builders, provided plenty of information and profile drawings for each type of window.

Most of the upvc window firms made use of historical terms to describe their products, what Dr Steven Parissien of the Georgian Group calls the “hijacking of historical terminology by the replacement window manufacturers in order to give poorly designed modern products and relatively untried modern materials the veneer of historical respectability”.’ The words Georgian and Regency are used generously. Patterns of leaded light windows (usually strips stuck on or between the sheets of glass) are referred to as Tudor, Elizabethan or Edwardian. This must be intensely misleading to customers who wish to do the right thing by their houses.

Of the small joinery firms, Mumford & Wood of Ongar, provided good details of all its windows - plans, elevations, measurements and lists of options available but the star catalogue was undoubtedly that produced by the Original Box Sash Window Co. Here the timber window trade is fighting back at last: putting arguments as to why owners should use the original timber, backed up by isometric drawings of their products which are easy to understand. Double-glazed windows are offered at five percent more than single and draught proofing measures are includ

ed in the specifications. Maintenance instructions are also given. This five star service is reflected, of course, in the price.

The prices of the specially commissioned timber windows compared favourably with those in plastic and aluminium regardless of whether they were made locally or some distance away. Glasnost and the OBSWC were considerably more expensive than the rest of the field. The aluminium window was cheaper than the plastic and purpose-made timber windows.

Using the Boulton & Paul and John Cart catalogues, the nearest in size and type was found, and proved to be much the cheapest option by far, but of course glazing bar mouldings would be standard as would thicknesses. Since they were standard windows, the brick openings might have to be adapted to the new window which would involve extra cost.

Since some included glass, weights, pulleys, stays, cords etc and some did not, it seemed only fair to estimate what the full cost might be. This was a relatively easy task as the joiners’ quotations were so clear and detailed.

For this rather simple type of window,

purpose-made j oinery was substantially cheaper than upvc or aluminium probably because of the extra labour involved in making and fitting glazing bars. The off- the-peg catalogue prices were cheaper still but extra expense would have been incurred in trying to fit them into a nonstandard sized aperture.

Most of the upvc window firms made follow-up calls after the visit. When informed that unauthorised alteration of a listed building was a criminal offence, they seemed surprised.

SECONDARY GLAZING

Whilst installing upvc windows will eliminate maintenance in the short term, and lack of draughts will undoubtedly increase comfort, DIY plastic or glass secondary glazing adding another layer to existing windows would appear to be a cheaper and more effective alternative.

A quotation was obtained for secondary glazing both windows using a single sheet of glass each, framed in a plastic channel and held in place by turn-buttons screwed into the surrounding frame. It amounted to £30 including VAT and delivery charges.