We didn’t go for a specific tint, but we did get windows with a high-performance Low-E coating (low emissivity glass is pretty standard these days). In Tampa’s sun, the Low-E is almost a must for energy efficiency. A side effect of that coating is a slight tint – in our case, I notice the glass has a very faint greenish hue when I look at it from an angle outside. It’s not super obvious, but if you look for it, it’s there.
Aesthetically, it hasn’t been a problem for us. In fact, the slight tint just looks like normal glass unless you're actively comparing it to clear glass. Our neighbor’s old clear glass windows actually look more stark (and their interiors get so hot). So I’d say don’t worry about Low-E from a looks perspective; most people won’t notice the slight color. And from inside, we don’t really see any difference in the color of light. If anything, it just cuts the blinding intensity of the sun a bit.
We chose a neutral Low-E (some have a bluish or grayish cast, ours is more neutral green). If you have a chance to see samples, that’s a good idea. But practically every modern window here will have some sort of coating. In Tampa Bay, the energy savings and comfort are worth it, and it doesn’t really detract from the design in my opinion.
Jumping in here with another experience – we had our windows replaced about 6 months ago and went through ProTech Windoors (another local company). One neat design feature they provided was removable grilles. We were undecided on whether we wanted the traditional grid look or a clean look, so the salesperson showed us windows that have interior grilles you can pop in and out.
So day-to-day, we actually keep the grids out for a clear view (especially for our back patio doors and big living room window). But when we had a holiday party, I popped the grids back in on the front windows just to give the house that classic cozy look with our colonial-style decorations. It’s a small thing, but it’s nice to have the option to change the look without replacing the whole window.
Design-wise, the windows themselves (we got vinyl frames in a white finish) are pretty simple and timeless. We figured if we ever sell the house, having the grids available might appeal to a broader range of buyer tastes too. By the way, the ProTech crew was great and the pricing was competitive – but more importantly for this thread, I just loved that I didn’t have to fully commit one way or the other on grids vs no-grids!
Has anyone seen those super minimal frame windows? I visited a modern home tour in the area and one house had windows that were almost frameless – like all you saw was glass, with maybe a very thin metal outline. It gave the home a real wow factor, especially from inside, because it felt like there was almost nothing between you and the outside.
I’m curious if those are practical or available for regular homeowners. Are they steel windows or some special type? And can they be hurricane-rated? I assume you’d need some serious engineering for that. The owner mentioned something about them being custom aluminum frames that are powder-coated black and that they weren’t cheap.
I love the idea of a super clean look, but I wonder if it’s overkill for a normal house. Plus, I imagine the thinner the frame, the less insulation you might have unless it’s a high-tech material. If anyone has looked into this, I’d love to hear about it. Otherwise I might just stick to standard windows with maybe a thicker glass and slim profile, which is more in my budget!
@kathyr27 – I know exactly the look you’re talking about. Those ultra-slim frame windows are often seen in modern architecture. In many cases, they are aluminum or even steel-framed windows (steel allows for very thin frames because it's so strong). They can be made hurricane-impact, but usually by specialty manufacturers. I've looked into it out of curiosity and found that some companies do steel windows for high-end homes and yes, they cost a pretty penny.
For a more standard project, one trick to get a similar look is to use large fixed windows (picture windows) for the areas where you want that all-glass effect, and then put any required opening windows (casements or awnings, which can also have relatively clean lines) off to the side or somewhere less visible. We did a 6-foot by 6-foot fixed window in our den. The frame is still vinyl but since it doesn’t open, it has no center meeting rails or anything, so all you see is a pretty slim border and glass. It’s as close as we could get to that frameless feel without breaking the bank.
Another thing: lighter frame colors can make the frame visually recede. But if you like the black frame aesthetic (which is super nice in modern design), even standard windows in black can mimic that look of thin frames if you have a lot of glass. In short, true frameless or minimal frame windows exist, but there are budget-friendly ways to approximate the style using common window types and some smart placement.
I’m in a 1925 bungalow in Tampa, so my perspective is a bit different because I had to balance modernizing with preserving the home’s character. When we replaced our windows, we were actually required by our local historical committee to keep the original look on the front windows. That meant we needed the traditional grille pattern (in our case, six-over-one windows: six small panes in the top sash, one big pane in the bottom sash).
We ended up getting custom windows that mimicked this look. They’re actually single-hung windows with something called “simulated divided lites” – basically grids on the outside and inside of the glass with a spacer in between, so they look like old-fashioned multi-pane windows even though each sash is one piece of glass. It’s pretty convincing. We went with a wood interior so we could paint them the exact historic color, and aluminum-clad exterior for durability. Karoly Windows helped source those for us, as they carry some lines that cater to historic homes. They turned out beautiful and satisfied the historic requirements.
For the sides and back of the house, since they’re not street-visible, we had more freedom. We chose a simpler one-over-one look (no grids at all, just plain glass) to maximize light and views of our garden. Honestly, I love having the best of both worlds. From the street, the house looks like it hasn’t lost its old charm at all, but inside and in the backyard, we get to enjoy a more open, contemporary feel. So it is possible to mix traditional and modern styles even on the same house, you just have to be thoughtful about where you do it.
