4 Creative ways to repurpose old windows

We recently looked at how sustainable glass is as a building material. One of the main conclusions we drew was that the sustainability of any material can be decided by what happens to it, once it reaches the end of its lifespan.

While glass can be recycled, this isn’t always the easiest way to dispose of it. But there are other ways to squeeze extra life from your windows when they’re no longer providing the insulation or performance that you need. 

Here are a few creative suggestions of ways you can reuse your windows to get even more use out of them, rather than relegating them to the recycling plant.

 

Creative ways to reuse or repurpose your windows

Traditional-style windows with beautiful glazing bars can be the hardest windows to say goodbye to. Often expensive, these windows can take on a new rustic charm as they age and actually increase their appeal. With a new lick of paint, or even more deliberate distressing, they can become a beautiful centrepiece in your home. 

A photo frame

Printed photos are becoming something of a dying art, and a sideboard scattered with small photo frames can look like clutter in a minimalist modern home.

A window with glazing bars comes with its own inbuilt dividers to help you house several related photos. Whether you have a selection of captured family memories or a more artistic collection of prints, a window frame can help tie them together as one cohesive wall decoration that frees up your surface space and has its own design identity.

If you’re repurposing a rustic-looking timber frame, then sepia or desaturated photos will carry on the aesthetic, while a more contrast-heavy black and white set fits perfectly with thinner aluminium frames.

Mirror

If the glass in your window is the problem, not the frame, pop it out (then recycle) and replace the panes with mirror panels instead. This works just as well for plain window frames, as it does for ones with decorative mullions, transoms or glazing bars.

It can work with any sized frame too. As large mirrors with sturdy frames can be quite expensive, reusing your window frame as a mirror frame can actually be very cost-effective as well as an attractive design addition.

Best of all, a strategically placed mirror can completely change the look and feel of a room. You can maximise the sense of space, increase the natural light and make your living space a happier place to be. All out of a functional item that is no longer fit for its original purpose.

Headboard

Another wall decoration idea for reusing old windows is to mount them behind your bed as a headboard.

This is great if you have a very large window or a couple of smaller ones that can be used together. Make sure they are securely mounted to the way with heavy-duty hangers, and remove the glass for maximum safety but this can be a beautiful and unusual addition to your bedroom, especially as the wall above a bed is often left plain.

Again, the frame can be matched to the look of your bedroom too. Timber frames can be stripped back and refinished to match the look of your bedroom furniture whether that’s painted or stained. Aluminium frames can also be repainted with a little care, and the clean lines and finish will still add a stylish twist to a more minimalist home.

Build A Greenhouse

If you’re looking for a more functional use for your old windows, using them to build a greenhouse will really make the most of their remaining practical features.

While an old double-glazed window may not still have the insulating power you need to keep your heating bills down and home warm, they will do a far better job than most cheap greenhouses or polytunnels.

The amount of windows you have access to will dictate the size of greenhouse you can achieve, but even if you only have one or two you can use them as a roof for a small growing box that will let sunshine flood in and protect fragile plants from frosts.

Keep your home sustainable by recycling your windows

A well-insulated home is a more sustainable home, and this means having double-glazing units that are performing at their peak, as well as finding a new use for the old ones once they’ve started to fail.

If you’re looking to update your glazing, speak to us today to secure high-quality replacements that will pay for themselves.

In our last post, we answered some of the most commonly asked questions about soundproofing to help you decide if it’s worth doing in your home. If you’ve decided that this is a task worth your time, we thought we’d also share some suggestions on the best ways to go about it.

We’ll cover a couple of simple, cost-effective ways you can insulate your home against sound, as well as the more extreme but effective options.

What easy ways are there to improve the soundproofing of your home?

Reducing the noise pollution in your home doesn’t have to mean disruptive or expensive changes. There are smaller, more manageable steps you can take too. They may not make massive reductions to your noise pollution but they will make some difference.

Indoor plants

This is a small change and, we’ll be honest, won’t make a massive difference on its own. However, bringing a few lush green plants into your living space will perform some sound dampening, absorbing sound waves while also improving the air quality and feel of your home. It’s not going to do a lot, but it’s a nice option that comes with plenty of other benefits.

