As a homeowner, you’ll discover — or perhaps you’ve already discovered — that you have a variety of different responsibilities. There are two different aspects of managing your home. There are things that have to do with appearance and comfort — things like comfortable furniture, aesthetically pleasing paint jobs and much more. This is all very important. Then, however, there are the practicalities to worry about. Practicalities have to do with how your appliances run, how much use you can get out of your air conditioning units before you have to replace them, and much more. The fact is that you shouldn’t have to worry about things like doors and windows — things that tend to fly under the radar — but you do. There are ways you can take care of your doors and windows, and ensure that you get as much performance out of them as possible. There are is also a much greater variety of windows and doors on the market than you’d probably think. With that being said, let’s look into the advantages of choosing one type over the other, and what you should choose.
Doors: On Investment Returns And Efficiency
A door is a door — or is it? Although we walk in and out of doors each day, we often don’t give a second thought as to what they’re made of or how they perform. The materials with which doors are made often affect how well they can trap hot and cool air. If air escapes your house, that means energy can escape as well. A loss of energy equals a loss of money. As such, you should think carefully before selecting a type of door. You should also be careful and not neglect to replace a damaged door. Furthermore, you should think over how much a door costs, before how much it will give in return. Chances are that unless you’re very much settled, you may end up selling your home in the future. Doors affect your home’s overall value. One common type of door is the steel door. On average, a new steel front entry door costs $2,000 to be cost. This may sound like a lot, but it provides a 75% investment return. That isn’t the only type of door with a good return. A fiberglass entry door, by contrast, gives a return of 82.3%. Don’t forget about the safety involved in keeping your doors up to date. With 33% of intruders entering through the front door, it’s important to keep your door full rather than hollow. This will make them harder to kick in. Perhaps even more important — and overlooked — than doors, however, are windows.
Windows: The Varieties On The Market, What To Look For
You may not think that windows can affect your monthly energy bills. Like doors, however, they affect more than you might think. And the fact is that it’s easy to forget about windows, and even neglect them. How old are your windows? Most of us wouldn’t know the answer to that question off the top of our heads. But if your windows are over 15 years old, it’s likely that you’re facing draftiness, high energy bills, and windows that stick in their frames. Although replacing these features may seem like a pain — or even unnecessary — believe us when we say it’s more important than you’d ever think. Inefficient windows account for about 25% of your home’s energy bills; double-pane windows with insulated glass and heat-resistant coatings can cut those bills by up to 15%. But your windows don’t just keep energy in your home — they also keep you a lot safer than old, inefficient windows. Newer windows can give a return investment of up to 70%. Insulated or double pane windows featuring a quarter inch to an inch of air or argon between panes can reduce noise as well.
Keeping an eye on easily overlooked things like these will ensure a safer, more efficient home.
