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Month: September 2019

How New Patio Doors can Reduce Utility Bills

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There are many people out there who are looking to make changes to their home. Perhaps they have been in their home awhile and are looking to change it up. Maybe they have just purchased a new home and certain facets of it must be updated. Whatever the reason, one of the common targets of any home renovation or repair process is the patio doors. When someone takes the time to put in new patio doors, this is more than just a facelift for the home. It might even help someone reduce their energy use and, as a result, their energy bills. How does this happen? Can installing patio doors reduce someone’s utility costs?

Installing Sliding Patio Doors: The Energy Efficiency Factor

One of the patio doors that people might elect to go with is sliding patio doors. Those who work with homes have been putting these into homes for decades. Unfortunately, the older models of these doors are not very energy efficient. They often do not close completely and people let out a massive amount of heat and air when the door is open.

Fortunately, these doors have been upgraded to be a little bit more energy efficient. There is a seam where the panels of these doors slide by each other. This is a significant reason for air leakage. Now, manufacturers offer an option that reduces the leakage at the seam, helping people save money on their utility costs with these new patio doors.

What About Going With a Swinging Door?

Of course, there are also those people who might not want a sliding door at all. Those who have space for swinging patio doors should go with these to further reduce their energy costs and maximize their energy efficiency. One of the popular options is French patio doors. There are numerous designs to choose from when it comes to a swinging door.

Whether it is a folding patio door, lift and slide doors, or even multi-slide patio doors, these can all help someone reduce their energy bills while improving the comfort of their home as well. The designs of all of these doors have changed significantly over the past few decades to ensure that they are both aesthetically appealing while also helping to save money on their bills. Even though people might spend a little bit more money when it comes to new patio doors cost, having these doors installed, they will more than make up for it on the back end when their utility bills drop.

Choosing the Right Material for Your New Patio Doors

When someone settles on an option for a patio door, they are going to be asked what material they would like to use. In order to save money on utility bills, double or triple-pane glass is the right option. Some of these doors even some with blinds that have been specially designed to resist the intensity of the sun. These patio doors will not only make the home more comfortable but will also make the home look great, further boosting its value. Go with patio doors that help to reduce the home’s utility bills!

For more information on energy-efficient patio doors Utah, please call Advanced Window Products today! We would be happy to help you install new patio doors in your home!

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5 Home Renovations That Add the Most Value

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If you are thinking about selling your home, you are likely wondering, “ what home renovations add the most value?” It is going to take more than just a coat of paint to get prospective buyers interested in staking a claim on your property. Here are the top 5 home renovations that are likely to show the biggest return on your investment.

Replace Your Garage Door

One of the easiest ways to boost the curb appeal of your home is to install a new garage door. This is because a garage door comprises about 1/3 of a house’s exterior space. For this reason, not just any door will do. Consider the architecture of your home, and choose accordingly.

For example, if your home is Victorian or Colonial, you could go with a wooden carriage house door. On the other hand, if your home has a modern look, you could select something with a clean, defined structure and glass panels, perhaps.

Replace Your Old Windows

Are replacement windows a good investment? You betcha. According to Money Magazine, when you replace old windows with energy-efficient ones, you will save anywhere from $25 to $450 a year in heating and cooling costs. With all that being said, that isn’t even the biggest reason to do it.

Why buy replacement windows? Having new windows does wonders to freshen your home’s appearance. When hiring a window replacement company, make sure their windows are Energy-Star compliant.

Remodel Your Kitchen

You probably already know if your kitchen needs remodeling. The kitchen is the heart of the home, and potential buyers pay more attention to it than anywhere else in the home. It is also likely to cost you more than anywhere else to revamp. However, any changes you can make will make an improvement.

Ideally, here are some steps you can take. Kitchen countertops should be changed to granite or quartz. Appliances should be replaced and should all be matching. If you can’t afford to replace your cabinets, you can paint them. Fluorescent overhead lights can be replaced with stylish pendant lights for example, and linoleum flooring replaced with stone or tile.

Replace Your Entry Door

Your front door is the central, focal point of the outside of your house. Because it acts as the entryway to your home, it is crucial that it presents a positive first impression. Design experts suggest investing in a front door that not only speaks of who you are as a person, but stays true to the architectural detailing of the home.

It is wise to try to make a statement with the selection of your front door; however, don’t go overboard with it. If you go too far away from the mainstream, this might turn off some potential buyers. Choose a door that is somewhere safe between ordinary and over-the-top.

Add a Deck

Any time you are expanding your home’s living space, you are adding to its value. Adding an outdoor deck is no exception to this rule. Remember to add plenty of comfortable seating to your deck area, and include a freestanding or built-in grill. When planning a deck addition, try to keep it low maintenance.