Window film

Applying a specialist window film can give your window panes a cheap soundproofing boost if you can’t afford to replace the glazing completely. As a cut-price option, it can be better than nothing and can improve the energy efficiency of your windows as well. However, it can be fiddly to fit and the difference it makes might not be big.

Get acoustic curtains

If you’re adding window film to your windows, another sensible step is to add a sound-dampening window dressing. You can buy curtains specifically designed to improve the insulation of your home, both sound and energy, as well as blinds or shutters if you prefer. They can even be hung behind doors.

If your window is a big weakness in your soundproofing, this can be the most straightforward way to protect it. Of course, when the window dressing is open, the benefit will be lost, and you’ll never get as much of an improvement as you would from glazing.

Add more soft furnishings

Curtains aren’t the only soft furnishings that can help deaden the sound in your home. If you have wood, tile or laminate floors, laying down rugs will absorb noise instead of leaving it to reflect off hard floors.

Sofas and upholstered chairs can also help a little with absorbing sound. Wall hangings will make a small difference to the sound coming through walls on their own but you can also use them to hide thicker, more specialised sound insulation panels without worrying about refinishing a wall over it too.

Reseal your window and door frames

Already got double glazing that doesn’t appear to be showing signs of failing but still struggling with a lot of external noise getting through your windows?  The panes themselves aren’t the only way that noise can enter your home – it can come in around the edges too.

Resealing your windows is a lot cheaper and easier than replacing your glazing units so it’s a good place to start if you think your windows are letting in noise. You can even buy acoustic caulk that will absorb more noise than standard caulk to further increase the sound insulation of your windows or doors.

Rearrange the furniture

Rather than cluttering your home with more ‘things’ to dampen sounds, you can make the most of what you have. Place bigger, bulkier items like bookshelves and wardrobes against the walls where sound pollution is a problem, and they will absorb some of the noise.

What are the most effective ways to reduce noise pollution?

If intrusive noise is really affecting your living space, there are more heavy-duty ways to improve the sound insulation of your home. These methods are both more expensive and more work to put in place but this is balanced by making a far bigger impact.

As sound insulation will often improve the heat insulation of your home too, you may even make up some of your expenditure through lowered heating bills – another bonus if you’re ready to fit more significant improvements.

New double glazing

If you’re struggling with a lot of traffic or other external noise getting into your home, it’s time to check your glazing. When the seals in your double-glazed units start to fail, you won’t just start to lose the heat-insulating properties – their soundproofing ability will be compromised. And that’s if you’ve already got double-glazed windows – if you’ve only got single-glazed windows, then their soundproofing will be minimal.

New double-glazed window units can reduce noise pollution by up to 35db. This is a big difference when it comes to disruptive street noise in your home. If your windows are old, tired, and showing signs of condensation inside, it might be time to consider replacing them – the sound and heat insulation new windows will provide will quickly be worth it.

Replace your doors

Doors aren’t quite the risk to the insulation of your home that windows are – mainly because they are usually made using more insulating materials like wood or composite. But if they start to warp their fit in the door frame can be compromised – leaving gaps that cold air and external noise can squeeze through. Sometimes replacing the seals on the door and re-caulking the door frame is enough to make a difference but sometimes the only option is fully replacing your doors.

If you have a UPVC door, upgrading to a composite or wooden door will make a big difference too. Both of those materials are much better at insulating against sound (and heat loss) so you’ll get plenty of benefits from the change.

Soundproof your walls

If you’re already doing major renovations to your home, you can consider adding some kind of soundproofing to the structure of the walls. If you have a new build home, this could mean removing the plasterboard layer of your walls to add acoustic fibreglass or woollen insulation to the interior of your wall. 

Alternatively, you can replace the plasterboard itself with a soundproof plasterboard. Neither of these options is cheap and they are both highly disruptive so should not be undertaken lightly. But they could be worth considering if you’re already doing extensive work on your home.

Add acoustic panels to your walls

If you’re looking for a slightly less disruptive way to improve the sound insulation your walls provide, acoustic panels could be the answer.

These will absorb sound waves to stop the noise getting into your house, but they sit on top of the surface of the wall so you don’t need to worry about pulling your walls apart to install them. These days they are available in a range of colours, to help you turn them into their own design feature rather than just creating a dull but functional wall look.

