5.1 Damages
There are many ways windows can get damaged, moisture is one of the more common ways. It can both come from the inside and the outside, as we described in paragraph 3.3 (Condensation). Long term condensation causes the most damages from the inside, to prevent long time see the same paragraph. Regarding the outside, rain, snow and wind cause the most damage.
Damages due to damp that comes from the outside are often caused by pelting rain and can only occur if the window and its surroundings have not been sealed properly. Example of this are the gaps between the frame and the wall or the frame and the glass. These types of damage are very scary and if it should happen replace the windows urgently.
The highest percentage of damages normally occurs in the lower part of the window and especially in windows that have been hit hard by the climate. Coastal climates often put a lot of pressure on a window in the form of sun, wind and moisture. The reason behind the damage occurring in the lower part of the window is purely because of gravity, water tends to end up in the bottom of the window and stay there.
The biggest reason behind wooden windows starting to rot is a combination of events. All these combinations have one thing in common, that the window has been exposed for moisture during a long period of time. The following four criteria must happen in order for wood to rot:
- The amount of moisture in the wood exceeds 20% of the total amount of wood. In other terms 0,20 kg water/kg wood
- The temperature needs to be between 4-40 °C
- The wood needs to be exposed to air
- Access to nourishment for the fungus (Exists in the non treated wood)
If any of these criteria above are missing the wood will not get attacked by fungus and rot. So a smart window construction will make sure that fungus can never develop and hence the wood wont rot. A great tip is to impregnate the wood with preservative so that the fungus cant exist.
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