Timber windows in Berwick & Casey.

1. Heritage cottages & period-style homes.

Original Berwick township homes around High Street, Wilson Botanic Park and the older streets running off the rail line have timber sash windows from the late 1800s and early 1900s. A modern aluminium replacement looks wrong on that streetscape, and council planning generally prefers a like-for-like timber replacement on heritage overlay properties. Modern Stegbar Timber and Trend Timber sash windows match the original profiles closely while including modern weather seals and an optional double-glazed IGU.

2. Premium new builds & architect-designed.

High-end new builds — particularly in the Berwick foothills and acreage blocks near Wilson Botanic Park — often spec timber windows as a deliberate interior design choice. Solid timber inside paired with double-glazing reads as a warmer, more crafted finish than aluminium. Typically these jobs run $25K–$60K across the whole house, with bifold or stacker timber doors at the rear running another $10K–$20K each.

3. Like-for-like in 1970s timber-frame homes.

Some 1960s–70s Endeavour Hills and Doveton homes were built with timber-frame windows originally. Replacing them with timber rather than swapping to aluminium keeps the architrave depths and sill profiles consistent with what’s already there — aluminium would look slim and modern next to the house’s existing detail.

Solid timber vs alu-clad timber.

• Solid timber: Timber inside and out, painted or stained both faces. Most traditional. Repaint exterior every 8–12 years. ~$800–$2,000/window installed.
• Alu-clad timber: Timber inside, powder-coated aluminium on the exterior face. Timber look from the room, low-maintenance from the street. No exterior repainting. Premium ~$200–$400/window over solid timber.

Double-glazing on timber windows.

Modern timber windows are commonly specced with a double-glazed IGU (insulated glass unit) sealed into the timber frame. Combined with timber’s naturally low thermal conductivity you get U-values of 1.8–2.5, better than thermally broken aluminium and well below standard single-glaze (6–7). The premium for double-glazed timber is $400–$600 per window over single — proportionally smaller than the aluminium uplift.

Maintenance reality.

• Painted external timber: Repaint every 8–12 years. North and west elevations sooner.
• Stained external timber: Re-coat every 5–7 years — UV is harder on stain than paint.
• Alu-clad external: Hose down occasionally. No painting.
• Internal: Paint or stain lasts 15–20 years before refresh.