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My point is you can DIY that strip/reglaze work. If you contract it out it will be expensive, yes. Wood windows on the old property have fared much better than

My point is you can DIY that strip/reglaze work. If you contract it out it will be expensive, yes. Wood windows on the old property have fared much better than plastic or aluminum. Plastic fared the worst. Condensation will happen, but wood won't rot unless it can't dry out. It can dry out because you heat the house for one. That said any material will take damage if you let water intrusion (plastic frames too!) If water gets behind paint in painted wood, it'll rot. Some windows have better details for this - the trim and sill are sloped so that any water will naturally drip out instead of gathering. The windows that survived a long time tend to have those trim details that seem esthetic but are really functional.

amluto 3y ago
The condensation issue isn't necessarily water intrusion -- the cases I've seen on windows in otherwise good condition were repeated wetting of the inside surface of the wood at the bottom of the glass. This won't rot most wood, especially in cold weather. But it's terrible for the finish and the appearance, and it can cause brittleness and splitting.
- VHRanger 3y ago
  Yes, these things mostly happens because people get important details wrong. It might be bad flashing on the exterior, bad trim details on the interior, or not heating the windows appropriately in the winter, etc. Seeing these sort of issues as I renovate houses I've owned made me realize the difference between bottom dollar and paying for quality. And also stuff that masquerades as quality but is overpriced junk.
  - amluto 3y ago
    I’ve seen this in a nice, well-constructed, fairly well insulated, fairly well-sealed house. The outdoor nighttime temperature would be 0F or down to -10F or so on an ordinary winter night. At 65F, 50% RH inside, the dew point is 46F. If you like sleeping warmer, 72F, 50% RH has a dew point of 52F. Most people like sleeping with shades or blinds closed, so somehow the inner glass surface, hiding behind window treatments, needs to be kept above the dew point or condensation needs to be tolerated. There’s a ~20 degree difference permitted between room air and the glass surface and the remaining 50-60 degrees between glass surface and outside. That’s a tall order to avoid condensation. One can maintain a lower humidity (which is easier to do on a poorly sealed house). 30% RH at 72F pushes the dew point below 40F. Lower humidity also reduces the rate of condensation and speeds up drying in the daytime. > bad flashing on the exterior I don’t see how exterior flashing affects this. It’s an interior problem. > bad trim details on the interior Well, yes, I guess? If you make whatever interior surface touches the glass be impervious to water (fiberglass, vinyl or aluminum, for example, although aluminum has its own thermal issues), then maybe you don’t care about condensation. If you use very very well-insulating windows (triple paned with warm spacers, for example), you can actually reduce condensation. > not heating the windows appropriately in the winter The only houses I’ve seen that heat the windows either have forced air vents or radiators by the exterior walls. This is a somewhat outdated practice to help compensate for poorly insulated walls. Old houses may also have very low interior humidity, further reducing the problem. I’d rather have a comfy house with comfortable humidity, built to tolerate a comfortable humidity. If that means aluminum-clad or fiberglass windows, so be it.
    - VHRanger 3y ago
      > That’s a tall order to avoid condensation. Oh, indoor condensation absolutely will happen. Even in a new build that's up to "passive house certification" levels of well-insulated. You just have to design around this truth. > I don’t see how exterior flashing affects this. It’s an interior problem. It's a much bigger problem than what you're talking about. Water and moisture come between the window frame and the wall frame. > I’d rather have a comfy house with comfortable humidity, built to tolerate a comfortable humidity. But any decent wood DOES tolerate humidity. It won't if you do stupid things, like put latex paint on the interior side. The problem you'd see with wood windows not tolerating the minuscule amount of water you're mentioning with condensation is simply because someone messed something up. They built a frame out of SPF wood. They painted over it with latex. Or both. A window frame made out of any decent wood will last a century of the condensation moisture you're mentioning. I've renovated more than one century houses and I see the difference. The wood windows that rotted were either because of exterior issues, or latex paint on the interior, or wood that should simply not be used to make a window.

amluto 3y ago

The condensation issue isn't necessarily water intrusion -- the cases I've seen on windows in otherwise good condition were repeated wetting of the inside surface of the wood at the bottom of the glass. This won't rot most wood, especially in cold weather. But it's terrible for the finish and the appearance, and it can cause brittleness and splitting.

VHRanger 3y ago
Yes, these things mostly happens because people get important details wrong. It might be bad flashing on the exterior, bad trim details on the interior, or not heating the windows appropriately in the winter, etc. Seeing these sort of issues as I renovate houses I've owned made me realize the difference between bottom dollar and paying for quality. And also stuff that masquerades as quality but is overpriced junk.
- amluto 3y ago
  I’ve seen this in a nice, well-constructed, fairly well insulated, fairly well-sealed house. The outdoor nighttime temperature would be 0F or down to -10F or so on an ordinary winter night. At 65F, 50% RH inside, the dew point is 46F. If you like sleeping warmer, 72F, 50% RH has a dew point of 52F. Most people like sleeping with shades or blinds closed, so somehow the inner glass surface, hiding behind window treatments, needs to be kept above the dew point or condensation needs to be tolerated. There’s a ~20 degree difference permitted between room air and the glass surface and the remaining 50-60 degrees between glass surface and outside. That’s a tall order to avoid condensation. One can maintain a lower humidity (which is easier to do on a poorly sealed house). 30% RH at 72F pushes the dew point below 40F. Lower humidity also reduces the rate of condensation and speeds up drying in the daytime. > bad flashing on the exterior I don’t see how exterior flashing affects this. It’s an interior problem. > bad trim details on the interior Well, yes, I guess? If you make whatever interior surface touches the glass be impervious to water (fiberglass, vinyl or aluminum, for example, although aluminum has its own thermal issues), then maybe you don’t care about condensation. If you use very very well-insulating windows (triple paned with warm spacers, for example), you can actually reduce condensation. > not heating the windows appropriately in the winter The only houses I’ve seen that heat the windows either have forced air vents or radiators by the exterior walls. This is a somewhat outdated practice to help compensate for poorly insulated walls. Old houses may also have very low interior humidity, further reducing the problem. I’d rather have a comfy house with comfortable humidity, built to tolerate a comfortable humidity. If that means aluminum-clad or fiberglass windows, so be it.
  - VHRanger 3y ago
    > That’s a tall order to avoid condensation. Oh, indoor condensation absolutely will happen. Even in a new build that's up to "passive house certification" levels of well-insulated. You just have to design around this truth. > I don’t see how exterior flashing affects this. It’s an interior problem. It's a much bigger problem than what you're talking about. Water and moisture come between the window frame and the wall frame. > I’d rather have a comfy house with comfortable humidity, built to tolerate a comfortable humidity. But any decent wood DOES tolerate humidity. It won't if you do stupid things, like put latex paint on the interior side. The problem you'd see with wood windows not tolerating the minuscule amount of water you're mentioning with condensation is simply because someone messed something up. They built a frame out of SPF wood. They painted over it with latex. Or both. A window frame made out of any decent wood will last a century of the condensation moisture you're mentioning. I've renovated more than one century houses and I see the difference. The wood windows that rotted were either because of exterior issues, or latex paint on the interior, or wood that should simply not be used to make a window.