when its bought and then it moves all over the place as it dries. If I did buy PT, I would prefer to sticker it and let it air dry for a year or so but I don't have that kind of time (or should have thought about that last year). Any one know where you can get PT wood that has been thoroughly dried down to a guranteed moister content? Factor applied water seal and moldicide would be even better. There is still a downside in that PT would often has that greenish color from the PT process and it does not look natural, or even looks like mold. Anyway, thanks again to all who have made suggestions. I am still researching my options and I am learning a lot form this forum. PS - anybody use the CAMO Marksman hidden screw system. It has a screw alignment jig that angles the screw in the edge of the board at a 45 degree angle. I will see if I can find a thread on this. Link below. http://www.protoolreviews.com/reviews/hardware/screws-nails/camo-marksman-pro-fastener Here is a link that might be useful: CAMO hidden screw system

Hi Central 79, Glad to hear you are narrowing down your window options -- it will be good for you to get the decision made so you can move on to the next big decision. I don't know anything about either the Windsor or Plygem windows, but hopefully you will get feedback from the window experts on this forum about these two brands. I know Integrity is a popular choice on this board. As per mixing different window materials, I think that would not be a problem with the attic windows, or any basement windows. We have vinyl in our basement, and on the north front face of our home. Before starting our addition we had recently replaced all the north facing windows with a high quality vinyl windows. When we chose to go with fiberglass for the addition, I was worried they would not go. However, this has not proven to be a problem given all the windows on one side of the house are the same. All of our windows are white like you are suggesting. For sure the vinyl windows we have have thicker mullions than the fiberglass, but they don't look that different. Now we don't have wood on the interior as you are considering as our fiberglass windows are fiberglass on the inside and outside -- not sure if that makes a big difference. I was unclear from your post where you were planning to mix the windows. Will different windows be in the same room? Will different windows be on the same side of the house viewed from the exterior? I do think the attic fixed ovals will not look out of place with your main floor fiberglass windows. Are you planning to mix two or three different kinds of windows? What do others think about mixing different windows? Carol

Nothing about your home should keep you up at night. If concerns about using a particular construction material or method will do that, then don't use it. However, if we never applied any new materials, systems, and construction methods in residential construction, our homes would be no more comfortable and perform no better than homes built in the 1700's. We wouldn't have, for example, air conditioning, which makes living here in coastal Virginia much more pleasant in summer and which keeps certain contractors in the Houston area employed. The energy crisis in the 1970s gave rise to the use of house wraps and vapor barriers which caused plenty of unintended consequences. That doesn't make polyethylene or house wrap bad materials, it's simply that the building science wasn't established at the time. We continue to rely on the researchers to thoroughly test new ideas (and real world testing is better than computer simulations) to minimize, if not preclude, unintended consequences. When considering the use of the latest and greatest materials homeowners would be well advised to remember the old adage: The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese!

If you like the look of the proportions of your current windows, but think they would look better a few inches taller, than add a foot+few inches to your new 10 ft ceilings. I'm sure there are some rough guidelines, but a lot comes down to preference and house design. Technology also comes into play, such as much larger doors and windows being used in hurricane areas due to newer window glass that is designed for the higher wind speeds. Some people don't like windows close to the ground and some do. Custom homes tend to have more and bigger windows than tract homes or spec builds. Do you want furniture in front of some windows? Adjust the sill height accordingly for those windows. Also consider the look from outside the house.