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The new-ish plastic windows I have are actually ~15 years old and they have none of these issues (they are new-ish compared to the older wooden windows). They a

by sershe 4y ago

The new-ish plastic windows I have are actually ~15 years old and they have none of these issues (they are new-ish compared to the older wooden windows). They are in a condition that could be described as "looks new" and keep in warmth better as confirmed with an IR thermometer around them. The wooden windows of the same age and roughly the same dimensions installed by the same company are all kinds of wonky; they slide poorly because of I guess gradual shape change and wear of the wood, and don't seal well. Also a minor installation defect caused the top of one of the windows to rot. Not a problem with plastic, if there's a defect just fix it, window is good as new. When the window guys told me I need to replace the window I just said while you're at it do you want to rip out all the other ones too an replace with plastic? :)

nemo44x 4y ago
You must have bought the magical, physics defying model. Vinyl warps more than twice as much as wood and 7 times glass and is very weak to resistance. On an extremely hot or cold day the temperature outside and inside are hugely different. This matters more in regions that see more extreme temperatures throughout the year. Now it might be you live in a climate where the weather barely changes and it might be your windows are quite small. Smaller windows don’t suffer as much as larger windows like a 36x52. So I’ll grant environment matters. Even which direction they face will matter. And yes there are different qualities of vinyl windows. But I’d put a lower quality aluminum/fiberglass clad wood window against the best vinyl every day. And while there’s no accounting for taste, vinyl windows look awful.
- sershe 4y ago
  I do live in Seattle, but where I've previously lived the temperature routinely goes to -30F in winter and 95F in the summer, and for the reasons of previous lack of availability plastic windows were one of the first things people installed, including on e.g. 5-6ft square panels. Never heard of the problems with them, and never had problems with whichever ones I used. However in many places I lived (including with mild climate like SF) wooden windows never failed to have some wonkiness to them, and in one apartment when you closed the sliding windows too fast there'd be fresh wood shavings coming out :) Also just googling "vinyl window wrap" or deformation (I assume vinyl is what people typically call cheaper plastic?) I cannot find much of anything. On the other hand if you google for wooden windows or siding moisture/deformation/rot, you find plenty of advice and complaints alike. These physics seem to be reality defying, or they apply in some extreme conditions when comparing with the best possible wooden window... And I tried to avoid bringing up taste, even though I wanted to, but I guess I have to bite now. That actually gives me additional disdain for wooden-window-buying - yep, they are still popular because a significant fraction of the population still thinks that e.g. craftsman houses with "nooks" and 4-to-7ft sloping ceiling on the 2nd floor are "timeless" and modern functional ones are "soulless boxes". I can only chalk it to misplaced nostalgia... I'm sorry, the Neolithic called, they want their mud huts back :P

by sershe 4y ago

nemo44x 4y ago

You must have bought the magical, physics defying model. Vinyl warps more than twice as much as wood and 7 times glass and is very weak to resistance. On an extremely hot or cold day the temperature outside and inside are hugely different. This matters more in regions that see more extreme temperatures throughout the year. Now it might be you live in a climate where the weather barely changes and it might be your windows are quite small. Smaller windows don’t suffer as much as larger windows like a 36x52. So I’ll grant environment matters. Even which direction they face will matter. And yes there are different qualities of vinyl windows. But I’d put a lower quality aluminum/fiberglass clad wood window against the best vinyl every day. And while there’s no accounting for taste, vinyl windows look awful.

sershe 4y ago
I do live in Seattle, but where I've previously lived the temperature routinely goes to -30F in winter and 95F in the summer, and for the reasons of previous lack of availability plastic windows were one of the first things people installed, including on e.g. 5-6ft square panels. Never heard of the problems with them, and never had problems with whichever ones I used. However in many places I lived (including with mild climate like SF) wooden windows never failed to have some wonkiness to them, and in one apartment when you closed the sliding windows too fast there'd be fresh wood shavings coming out :) Also just googling "vinyl window wrap" or deformation (I assume vinyl is what people typically call cheaper plastic?) I cannot find much of anything. On the other hand if you google for wooden windows or siding moisture/deformation/rot, you find plenty of advice and complaints alike. These physics seem to be reality defying, or they apply in some extreme conditions when comparing with the best possible wooden window... And I tried to avoid bringing up taste, even though I wanted to, but I guess I have to bite now. That actually gives me additional disdain for wooden-window-buying - yep, they are still popular because a significant fraction of the population still thinks that e.g. craftsman houses with "nooks" and 4-to-7ft sloping ceiling on the 2nd floor are "timeless" and modern functional ones are "soulless boxes". I can only chalk it to misplaced nostalgia... I'm sorry, the Neolithic called, they want their mud huts back :P