 

What’s the best way to reduce the noise pollution in your home?

There is no single answer on which sound-reducing method is right for every home. Factors from the type of noise you’re looking to reduce, to your budget, to the scale of space you wish to tackle, will all work together to define which method is best for you.

One thing for certain is that replacing your double glazing has the potential to greatly reduce the sound that gets into your home if your windows are old, badly fitted or single-glazed. If you want to hear more about the benefits that new double-glazing could make to your home, speak to our team today. They’ll be able to explain all the costs, advise on whether it’s worth it and make sure you’ve got all the information you need.

Your home is your sanctuary. Your space away from the demands, stresses and unpleasantness of the world. Keeping it safe, secure and peaceful is important – but it isn’t always easy.

One of the most common intruders that can compromise your home is sound. From noisy neighbours to rushing traffic and even just the bustle of people passing by, keeping your home quiet can be challenging.

If you’re struggling with too much external noise invading your home, there are steps you can take. In this post, we’ll answer some commonly asked questions about soundproofing your home, before following up in our next post with practical steps you can take.

Does soundproofing really work?

Getting this big question out of the way first. For anyone seeking absolute silence, the unfortunate truth is that you can’t completely soundproof an entire house. If you live in a terrace or semi-detached house or in a busy urban area, you will never achieve full monastery-grade silence, however much work you do or money you spend.

However, it is possible to significantly reduce the noise that enters your home. You can take steps to limit the intrusion of external noise and noise from your neighbours. You just need to weigh up the cost versus the benefit and find the most effective ways for your home.

Can you soundproof an entire house?

The amount of noise you want to reduce is not the only thing that will impact how effective your soundproofing efforts are. The scale plays a part too.

Essentially, the bigger an area you want to soundproof, the more complicated things get. Even if you take every possible step in every single room, you’ll still see some noise get in and this will be amplified the more rooms you are trying to cover.

Instead, tackle the most important areas. For example, the areas of your house that get the most noise, or need to be quietest. A bedroom or office that faces onto the street might be a great place to start or a room attached to a separating between you and a particularly noisy neighbour.

If you want to soundproof your whole house, you’ll be looking at high costs. And, in most cases, there will still be some sound getting in – especially during summer when windows are opened etc. It is up to you to decide if it’s worth effort and investment, and what scale your soundproofing attempts should be.

How much does it cost to soundproof a whole house?

If you do decide to try and soundproof your whole house, you’ll be looking at a hefty price tag – at least £30,000 depending on the size of your home. 

The techniques you use and the noise you’re trying to prevent will also have an impact. Neighbour noise can be cheaper to tackle as you’re looking at internal walls instead of external walls, whereas protecting against traffic noise may mean upgrading your window units and your doors which both can come with a high price tag.

How much does it cost to soundproof a room?

It is almost as hard to give a blanket estimate on the cost of soundproofing a room as it is on doing a whole house. The position of the room (whether it faces onto a busy street, for example, or whether you’ve got adjoining walls with a neighbour) will all affect how much noise you need to protect against. And of course, the more noise, the more expensive it will be to correct.

Depending on whether you’re just replacing your double glazing, fitting acoustic panels or insulation, or taking any number of other soundproofing, costs will mount up. Speaking to an expert and costing materials is the only way to get a real idea.

 

What are the disadvantages of soundproofing?

Soundproofing a room might feel like a no-lose situation, as you capture more peace and quiet to enjoy. However, there are actually pretty significant disadvantages to consider too.

The first is ventilation. Keeping sound out usually means restricting its flow into the room – and in turn restricting the flow of air. One way around this is to take the time to ‘air’ your house at set points throughout the day by opening all your windows fully. This will allow fresh air in but can get awkward and time-consuming.

Reduced ventilation also has another drawback – an increase of moisture in the air. An increase in moisture indoors can quickly lead to damp problems and even black mould. As many insulating materials are absorbent by design, they can also develop mould themselves, hidden out of view while still having many potential health impacts.

Finally, another disadvantage we’ve already covered is the cost. Taking a full-on approach will usually be costly, and will rarely deliver full silence. If you’re looking to lower the noise that gets into your home, this is often worth it but be aware of the limitations of any work you do.

