Wooden Windows, Plastic Windows and How They Affect the Environment

Posted by Nathan William Holding on April 25th, 2010 filed in Global Warming


When it comes to the global environment today, there is one all important question many home owners need an answer to: Wooden windows or plastic windows which one is better for the environment? The reason this question is important is that, as the world’s population increases, the need for housing of all types is also increasing. This means more and more of just about everything that has to do with housing, including windows — which can be made of wood and plastic, by the way.

Anybody considering going with one type of window (frame, usually, because the glass used in either is pretty much the same) over another should consider how each window is made, first of all. Wooden window frames, depending on the kind of wood and their design, can be fairly simple and eco-friendly, as long as certain chemicals aren’t used in the manufacturing process.

When it comes to plastic, no matter how it’s used or made, there are a number chemicals used to manufacture polyvinyl chloride (plastics) that are toxic and not likely to be made less so in the coming years. Plastic also is generally non-biodegradable, at least as it’s currently made on a large scale. Most such plastic windows, if they’re not recycled, can last in a landfill for literally thousands of years.

Wooden windows can be made in an almost-organic manner in many cases, though the cost of doing so can be higher than the cost of a plastic-framed window. However, the benefit to the environment when a wooden window is used, and when the frame’s been coated with the right natural preservative shellacs or lacquers (helping to make sure it lasts a long time) can be significant.

Given all of the considerations that need to be looked at when it comes to wood versus plastic when it comes to just which would be better for the environment, the issue of how easy each is to recycle is probably the most important issue to examine. When disposed of properly, plastic can be recycled as easily as wood, but it isn’t biodegradable and the chemicals used to make it are toxic to the environment. Wood degrades, and if it’s made organically, it isn’t dangerous to the environment, either.

So, then; answering the question (wooden windows or plastic windows which one is better for the environment?) seems easy enough to address. It would seem that, at present, there’s really no way to ensure that plastics and the chemicals they’re made with can be made less harmful to the environment than wooden windows. That material degrades easily enough and it can be made in a safer manner and then recycled easily, as well, it must be said.

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categories: double glazing,windows,environment,ecofriendly,house,home,property,office,business,global warming,plastic

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