Old Window Retrofits

[GinaC]

Hello all, I've been looking for a contractor to help me with some of the parts of my windows that I can't reach, and also for exterior painting. "Save America's Windows" has a list of people in the back, and I am going to start contacting them next week.

The closest one to me is Chris Pratt of http://www.opensash.com/

What do you all think of his retrofit system? This could be cheaper than just removing the storm windows and getting Indows.

[Gothichome]

Gina, other than the window sealing upgrade to the sash it looks to be version of inside storms.

[GinaC]

Yes, but the thing that troubles me is that he routes out a channel in the original window in order to place the new glass. Is this ok to do? (I'm paranoid about changing old stuff, but my house is in no way historical and so does not need to be 100% original.)

[Gothichome]

I would think it would do no harm Gina. You are still preserving the original sash.

[heartwood]

as a traditional window restoration specialist, I say "Gaaaaah!'...

first off, anyone who refers to the meeting rail and hardware as 'these things' automatically looses a few points with me...

I would NOT remove wood from the sash to add glass or weather stripping...air leakage comes in around the perimeter of the window sash not through the glass...when you drive down the highway going 70 miles an hour in the middle of a new England winter, you don't feel cold coming through the windshield...and definitely don't insulate the weight pocket...since the window in the video appears to have a rope and pulley balance system, I don't know how they insulated the pocket...if the exterior of the house is properly sealed, there may be cooler (not cold) air in the weight pocket...this air and ventilation is what keeps the wood dry and free of mold...black mold is a fairly recent issue in houses because they are sealed up too darned tight...

an exterior storm window is applied around the perimeter of the sash which will eliminate drafts with a 4"-5" area of insulation (between storm and primary window)...

preservation philosophy calls for maintaining as much as possible of the original components--that means wood and glass...old windows are made in such a way that they can be repaired--paint, putty, broken glass, parting beads can all be replaced while still maintaining the original components and design....

that's it from my corner of the preservation world!
....jade

[GinaC]

Thanks, Jade! I was hoping you'd chime in!

So what you're saying is that I can remove the storm windows and just repairing/reglazing the original windows will be enough for these Northeastern Vermont winters?

EDIT: I read your post again and realized you did mention storm windows. So it would be better for me to replace the old storms? S.A. Fishburn puts in Allied aluminum low profile storm windows, but they have not returned any of my messages. http://safishburn.net/servicesproducts/stormwindows

[phil]

my neighbor tried getting glass cells made to replace one of his old windows. It took forever to get them made that size, and then he figured out that the weights were much too light since the cell was so much heavier than that piece of glass. Maybe it could have worked with lead weights, but they went for new windows instead.

[mjt]

As a data point... I'll raise your Vermont winter with our Minnesota winter...

We repaired/restored our original windows. Almost all the original storms were long gone and had been replaced with some garbage triple tracks; only the original storms for our curved windows remained. We are in a historic preservation district and the preservation commission approved a low profile storm window from Allied. It made a huge difference with our heating bill.

Repair/restoration of your original windows and proper fitting storms (even the original ones!) are all you need.

[GinaC]

Oh, these are not the original storm windows. They're probably from the 60's (and in horrible shape).

The windows on most of my house have hooks over them for the original wooden storms, which are long gone. The funny thing is, on the left side is the solarium, and the windows in that room have no hooks. It is not an added on room, as it is part of the original foundation. I guess they just didn't use that room in the winter? I do have the original metal piece used to close off the furnace vent in that room.

I contacted QuantaPanel because I can't get up there to install them myself -- unless maybe I can rent a telehandler and then paint at the same time? Ugh. Hopefully they can get back to me with the name of a contractor.

I don't really have any place to store 30 Allied panels/screens.

[1918ColonialRevival]

Back in the day, a lot of people only used solariums in the Spring and Summer months, so that might explain why yours never had storm windows.

I agree with Jade about not making modifications to original sash. In addition to potentially introducing more air leakage, I would be concerned about compromising the structural integrity of the sash, which would present a possible security and safety issue aside from ruining the sash.