Aluminum windows or plastic windows with aluminum cladding

Good evening everyone,

unfortunately, I was not able to find anything through the search. We are currently planning the replacement of our 30-year-old wooden windows (due to design and sealing reasons). Now we are considering which type of window to choose. We are wavering between a "real" aluminum window or a plastic window with a corresponding aluminum cover.
The consultation appointment is next week, but I would like to have a preliminary opinion to bring into the conversation. How do you see it: In my layman's eyes, the plastic option with cover offers the advantage of both worlds: affordable combined with very durable and weather-resistant. Am I seeing this wrong?

I am looking forward to your opinions.

Best regards

I was an aluminum window manufacturer and then a window dealer until 2019. I have not been asked about plastic/aluminum for a long time; in my perception, it is more of a niche product in the market. We did not have it in our program, but technically I don’t see anything wrong with it. For those who want plastic in color but not foil-coated, I gladly recommend Gealan (plastic with co-extruded colored surface). For stress elements (especially front doors, lift-and-slide windows, etc.) I recommend aluminum.

I was hoping for your response :-) because I have found your previous opinions and comments very, very valuable. I came across this "niche product" through a Düsseldorf window company that apparently likes to and frequently installs it. We actually do not want subsequent windows. Our idea is to do a kind of "lifelong ongoing renovation." That means: all parts of our house are listed with an approximate durability. Then they are replaced and the countdown starts again. This way we want to avoid any major backlog of renovations. If we now rely on aluminum components instead of plastic, we hope for > 30 years (then we will be long retired) compared to 20 years. A bet on the future, so to speak ;-) I have already saved the Gealan tip, thanks for that! I will google it in the next few days

I was hoping for your reply :) because I have found your previous opinions and comments to be very, very valuable. I came across this "niche product" through a window company from Düsseldorf, which apparently likes to and frequently installs it.

You don’t need to hope for my reply, my contact option, also for newbies, is under "Informationen" in my profile. The Düsseldorf window company would interest me; my overview of suppliers for PVC-aluminum is rather limited.

We actually don’t want casement windows.

??? That doesn’t tell me anything...

How do you see it: In my layman’s eyes, the plastic variant with trim offers the advantage of both worlds: affordable combined with very durable and weather-resistant.

We have done that, it always looks more premium than foil-covered plastic.

always looks more valuable than foil-coated plastic.

I lack the comparison for foil-coated PVC windows. But when it comes to white windows, I would like to restrict the "always": at least regarding branded goods, I have to admit that in the first two to three years, I have to look closely with glasses to recognize the difference between PVC vs. aluminum in surface quality. My partner lives in a house, I believe built in 2006, with white plastic windows that still look well-maintained (which, in my opinion, is unfortunately not an industry standard but occasionally occurs). Therefore, I do not fundamentally condemn PVC for windows, although personally, I would only put them in guest toilets and storage rooms in the house. Even when we decided not to continue our own production, PVC for the economy line was included in the program. It is simply a reality that the initial-building owner, when it comes to windows, also goes on a savings course in the wrong areas. I see little point in prophesying eternal condemnation for PVC buyers in succession and prefer to encourage them to mix (at least to use aluminum for the stress elements). However, I believe renovation builders do themselves a favor by using aluminum if anything. In the specific case, the replacement is probably a luxury; wooden windows from about thirty years ago were – although I can only speak for those from the old federal states – high-quality/durable; but the OP has already admitted that design is a motive for the replacement. Otherwise, replacing the seals often works wonders.