For example, having an outdoor fire pit is low maintenance, while having a swimming pool is not. With all this being said, outdoor kitchens are all the rage at the moment. If your wallet allows it, having an outdoor kitchen on your deck can be a fantastic way to attract potential buyers.

Contact Advanced Window Products for Free Estimates

Adding value to your home is easy to do. It is just a matter of taking a good look at what you have and making a decision about what you should tackle first. When doing so, be sure to take into consideration which investment is actually going to save you money in the long run in energy costs. For example, why not start with replacing your windows? Utah’s #1 Window Company, Advanced Window Products, is a green business that offers free estimates and stands behind their products with a satisfaction guarantee. Contact us today at 801-505-9622!

Starting one step at a time today, is a great way to get a return on your investment tomorrow.

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5 Reasons to Choose Composite Wood Siding

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High-quality composite wood siding can elevate the aesthetic beauty of your home, strengthen protection of its structure and increase your property value. Overall, composite woods have become the most competitive long-term solution for exterior home siding, compared to regular wood and vinyl alternatives. But, what makes composite wood siding stand out from other types of exterior siding as a better value? Here’s some information to help you in your comparison of siding materials for your home.

What is Composite Wood Siding?

Composite wood siding is made of wood scraps. The small wood pieces are compressed, bonded using resins, and formed into boards. The wood composite boards are treated with chemicals to protect against fungal growth and insect infestation. Wood composite sidingis highly durable, providing exceptional structural protection for a home against weather for decades. In fact, composite wood siding can be expected to last as long as 30 years.

5 Things that Make Composite Wood Siding a Superior Choice for Your Home

There are actually many benefits of composite wood siding that altogether make it an exceptional choice for today’s home building or improvement project. Here are a few of the key reasons that composite wood is such a great choice among the modern options for exterior siding:

1. Authentic Beauty

Whether your home is a traditional or ultra-sleek modern design, few siding options compare to a stunning wood look, for creative possibilities and timeless beauty. Wood composite siding offers all the aesthetic quality of real wood, but with many practical benefits that real wood cannot offer.

Wood composite siding boards are available already primed for painting, or even already finished with one of the numerous gorgeous, rich styles, textures, and colors that can be indistinguishable from real wood. Various composite board widths are available as well as styles resembling virtually any type of wood you care to use, from Pines to Oaks, to Redwoods, to stunning custom options. There are no unsightly seams on homes with wood composite siding, as composites are attached individually with clips, instead of by hanging sheet-like planks across the exterior wall expanse.

You can create unique designs using conventional horizontal board placements, or exciting vertical arrangements to accentuate the height of your structure. Or, you can even install in a diagonal formation, for spectacular contemporary curb appeal.

2. High Performance

Composite wood siding offers superior structural protection for your home. It also provides superior insulation value, compared to vinyl siding. Contrasted with regular wood siding, composite wood is more resistant to splitting over time due to extremes of hot and cold outside temperatures. Composite wood siding doesn’t crack after long-term exposure to severe temperature changes, and it doesn’t swell after exposure to high-moisture environments over time. Composite wood siding is UV resistant, and it is stain and mold resistant.

Composite wood siding out-performs other popular siding types in protecting against these serious risks to the structural integrity of your home, while sustaining its beautiful aesthetic quality for decades. Composite woods also provide superior insulation value. All-weather grades of composite siding can withstand extreme temperatures over many years.

3. Durability

For long-term durability in home siding applications, composite woods are among the most practical and cost-effective options. Composite wood siding is resistant to mold, rotting, insect boring, swelling, fading, cracking, and splitting. As mentioned, composite wood siding material is also fade resistant. All-weather grades of composites are the most durable in extreme climates.

A spectacularly strong external capping layer adds virtually impenetrable protection from damage to core composite board materials, blocking moisture and insects, maintaining the integrity of the composite boards and thereby better shielding the home’s structural components from risk due to siding damage and deterioration over time. Due to its more substantial, stronger material constitution than vinyl siding, and its superior resistant qualities, compared to regular wood, composite wood siding provides a greater long-term value than either of the other two options.

4. Low Maintenance

No routine staining, oiling, or repainting is necessary with composite wood siding, unlike regular wood siding. By contrast, composite siding only needs repainting about every five to ten years or so, depending on climate conditions and other factors. Easy cleaning with soap and warm water can keep wood composite siding looking beautiful and refreshed over many years. Because of composite wood’s superior resistance to fading, cracking, splitting, swelling, and insect damage, there is little to do to keep it looking beautiful year after year.

