Q&A /

Shrinking a Window Opening

tall window - Cincinnati House

Shrinking a tall window similar this is easy. The problems brainstorm when you attempt to make a window wider. Photograph CREDIT: Tim Carter

DEAR TIM: I'thousand pre-approved to buy an existing home and some of the ones I like have tall windows. I don't similar them and would love to convert the tall windows to short ones.

Is this possible and is information technology expensive? How much piece of work is involved and what should I avoid?

Do you feel this is a job for a exercise-it-yourselfer or should I hire a professional person? Eric M., Fairborn, OH

Beloved ERIC: Tall windows are common in many Victorian-era homes and those that sport a contemporary flair.

Large Glass = Large Low-cal

The extra glass area lets in lots of light and creates a unique look when yous are inside looking out, so be sure you give those tall windows a one or two-calendar month test drive before y'all intermission out the pry bar. Be prepared for a petty bit of sticker stupor. High-quality windows can exist pricey but they are worth every penny.

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The simple answer to your question is information technology is not difficult to reduce the height of a tall window. It doesn't matter whether yous are reducing the opening from the top or the lesser or both directions. My answer would be completely different if you told me you wanted to enlarge the width of the window. When you decide to do this, the scope of the task changes dramatically. But if yous want to reduce the width and shorten a window opening at the aforementioned time, that is also a relatively like shooting fish in a barrel task.

Nigh every window has a structural header or axle that passes over the opening. Windows and doors are not designed to conduct any loads and for all intents and purposes they bladder in the crude opening where they reside. In fact, at that place is supposed to exist a half inch gap on the sides and elevation of widows and doors then they don't even come up into direct contact with the structural framing that surrounds them. If weight is placed upon a window or door you volition oftentimes notice it is hard to operate, it doesn't shut properly and in worse cases, the glass shatters unexpectedly.

The biggest challenges ane often faces when reducing the size of a window are:

  • finding a new window that matches the original ones
  • waterproofing the new window
  • matching the exterior and interior wall finishes

You should be able to find a window that matches, or is a close friction match, if you are patient. For example, some wood window manufacturers even so offering as an choice horns on windows to match those y'all often meet on 100 year-sometime window sashes. Window sills are also important to match and so pay attention to the existing windows at your firm and take numerous photos of them with you when you go to store for new windows.

The flashing details around the new window are extremely critical. You can't depend upon caulk to keep you lot and the walls of your firm dry over the long haul. You lot need to collect any h2o that is streaming downward the inside of the wall above the new window and redirect this water to the outside. Existing water infiltration bulwark membranes must be securely fastened to the new window to ensure h2o can't get between the window and the house framing.

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The actual process of reducing the opening to accommodate the new window is piece of cake. Yous simply frame the rough opening to the exact dimensions provided by the window manufacturer. Use properly-sized framing materials so you can install the right interior and outside finishes that will be in the aforementioned aeroplane as the current finishes. You may accept to add thin strips of lumber to build out framing and so that modern materials piece of work.

The exterior finish is often much harder to lucifer than the interior. If the exterior is forest or similar siding, avoid butting the new fabric next to the siding that was cutting to fit the old window. Endeavor to remove some of the existing siding so the butt joints can be randomly staggered. If the outside is brick, accept the fourth dimension to molar out adjacent brick so just the brick side by side to the window are cut.

Y'all may discover that function of the job is best handled by a professional and then yous can worry about finishing the interior surfaces. I would highly recommend this if y'all have never installed a new window before. Accept a twenty-four hour period off from piece of work to watch how information technology is done and so you lot can tackle the side by side ane past yourself.

Perhaps the most important step in the window replacement process is the waterproofing pace. A mistake here may show itself quickly, but smaller chronic leaks tin do lots of silent damage that may not expose itself for many years. Information technology is important to caulk a window one time the installation is complete, merely caulk should non be the sole waterproofing defence.

Pay shut attending to the written installation instructions provided past the window manufacturer. They often call out the precise rough-in dimensions for the new opening. Follow these to the letter of the alphabet. These same instructions often have very expert directions for attaching water membranes to the window. Note that the membranes and taping methods mimic how shingles are installed. The upper layers lap over lower layers.

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