Did you know that Summit Avenue has one of the longest stretches of preserved historic homes in the U.S.? In less than 5 miles you’ll find 373 of the street’s original 440 homes. Although Victorian homes tend to dominate, there are other period architectural styles as well. As a company that specializes in window and exterior door solutions for historic homes, we absolutely love the care that the owners of these houses have taken to preserve and protect their original beauty and character. (Photo shown below is representative of the homes you’ll find – we’ve borrowed it from a Facebook page with interesting tidbits like this.)
Historic homes like this beautiful Victorian mansion have tons of architectural details that give them distinctive character and charm. Those details are often the reason these homes are purchased. But as beautiful as these old houses are, they often have many drawbacks. One of those issues is energy efficiency. The homes were constructed with single-pane wood windows, and over time the wood has likely shrunk or warped, meaning drafts are common. And single-pane glass is a very poor insulator, so even coming close to a window you’ll feel the cold in winter and heat in summer.
So of course a purchaser might think the best thing they can do to cut their heating and cooling bills and make the home more comfortable is to replace those windows. But much as it might surprise you, we highly recommend against it. In fact, it’s one of the most common mistakes historic home purchasers make, and it can drastically affect its value as well as its character. And if the home is in an historic district with regulations and standards, changing the windows might even be a violation of those restrictions.
What’s the best window solution for your historic home? We can help you figure that out, and we’ll work with your local historic district as well to make sure any changes you make are in compliance with restrictions and regulations. Homeowners all over St. Paul, Minneapolis, Stillwater, and other areas of the greater Twin Cities metro have trusted us to preserve the gorgeous beauty of their older homes, and we can do the same for you. Reach out to us today for a free consultation.
Window Outfitters is a premier Window Replacement, doors, siding contractor and installer. As Contractor in the St Paul, Minneapolis, (Twin Cities) Minnesota (MN) metro, we proudly serve, but are not limited to, the following areas: Minneapolis Energy Efficient Vinyl Windows, Replacement Window Contractors Minnesota, Burnsville, Apple Valley, Lakeville, Savage, Bloomington, Edina, Richfield, Eagan, St Paul, Hastings, Minnetonka, Plymouth, Maple Grove, Eden Prairie, Farmington MN, Chaska, Shakopee, Chanhassen, Victoria, Mendota Heights Anderson Windows Minneapolis, Marvin Windows Minneapolis.
