Even though the hot summer days in San Diego are still a few months away, now is the time to start thinking about how you will keep your home cool when the temperatures rise. If you have an air conditioning unit—especially one that is a little bit on the older side, you could have it serviced now, before all of the HVAC techs get busy during the first heat wave of summer. Another way to prepare your home for summer is to take a good look at your home’s windows.
If you’ve noticed that your windows have air leaks, a new coat of caulking around the edges can help some, but if your windows only have a single pane of glass and aluminum frames, the hot air is still going to get through. This is because glass and aluminum, by themselves, do not have good insulating properties. In order for windows to keep out the heat (and cold), other insulating materials need to be used.
If you’ve looked into replacement windows at all recently, you probably noticed that windows with aluminum frames are not as popular as they once were. Most of the replacement windows sold in San Diego now have vinyl frames. This is because vinyl is a much better insulator than aluminum. It doesn’t have the strength of aluminum, but for most windows, it is perfectly sufficient. It is only when you have very large windows that you need to consider windows with stronger frames—and even then, you would likely want to choose windows with fiberglass frames over aluminum.
Modern windows also have two panes of glass to help further insulate your home from the heat and cold. In higher quality replacement windows, there will be a special gas (such as Argon or Krypton) in between the two sheets of glass, as well as a warm-edge spacer.
Michal Bohm, a veteran of the replacement window industry and owner of BM Windows in San Diego, says, “The replacement windows we install in San Diego homes do a great job of keeping inside temperatures comfortable year-round. Some of our customers tell us that they no longer have to use their heating and air conditioning units—saving them a ton of money on their energy bills!”
The cost of replacement windows may deter some San Diego homeowner from seriously considering upgrading their homes in this way, but there are a few factors to consider that will make them more affordable.
First of all, there are almost always tax credits or rebates available when you make energy-saving improvements to your home. Check with the federal government’s ENERGY STAR program for any current tax credits or your local energy companies for any rebates.
Second, as Bohm alluded to above, installing replacement windows in your San Diego home can reduce your monthly energy bills. Depending on the size of your house, the condition of your old windows, and the quality of the new windows you have installed, the savings can be substantial!
Finally, replacement windows have a good return on investment—especially when compared to other home improvement projects. You can expect to recoup more than 80% of the windows’ cost when you go to sell your home.
Add all of these benefits together, and it makes replacement windows seem a lot more affordable!