How long does soundproofing last?

Different types of soundproofing will have different lifespans. Double glazing lasts for around 20 years, but acoustic panels and other types of wall insulations may have shorter lifespans. 

As with many things, the quality of the materials you use and how well they are fitted will dictate the lifespan of any soundproofing measures you take.

Do you need planning permission for soundproofing?

When it comes to fitting soundproofing to an existing home, you don’t need planning permission to make the majority of changes.

There are, as ever, exceptions to this rule, however. If you live in a conservation area, you may need planning permission to change your windows, front door, or make any other change that affects the exterior of your home. If you live in a listed building potential changes are even more restricted, so you should research the modifications you want to make before you start.

For new homes or extensions, there are building regulations around the soundproofing your building work must offer, however, these don’t apply if you are making improvements to your existing rooms.

Will the council soundproof my house?

Even if you are struggling with loud noise and disturbances in your home, it is unlikely that the council will soundproof your house. They do not currently offer any grants or help in this area, so if you want to undertake the work, it will be at your own cost.

If you are struggling with neighbour noise they may be able to prevent the neighbours being so loud, but there will be conditions to be met and they will not fund changes to your own home.

Deciding whether to invest the time and effort soundproofing your home can be difficult. Hopefully, with the above questions answered you will feel better equipped to decide yourself.

If you do want to try and keep street noise out of your home by replacing your windows with new double-glazed units, you can speak to our team today to find out more.

Look at any modern apartment block and you are likely to see French windows and a protective Juliet balcony. They are becoming more and more common across cityscapes and beyond, yet they are somehow still quite unknown. 

In our last blog post, we shed some light on the most commonly asked questions around Juliet balconies, but there was one question we couldn’t answer – whether a metal or glass Juliet balcony is the better choice.

We can’t answer this because there is no definitive answer. It depends on so many factors from where it’s being fitted to your own personal tastes. There are a lot of aspects to consider.

In this post, we won’t tell which is right for you either. What we will do is give you the information you need to work out which suits your own particular needs best. We’ll cover the practical benefits that each material offers, alongside a couple of design tips to help you find the best choice for your home. 

What are the benefits of a glass Juliet balcony?

When it comes to modern Juliet balconies, glass is easily one of the most popular choices. This makes sense as glass Juliet balconies do have a lot of benefits, including:

• Maximum light flow
• Low maintenance
• Long life span
• Protects against the wind
• Safety
• Visually appealing

Maximum light flow

One of the main reasons to use French windows or doors in an apartment is to let more natural light flow inside. Fitting them with a transparent or frosted glass Juliet balcony will help your doors deliver the highest possible light levels.

Frameless glass Juliet balconies are practically invisible (minus the mount system and potential handrail) and this makes them the perfect fit for this job. You get all the strength and maximum safety, while still getting the full benefit of that extra window space.

Low maintenance

As with any glass panel, a glass Juliet balcony is very low maintenance. Other than cleaning (which can be done at the same time as your windows, either by yourself or a window cleaner) it needs no real upkeep or maintenance.

In fact, checking the fittings are still secure is the only ongoing work you need to worry about throughout the duration of your balcony’s life.

Long-life span

Another benefit that comes with the sturdiness of toughened and laminated glass is that you can expect a long life span for your balcony. Even with minimal maintenance, glass Juliet balcony systems will last for many years, decades even, without showing any real sign of degrading.

Give it a quick clean and your glass Juliet balcony will look as good as the day it was installed for decades.

Protects against the wind

This practical benefit only comes to play if you use your Juliet balcony in front of an open door but it can be important. As a glass Juliet balcony is made out of a solid glass panel, it minimises the wind that gets into your living space when your doors are open.

As Juliet balconies are usually used at height, this can be quite a big benefit. You don’t have to worry about strong gusts blowing into your home and making a mess or bringing a chill. It will also offer a little protection against rain, if you don’t notice a downpour the moment it starts

Safety

The solid nature of glass brings another benefit with it too – it increases the safety the balcony is already providing. While the gaps in a metal balustrade will not be wide enough to allow anything large to slip through it, it is still helpful to have a solid panel too.