We’re actually building a new home in a subdivision just outside Tampa, and window design was something the builder discussed with us early on. In our case (because it’s a semi-custom build), we didn’t have endless choices but there were a couple of key design options: frame color and grid pattern. The default was white frames with no grids, which gives a very clean, modern look that appeals to many buyers. But we opted for the optional bronze exterior/white interior frame. The bronze exterior (a dark brownish color) goes really well with our home’s planned tan stucco exterior and brown roof tiles – it’s not as stark as black, but still contemporary. Inside, the frames are white, so it’s nice and neutral for our interior decor.
The builder also offered grids as an option. We noticed in the model homes that adding grids (they had a six-light pattern on upper sashes) gave a more traditional feel, which we actually didn’t want in our particular design. So we chose to go with no grids at all for a more panoramic view out of each window. Our style is leaning more transitional to modern.
One thing I’ll say: even within our fairly standardized choices, just going with that bronze frame made our house design feel a notch above the cookie-cutter look. Driving around the neighborhood, you can almost pick out who chose the upgraded window colors – it’s subtle but you notice some houses just have a little extra "pop". So, if anyone is doing a new build or even working with a builder, don’t overlook the impact a slight change in window color or style can have on the overall look.
Since a few people have mentioned dark frames like black or bronze, I wanted to share a small word of caution from my friend’s experience. She has a home in Clearwater with black aluminum window frames on a south-facing wall. In the summer sun, those frames get extremely hot to the touch. Now, it's mostly an exterior issue (no one is really touching the window frames from outside), but if you have metal frames and little kids who might grab the window sill from inside when it’s super sunny, it’s something to think about. Inside her house, the frames are painted wood so it’s fine, but the metal exterior is like a frying pan by mid-day.
With vinyl frames (which a lot of us have here), the heat build-up might be less of an issue compared to aluminum. Still, dark colors do absorb more heat. I don’t think it’s a deal-breaker – many people obviously go with dark frames and are happy (and the look is awesome). Just something to be aware of. Perhaps ask the installers how the frame material and color hold up in direct sun.
In our case, we went with a medium gray frame for a couple of windows that get intense sun, mainly because we wanted to avoid potential warping or thermal issues that could possibly happen with very dark vinyl. The gray still looks modern but likely doesn’t bake as much as pure black might. So far so good!
I hear you on the interior appearance. When we moved into our house, it still had the original wood windows (which were beautiful but painted shut and not energy efficient). We replaced them with new vinyl windows for practicality. While I love that the new ones actually open and don’t draft, I do sometimes miss the look of the old wood trim. The white vinyl can look a bit plain or "plastic-y" up close, especially since our old wood frames had that chunky decorative molding.
What we did as a workaround was add wider casings and a nice window sill inside after the new windows went in. Basically, we trimmed them out with wood moldings to make them look more substantial and period-appropriate for our 1940s home. We painted all that trim white to match the windows, and it actually looks really good now – kind of the best of both worlds: modern efficient windows, but dressed up with a traditional wood trim detail inside.
If interior aesthetics are a big concern, another route (which we considered) is wood-clad windows – those have real wood inside that you can stain or paint, and a durable exterior (aluminum or fiberglass) to handle the weather. They were pricier, though, so we passed. But I believe some local companies do offer them. It’s something to look into if you really want that authentic wood look indoors without the maintenance on the outside.
We actually went the wood-clad route for our home in Sarasota (close enough to Tampa Bay). I had my heart set on a wood interior because our home’s style has a lot of natural wood accents. We did a lot of research and even spoke to ProTech Windoors about options. They had a line of windows with a pine wood interior and aluminum exterior. Gorgeous products, but as noted, they were significantly more expensive than all-vinyl.
In the end, we compromised: we got vinyl windows but with a faux wood laminate finish on the interior side. Ours have a light oak laminate and surprisingly, it looks pretty convincing and matches our wood floors. From outside, the frames are a bronze color vinyl. So we sort of did a two-tone with a twist (wood-look inside, color outside). It was cheaper than real wood-clad but gave us the vibe we wanted inside.
Installation-wise, it was all handled normally – just the frames had that interior finish. We then added real wood trim around it, stained to the same oak color, and it all ties together. So that’s another idea: if you can’t afford full wood windows, see if your window supplier has interior finish options. And as always, get a good installer who pays attention to those details so it comes out looking seamless.
On a more whimsical note, I want to mention the little round window we added in our attic bonus room 😃. The room was a dark storage space, and we turned it into a small home office. To give it some character, we put in a circular window (about 2 feet in diameter) on the gable end. From the outside, it’s a cute design accent – our neighbors actually call it the "porthole". It suits the coastal vibe here and was a fun way to break up the otherwise plain exterior wall.
Inside, that round window became a focal point of the room. It doesn’t open (fixed glass), but it brings in a lot of light in the late afternoon. Sometimes around 5 PM the sun hits it just right and casts a circle of light onto the opposite wall – it’s really pretty and makes the space feel special.
I think little custom touches like that can really personalize your home. Obviously you wouldn’t put a round window in every room, but in the right spot it can be an artful detail. If you ever have to replace a small window anyway, it might be worth considering a unique shape for that opening rather than a standard rectangle, just to add character.