F.A.Q

What is the difference between a window and a sash?

A window is the entire area of glass, a sash is a specific opening in the window.

How many sashes can be controlled at once?

This answer varies, depending on the gearing type you have selected. Manual/ Electric shaft & Lever can control up to 7 sashes, to a maximum total width of 7.5m. Chain drives individually control one sash at once but can be connected in parallel to open up to 10 at once opened by a single switch.

Is manual cheaper?

Not necessarily. Typically our clients believe manual shaft and lever is the cheaper option as it is the most traditional. However, it is more labour intensive and involves a much larger array of components. Electric shaft and lever is often the same price, or cheaper. And in jobs where there are numerous single sashes, chain drives are the cheaper option. We are able to provide multiple quotes with different types of gearing, so if you are unsure which product is right for your project, please just ask us.

What is the lead time on your gearing?

Lead times vary, but usually, range between 1-4 weeks.

What options do I have? Do your systems integrate with BMS?

Yes. We have a range of options that can be integrated into building management systems, or home automation systems. Please see Integrated Automation Systems under our services.

What colour does it come in?

Our shaft & lever gearing can be powder coated to match the colour of the joinery. However, the motor operating the electric shaft and lever is silver anodised.

Our chain drives typically come in standard colours of black, white and grey. A few of them, however, can be powder coated or come with their original aluminium casing colour of anodized silver.

Do your systems integrate with home automation?

Yes. Our interlock elevation units come with their own touch control keypad and can provide total home automation for windows. Meanwhile, our chain drives can be connected to a home automation system that may be pre-existing.

OWT are certified partners & installers of KNX, an open protocol that controls all aspects of home and building control such as lighting, heating, cooling and ventilation, blinds/ shutters, security and door communication systems, audio and video, and metering.

My house is by the sea, does that make a difference?

Yes. If any project is within 200m from the coastline, a stainless steel chain is normally required. This is due to minimising corrosion from salt air/sea spray.

How can I control this gearing?

Our electric gearing (Electric shaft & lever and Chain drives) can be operated in a range of ways.

  1. Switch
  2. Controller – can be connected to rain sensors/thermostats and can be controlled by a remote control.
  3. Remote control (Kato ADV)
  4. Central touch keypad (interlock Elevations)
  5. KNX operations allow control by a central touchpad, mobile devices (Android/IOS), computers and can be integrated with Siri, Alexa and other voice activated systems.

How many chain drives can a switch control?

It depends on the circuit but our recommendation is a MAX of 8 units per switch.

Do I need a rain sensor? If so, how many?

We recommend rain sensors if the windows have no significant eaves above to protect them from the rain. We recommend one rain sensor per side of the building, or per direction of which the weather can come from where windows are located. I.e. East, West, North & South.

Can your systems be incorporated with fire services?

Yes. We have products that can be integrated with smoke ventilation systems.

What other projects have you done like mine?

Please see our Projects portfolio of previous jobs. These jobs are split into four categories; Residential, Commercial, Educational and Community.

Do you offer remote controlled window openers?

Yes. We have one chain drive that can be directly operated by a remote control. Meanwhile, the remainder of our chain drives can be operated by a remote if a controller is installed as well.

How big are the chain drives?

They vary in size but average between 40 x 3.5 x 4 cm. Some tandem units can span the length of the window sill if required, however, both chain drives are encased within an aluminium unit that can be colour matched to the joinery.

Are they easy to wire?

Yes. Our 230 Volt units are the easiest to wire, as they can be wired in parallel and directly to a switch. Our 24 Volt units require a step-down transformer, which most electricians can supply and are familiar with.

Our quotation letters include all Electrical information required for electricians, however, we are always on hand to help answer any questions.

Do you provide a warranty?

Yes, we do. We provide a 2 year product warranty, and a 5 year warranty for workmanship.

What maintenance do you offer?

We are able to supply maintenance documentation to clients upon completion of gearing installation.

We also offer a bi-annual maintenance check-up, wherein we liaise with you via a site visit or phone call to check on things.

At any point, we are here to answer any calls regarding our gearing, when required.

Can you do the electrical work?

While the wiring does not fall under our scope of work, we can get our partnering electricians to do the work, if required.

Want to find out more about your window opening options?