Visually appealing

Glass panels can be used to make an attractive decorative feature for your home. Well suited to modern apartment buildings, offices and even homes, they are a great way to add a touch of interest to the exterior of a building. They break up big expanses of brickwork, adding a little more dressing to windows without cluttering.

Though their clean, crisp lines are perfectly suited to more modern and contemporary building designs, they are simple enough to be flexible and can be used for older buildings too. You can further increase their visual appeal by choosing sandblasted or obscured glass – without sacrificing any of the light that gets in.

What are the disadvantages of a glass Juliet balcony?

The only real disadvantage to a glass Juliet balcony is that they can be difficult to clean. While the inside of the panel can be cleaned from inside your home, it is only possible to clean the outside using either ladders or window cleaning poles from the ground up.

However, this is the case for most windows too. If you have a window cleaning service already they will likely clean the glass of your balcony as standard, making this a much smaller problem too.

What are the benefits of a metal Juliet balcony?

If you’re looking to install a Juliet balcony, and glass doesn’t immediately appeal, chances are metal will be your other choice. As a material, it does have enough benefits to rival glass, so it’s easy to see why many people plump for metal instead. These benefits include:

• Very easy to maintain
• Robust
• More design flexibility
• Visually striking

Very easy to maintain

A high-quality metal Juliet balcony can be even easier to maintain than a glass one is. Powder coated steel and aluminium both need minimal upkeep to keep them at their best – a simple wipe down with a soft cloth soaked in warm water and soap to remove any dirt build-up will suffice.

As metal balconies are not solid, this task can often be done from inside your house too, making it something you can do yourself without any special tools or extra effort.

Robust

Another benefit this type of balcony will share with a glass Juliet balcony is durability. Admittedly, the exact robustness you get will depend on the metal you choose. For example, while a powder coating will last a long time, if it does get scratched or damaged it can leave the metal underneath at risk of rust. This is not a concern with a sleek aluminium balcony, however, this metal is more likely to be scratched or scuffed.

In either case, your balcony is unlikely to get damaged for many years so this should not be an overriding concern.

More design flexibility

One of the great things about a metal Juliet balcony is how flexible the design is. Unlike a glass balcony that is somewhat limited to a more sleek, minimalist look, there are options to suit a more traditional period home or a modern one.

For example, a decorative black option, with scrolled ironwork and a matte finish will look quite at home period homes, perfect for protecting large Victorian windows. However, if you have a more modern home then a sleek brushed aluminium option has a thoroughly modern look that will keep it

What about wooden Juliet balconies?

When it comes to standard balcony balustrades, wood is a popular choice. As such we knew we ought to cover it here, though it is not a common choice for use in Juliet balconies.

This is because wooden balustrades share the same major disadvantages as metal ones. Being opaque they interrupt light flow, which is something of an issue as Juliet balconies are often used to help let more natural light into a property.

The nature of wood means the bars of wooden balustrades are likely to be even thicker than on a metal version. It will block the light even more from entering your room.

Another disadvantage of wooden balustrades is how much maintenance they need. Unlike metal balustrades which only need very occasional cleaning and upkeep, or glass which needs cleaning but little else, wood needs to be carefully and regularly looked after in order to maximise its life span.

To protect it from the elements you will need to refinish the wood every couple of years with either a fresh coat of paint or varnish. If you don’t it will become vulnerable to moisture and it may rot or warp. If this happens, the integrity of the balustrades will weaken, leaving them at risk of breaking.

Due to the positioning, it is also a lot harder to maintain a wooden balcony, particularly if you need to sand it or fix it.

Is a metal or a glass Juliet balcony better?

As we started this post by saying, there is no definitive choice between a glass and metal Juliet balcony. Is entirely up to your personal choice. We hope, however, that this post has given you some guidance on that choice so you can see more clearly which is the correct option for you.

If you decide a glass Juliet balcony is the right choice for you, then our range of glass balustrades and balconies are durable, attractive and perfect for any home. Speak to us today to find out more about what we can offer.

 

Installing a balcony can be a great way to open up your rooms, find more light and space. It also adds a visual design touch that makes the exterior of your home stand out.