In very mild long-term conditions, vinyl siding is less susceptible to the kinds of climates that cause cracking or swelling, leading to leaking and potential structural damage. Much more time-intensive maintenance is required to keep regular wood, or even vinyl siding in more severely variable weather conditions long-term in good shape. By contrast, composite wood siding offers a very competitive solution for low-maintenance siding for your home.

5. Cost-Effectiveness

Composite wood siding presents a cost-effective option, compared to regular wood or vinyl siding. It’s less expensive to purchase and install than regular wood. Composite wood siding cost ranges between $7,000 and $13,000 and up, based on the size of the total area of exterior surface you need to cover, which is roughly in the same price range as vinyl siding, though installation is likely to cost somewhat more. But, it does not need an added layer of insulation, as vinyl does. It also is not susceptible to rotting or expanding and contracting when exposed to high-moisture environments, unlike wood and vinyl, making it a superior choice of capital investment in your home.

Its durability and advanced protective qualities, compared to wood or vinyl, make wood composite siding more reliable over time to sustain a home’s structural stability. This promising long-term protective dependability can make composites significantly more cost-effective over the lifespan of the home.

Wood Composite Siding Pros and Cons

The above descriptions of the Pros that composite wood siding provides together show that the material offers exceptional long-term value for new builds or for homeowners updating their home’s exterior. As for the composite siding Cons, in contrast to wood, there don’t really appear to be any in terms of cost, performance, aesthetics or other area of comparison. In contrast to vinyl siding, wood composite siding may cost a little more than vinyl, and it does take somewhat longer to install. It also requires eventual repainting, unlike vinyl, to which painting is not applicable.

Advanced Window Products, Salt Lake City, Utah

Advanced Window Products is Utah’s leading manufacturer and seller of Wood composite siding, windows and doors. We sell factory-direct, allowing us to save our customers on cost and eliminate risk of warranty issues for them. We are a green business, producing energy-efficient, high-quality building products at fair prices. All Advanced Window Products installers are all Energy Star®, lead-safe, AAMA, and NFRC certified. We are committed to providing every customer with excellent service. Additional benefits we offer our customers include:

Thanks to our customers, we are able to support many charities, such as Habitat for Humanity and Make a Wish Foundation.

For More Information About Wood Composite Siding for Homes

We’re here to help you determine the best siding option for your home. For more information about high-grade composite wood siding, you can just search “Composite Wood Siding Utah” or call Advanced Window Products, Salt Lake City at1-800-246-9355, to speak to one of our home siding experts. Or, come in and browse our showroom in Salt Lake City.

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Composite Wood Siding vs Vinyl Siding

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Vinyl siding or wood — which is best? Both offer their advantages. To determine which of the two materials is right for your home, consider cost, long-term performance, installation, maintenance, aesthetics, and other factors. Ask your builder or siding contractor which makes the best sense for your new construction or home improvement project. Whether you’re looking to increase your home’s comfort and energy efficiency or upgrade your property’s curb appeal, the place to start is comparing the vinyl siding and composite wood siding options. Here’s a comparison of these two popular home siding materials:

Composite Wood Siding for Homes

Composite wood siding for homes consists of small scraps of wood. The wood fragments have been compressed, and resins have been used to bond them together. The material is chemically treated to resist fungal growth and insect infestation.

Composite boards are available pre-primed for painting, or even pre-finished in one of many styles that have the appearance of beautiful real wood. You can select from various widths of composite boards for creative exterior designs, and you can use traditional horizontal, more modern vertical, or even highly stylized diagonal installation. Composite wood siding has a seamless finish, vs the typically unavoidable seam you see on vinyl-covered exteriors.

Composite wood provides a home’s structure with exceptional protection from wind, water, and high temperatures. This type of siding is available in a wide range of styles, textures and colors. High-quality composite wood siding can last up to 30 years.

Beautiful home with Composite Wood Siding - Composite Wood Siding vs Vinyl Siding - Advanced Window Products
 

Advantages of Composite Wood Siding

  • Authentic wood look
  • Superior structural protection
  • Durable (more durable than vinyl)
  • Cost-effective
  • Superior insulation value
  • Resists scratches, stains, mold, rotting, and swelling
  • Easily cleaned with soap and water
  • Gorgeous aesthetic
  • Seamless finish
  • Weighs less and is easier to install than regular wood
  • Can be customized
  • UV resistant
  • Low-maintenance
  • Resists splitting
  • Fade-resistant
  • Less expensive than regular wood siding
  • All-weather composite siding withstands extreme temperatures
  • Only needs painting every 5 to 10 years
  • Exceptional long-term value

