Uniformat B2020

Window, aluminum frame

Also called aluminum window, storefront window

• Confidence C
• Version 0.2.0 (permanent link)
• Reviewed 2026-10-22

This is version 0.2.0. The latest is 0.3.0.

Service life

Years in service. The band runs from the shortest to the longest life the sources state, so it shows how much they disagree, not how long 80% of units last. The line is the median of the stated lives.

Basis

• 35–40 years · CNA e-Tool Estimated Useful Life Table, p8 · HUD CNA 3.3.3.2.3 “Aluminum” — U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (planning life)
  Family properties 35 years, elderly 40. US multifamily housing.
• 25 years · Design standards: employer's requirements – Technical Manual (ER-DFE-XX-XX-T-X-0201, revision A-C01), p97 · 2.6.4 “External windows and doors (including glazed/louvred components): 25 years” — Department for Education (England) (design life)
  Printed page 97. External windows and doors, material not stated. Minimum life expectancy (design requirement) for DfE-funded school buildings. Minimum design requirements placed on contractors for school buildings, not observed replacement ages. Section 5.1.4 (sanitaryware) refers to CIBSE Guide M Appendix 12.A1 'in general'.
• 30 years · Future Buildings Standard: final stage impact assessment (RPC-MHCLG-25104-IA), 24 March 2026, p77 · Appendix B “"external windows which was assigned an asset life of thirty years"” — Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (UK) (planning life)
  Printed page 77. External windows, frame material not stated. Assumption for new non-domestic buildings in England; the IA says the lifetimes are in line with BS EN 15459 (Annex/Appendix E), but they are stated as the department's own modelling assumptions, not a reproduced table. Round-number economic-appraisal assumptions, not observed lives. Same values as the January 2021 Future Buildings Standard consultation IA (separate file), so the two are not independent.

How sources are chosen and recorded: sourcing policy.

Preventive maintenance

No maintenance tasks are sourced for this component yet.

Open questions

• Every source here is a published planning, design or accounting life. None is observed replacement data.
• No preventive maintenance tasks are sourced yet.

Know the answer? Send it with a source to [email protected].

Cite this

Citation

unfinished.one (2026). Window, aluminum frame, v0.2.0. https://unfinished.one/c/window-aluminum/v/0.2.0

BibTeX

@misc{unfinished_window_aluminum_0_2_0,
  title = {Window, aluminum frame},
  author = {{unfinished.one}},
  year = {2026},
  version = {0.2.0},
  url = {https://unfinished.one/c/window-aluminum/v/0.2.0},
  note = {CC BY 4.0}
}

Licence CC BY 4.0 · How to cite · JSON · Versions: 0.3.0, 0.2.0, 0.1.0