However, they can be expensive, complicated to fit and aren’t always a practical choice. If you’d like to let more of the outdoors into your upper floor space but can’t afford the investment of a full balcony, a Juliet balcony twinned with French doors can be an excellent compromise. But not everyone will consider a Juliet balcony – many people don’t even know what one is!

As we see a lot of confusion on the topic of Juliet balconies, we thought we’d take the time to answer some of the most commonly asked questions and clear up a few facts around them. Read on if you’d like to know about what exactly Juliet balconies are, what they do and the things you need to consider when fitting one.

What is a Juliet balcony?

Essentially, a Juliet balcony is a glass balustrade that is fixed to the external wall of a building. They are often used in front of big windows or French doors and they don’t have a surface or deck to walk on them, unlike a standard balcony.

They are almost exclusively used above ground level.

Why is it called a Juliet balcony?

Juliet balconies take their names from Shakespeare’s famous Romeo and Juliet play. One of the play’s most memorable scenes involves Juliet standing on a balcony calling out to Romeo, and this is where the name ‘Juliet balcony’ is thought to originate.

This type of balcony is also called a ‘Juliette’ balcony which is just another spelling for the same name. They are also known as French balconies too.

What is the point of Juliet balconies?

The main role of a Juliet balcony is safety. Glass Juliet balconies are usually used in front of French double doors that are fitted at height (first floor or higher).

These double doors are commonly used in flats and buildings where external wall space is scarce. They are a great way to maximise the amount of natural light that flows inside. They also offer the option of throwing them open to let fresh air inside. 

But even with toughened laminated glass, full length windows and doors can become a safety hazard. One which obviously increases when the doors or window are open.

While wooden or metal railings will offer the same safety benefits of a glass Juliet balcony, they do obstruct the views. The handrails and bars interrupt sightlines and can even stop light getting in. In contrast, glass panels are completely clear so they mlet the maximum light and warmth into a room and give unobstructed views too.

This is particularly beneficial on higher floors where the views are often a selling point of a home or office space.

A glass Juliet balcony lets you get the best possible experience for your room, letting fresh air flow on warmer days and helping your room feel bigger and brighter.

Can you sit out on a Juliet balcony?

As they have no deck or floor space, it’s not possible to sit out on a Juliet balcony. If you’re looking to install a full balcony, glass panels still make an attractive, practical safe choice for balustrades but if you want a usable balcony there is a lot more work, considerations and costs involved.

What are the regulations around Juliet balconies?

Juliet balcony systems might not give you any real usable outdoor space, but this doesn’t mean they aren’t subject to certain rules and regulations around the materials they use and their installation. Here are a couple of things you need to consider before deciding to install one.

The main regulations relate to the glass used in the balcony and the height it stands. As with all residential building projects, safety is the most important factor so the glass panels used in a Juliet balcony must be toughened or laminated so that if it does break it doesn’t cause a risk. It needs to be at least 10mm thick too.

The panel of a Juliet balcony also needs to be a minimum of 1100mm high as well, to reduce the risk of accidentally falling over it. It will also need to be at least 150mm wider than the opening it’s fixed in front of, in order to leave space for the fittings and make sure it is secure.

Do you need planning permission for glass Juliet balconies?

A simple Juliet balcony without a floor doesn’t require planning permission to install or replace. They fall under ‘permitted delvopements’ which means you don’t have to seek permission from any local authorities before having them installed.

What are the disadvantages of Juliet balconies?

It’s hard to say there are any clear cut disadvantages to Juliet balconies, other than the fact they don’t offer the benefits of a more traditional balcony. Obviously, many people would prefer to have usable outdoor space so they can get outdoors into the sun on warmer days but that isn’t always an option.

It takes a lot more money, effort and planning to install a full balcony. If that isn’t an option for you, then a Juliet balcony makes a fantastic alternative.

One disadvantage can be if you have pets or young children. As these balconies don’t have a floor, it is not advisable to leave them unattended with open doors and only a Juliet balcony for protection.

Glass balconies to make your outdoor space elegant and enjoyable

Whatever type of balcony you decide to go for in your home, glass balustrades make a stylish and practical choice. From the clean lines and sharp looks, to the uninterrupted flows of light and sight without h

If you’d like a glass balcony that matches visual appeal with practical benefits, speak to us today to find out more about our high-quality range.