Replacement window style for Dutch Colonial?

11 years ago

I don't know if this is the right forum to post this question but here goes... we need to replace all the original windows in our 1959 Dutch Colonial (it really is a "Dutch" colonial -- low, flared "bellcast" roof, smaller dormers on the second floor, symmetric window placement, chimney on the end of the house flanked by two smaller windows, etc.) The existing windows are double-hung 6 over 6's with aging storm windows. There is a significant roof overhang (extending almost 4 feet out from the house) all around the first story resulting from the flare of the roof. Here's my question: The sales rep from the window company is suggesting 6 over 1's for the new windows, partly to save some cost (we want fixed wood muntins and they add a lot to the cost of each window) and partly because he says it's an increasingly popular look. We are in rural New England, with a "country" setting (meadow, big maples shading the house). I've read that 6 over 6 or even 8 over 8 is a "hallmark" of a Dutch Colonial style, but I've seen examples online with all kinds of window styles. The 6-over-1's feel a bit "bungalow" ("cottage"?) to me. We raised the lower sashes to get a sense of the effect and we kind of like it (especially the somewhat increased light coming in) ... but we don't want to make this change if it is going to be completely out of keeping with the house's architectural style. Anyone have an opinion (or know the "correct" window style for a mid-20th-century Dutch Colonial, if there is such a thing?) Is there a definitive guide to window styles for various architectural styles/periods somewhere? Many thanks for any thoughts on this conundrum...

Comments (5)

PRO
Windows on Washington Ltd
11 years ago
Are there representative type of home in your neighborhood that you can drive around and take a look at?

You will normally find some real life examples of the different options nearby.
ctlady_gw
Original Author
11 years ago
Yes, that's part of our dilemma... people seem to do just about everything (leading me to think it probably doesn't matter if we change from what's here!) and there are very few original Dutch Colonials in our 300+ year old town (plenty of old saltboxes and traditional colonials, but no "old" Dutch colonials and only a smattering of 20th century ones, those mostly builder models that have a gambrel roof and dormers but that's as far as the similarity goes. Someone told me the other day, when I asked the same question about architectural "integrity" of the window style, "well, if yours was built in 1959, it's pretty much a fraud already, isn't it?" :) Which is true, of course, so perhaps I just shouldn't sweat it. The increased light (from going to lower sashes with no divided lites) would be welcome, and we don't DISLIKE the look from the street -- we just weren't sure if others would find it an odd look. Most people (including realtors and the town assessor) refer to it as a "Cape" but I think that's primarily because from the street, it resembles one, with its dormers and low roof line. But from the end of the house, where you see the curved flare of the very deep eaves, the gambrel roofline, the chimney centered on the end of the house, it is clearly a Dutch colonial. So mostly, I just wondered if there was any sort of standard for the window style, or if the pragmatic Dutch did whatever was (a) cost effective and (b) practical for a given site (and I should do the same!)
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PRO
Windows on Washington Ltd
11 years ago
No real standard and even less so with homes that are 50 years old or so.

Check with one of your window suppliers or check online for a window visualizer tool and plot out the examples via that tool.

Might give you an idea of what you want and that should be the dominant decider.
palimpsest
11 years ago
I see mostly 6 over 1 on the mid-20th century colonial revivals around here with some 3 over ones thrown in.
ctlady_gw
Original Author
11 years ago
Many thanks, all! Palimpsest, where in the country do you live? We have pretty much decided, after a day or so with the lower sashes raised as "tests," that the additional light is worth going to the single pane on the lower sash. The insert windows (replacements) will somewhat reduce the glass area anyway, and we can ill afford to give up any more light -- so I think we will go with 6/1s. Now to decide on the brand... we have bids from Marvin (Ultimate), Pella (Architect Series) and have a bid coming from Andersen. I've read the posts here on all of those so am leaning toward the Marvin at the moment... but it is not an easy decision! I know I don't want "compressable" vinyl sash tracks, so that rules out the mid-price Pellas, and I really like what I've seen of the Marvin Ultimate double-hung samples in the showroom... we're not planning to do these windows more than once and I want EASE of operation and good looks first and foremost!