Disadvantages of Composite Wood Siding

  • Takes a little longer to install than vinyl sheets
  • Requires more maintenance than vinyl siding
  • Costs slightly more than vinyl siding

Vinyl Siding for Homes

What is vinyl siding on a house? Vinyl siding is panels of manufactured exterior siding, made from a plastic resin called polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which contains fillers and fibers and bonding materials. Vinyl siding resists damage from weather, wear, and insects. It’s fade-resistant and nearly maintenance-free, never requiring painting. It’s available in a wide array of colors, textures and patterns. From shakes, to lap siding looks. Vinyl siding has less insulative quality than composites. For insulated vinyl, instead of standard vinyl siding, add about 15% to the price estimate.

Vinyl siding is a practical solution for building or renovating where minimal maintenance is a priority. It’s a budget-friendly choice, compared to much more expensive exterior materials, like real wood or stone. Because vinyl siding is impervious to rotting and to insect infestation, it can last up to 40 years. One caveat is that although vinyl siding itself cannot rot or become infested, moisture can enter between siding sheets, promoting rotting and insect infestation of a home’s support structures.

Advantages of Vinyl Siding for Homes

  • Wide selection of colors, textures, and patterns
  • Durable
  • Very little maintenance
  • Easy to install
  • Easy to clean
  • Resists fading
  • Resistant to hot and cold temperatures, wind, rain, and hail
  • Does not rot, scratch, or dent
  • Does not need repainting

Disadvantages of Vinyl Siding

  • Can crack in extreme temperatures
  • Impacted aesthetic, when vinyl siding panels overlap, causing an unwanted seam
  • Can swell from long exposure to moist environment, increasing potential for structural issues
  • Can leak between siding panels, promoting mold, rot and insect infestation
  • Susceptible to damage by strong winds (not the best option in areas with severe weather)

Compare Costs of Composite and Vinyl Siding

Vinyl siding and composite wood siding costs are pretty similar. Both typically cost between $7,000 to $13,000 and up. Your actual cost will depend on the size of your home and the quality of the siding products you choose. For a more accurate price comparison, estimate the amount of material you’ll need for your siding project, based on the total square area of the exterior surface space to be covered.

For a finer cost estimate, add local and state sales tax rates for the siding purchase. Add the cost of other materials needed for installation, such as clips for composite siding, and add the total installation cost estimate for each of the two types of siding.

When comparing vinyl to composite wood siding cost, you are likely to discover that the two materials are available at prices that are similar enough that the purchase cost does not have to be a major consideration in choosing between them. Ultimately, you will probably find that it is more practical, all things considered, just to pick the siding you like best, based on other factors, like durability and aesthetics.

So, Composite Wood Siding vs Vinyl Siding — Which is Best?

Vinyl siding offers many highly appealing advantages over other kinds of exterior siding. It’s less expensive than wood, composite wood, and other types of siding. It’s more resistant to an array of deteriorating elements, such as weather, insects, and long-term wear. It’s also easy to install and clean, and it requires no periodic painting and very little other maintenance.

Composite wood siding offers an upgrade from vinyl siding, in terms of natural aesthetic and design options. It’s also arguably more cost-effective long-term, due to its more durable material, affording greater resistance to adverse elements and providing a more stable and robust protective shield for a home’s structure than vinyl. Composite wood siding has superior insulative properties as well. Overall, composite wood siding provides a more protective covering and, therefore, a stronger added value to a property.

Advanced Window Products Located in Salt Lake City, Utah

We are the leading Utah vinyl and composite wood siding, doors and
windows company. We provide top-grade, energy-efficient vinyl and composite wood siding, doors, windows, sliding doors and French doors at fair prices. Our installers are all AAMA, NFRC, Energy Star and lead-safe certified. We offer exceptional customer service. Manufacturing our own energy-efficient products and selling factory-direct to our customers eliminates mark-up and potential warranty issues. We make it easy to upgrade your doors and windows with:

  • Satisfaction Guarantee
  • Part of Buy Local First Utah

We are a green business, and we’re committed to our community. Your business enables us to continue to support many important causes, including Habitat for Humanity and Make A Wish Foundation.

View All Siding Options

For More Information About Composite Wood Siding and Vinyl Siding, Contact Advanced Window Products

Our experts can help you select the best exterior siding solution for your new home build or for your home improvement project. New vinyl or composite wood siding can improve your home’s appearance, protect its structure, and increase its value.

For more information about high-quality vinyl siding or composite wood siding, visit our showroom in Salt Lake City, or call Advanced Window Products, Salt Lake Cityat 1-800-246-9355, to schedule a free estimate at your home.

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