Where timber is the right answer

On the street side of a house covered by Article 4 in the Reigate Town Centre, Somers Road or Wray Common areas, the council asks for replacements that match the originals in material and design. Those originals are painted timber. An application for timber sashes that copy the existing bars and horns is the one that tends to go through, so for those windows timber is the sensible choice, not the luxury one.

The same holds for every listed building, from the Georgian fronts of West Street to the cottages on Betchworth's The Street. See listed houses.

Where it is the expensive answer

Everywhere else, compare like with like.

Casements, 1000 x 1200

Timber flush casement £2,000 to £3,800

uPVC flush casement £1,100 to £1,950

Aluminium flush casement £1,485 to £2,395

Sashes, 900 x 1800

Timber box sash £2,650 to £3,800

uPVC vertical sliding sash, white £1,505 to £2,190

The uPVC sash is roughly half the timber price.

Then add the paint. A painted timber window needs a fresh coat every five to eight years, and more often where it faces south or west. On a detached house up on Reigate Hill, where the upper floor needs scaffold anyway, each repaint is a real cost that uPVC and aluminium never ask for.

Mixed houses

A lot of conservation-area houses in Reigate end up with timber on the road side and uPVC or aluminium on the garden side. That keeps the street as the council wants it and keeps the bill down. Each window is priced on its own, so a mixed quote is straightforward.

Timber prices

Timber flush casement, 1000 x 1200: £2,000 to £3,800. Timber box sash, 900 x 1800: £2,650 to £3,800. Tall conservation sash with true bars, 1100 x 2400: £4,700 to £7,900. All supplied and fitted, including VAT.