JOURNAL / DOORS AND WINDOWS

In almost every project there comes a moment to choose the doors and windows. Aluminum is the default answer: it is mass-produced, there are suppliers in every city and it usually costs less. Solid wood is a different decision, and worth making knowing what it gives and what it asks in return.

What wood does best

  • Presence. A wood window isn't just a frame: it is part of the architecture and the feel of the space.
  • Insulation. Wood conducts heat far less than aluminum, so the frame doesn't heat up or cool down with the outside.
  • Repair. A wood piece can be sanded, refinished and have parts replaced. A damaged aluminum profile is usually replaced.
  • Design freedom. Custom sections, proportions and systems: pivot doors, lift-and-slide windows, screens, shutters.
  • Aging. Well maintained, wood ages gracefully and keeps working for decades.

What it asks in return

  • Investment. In our workshop, solid-wood doors and windows start at MXN 30,000 per piece, before VAT and freight.
  • Maintenance. The finish is renewed periodically, more often outdoors and on the coast.
  • Time. A single piece takes 3 to 8 weeks, and a complete project several months.
  • Design. Species, section, joinery, drip edges and hardware are resolved piece by piece.

When we recommend wood

When the doors and windows are a protagonist of the space, when the architecture calls for natural materials, and when the project is expected to last for decades and can take simple maintenance. It's what we make most, for studios such as Taller Mauricio Rocha and JSA and for hotels on the Oaxaca coast.

We don't recommend it when cost is the main criterion, when no one will maintain it, or in buildings with hundreds of identical windows, where mass production makes more sense.