Replacement Windows

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But, some manufacturers make "replacement windows" that are merely a set of new sashes to go inside existing frames. Other makers apply the term to a thin, formed-vinyl skeleton frame filled with sash; the unit is slipped into an existing casement with the original sash removed.

The building trades call a window in new construction a "prime window." To them, a "replacement window" is the same item installed in the space once occupied by a (newly removed) prime unit. Of course, a new prime window becomes a replacement when used to replace a prime window, frame and all... and once in place, becomes a prime window again. (Abbott & Costello would have had as much fun with windows as they did with baseball.)

But terminology is no joke when you first open a brand new window that doesn't leak cold air, that doesn't need storm windows, and that has sashes that tip in for cleaning with one swipe.

Costs? An an average-sized double hung living room window ready to install will be priced between $100 and $350 depending on size, frame material, and construction and glazing. A good-quality 2-foot by 3-foot double-glazed window with a ready-to-paint primed-wood frame will run about $150 at a discount home-improvement center. A sash-only kit or a vinyl insert costs about 80% of that.

A house full of new windows is not cheap ...but new windows can pay for themselves in five to 10 years of heat/cool ing-cost savings! (If windows contribute to 50% of energy loss and new windows offer a 35% savings: .35 x .50 = 17.5% heating cost-savings/year—for an average payback period of 7.5 years.) New windows increase your home's resale value as well—often by more than they cost.

Indeed, the experts tell us that replacing windows in an older home is that rare thing: a true win/win proposition where Mother Earth and the naturalresource consumer benefit equally. New windows in an old house can contribute as much to global energy savings as they lower the homeowner's heating bill and raise the equity value of his house.

Measuring

There's more than one way to determine a window opening. Dimensions of the rough opening, the sash opening, and glass area are all different. With an older home, you will find it hard to locate a stock window unit that perfectly matches your rough openings. And, one company's measurements won't correspond with anothers'. In a recent Sunday paper, one lumber yard advertised three brands of 2 1/2 x 4" "standard" windows. One measured 2' 6 1/8" x 4' 1 1/4", another by 2' 6" x 4' 1" and the third by 2' 6X" x 4' 1 1/4". And, the store carries windows from two other makers that offer different dimensions still.

Window sizes listed in catalogs are not measurements of actual width x height of the window units, but of the rough openings (R.O.) in the house framing they will fit into. To function smoothly, a window must be plumb and square and snugly fixed in a rough opening that must be within a 1/2 or 3/4 of an inch of window size. Be sure you measure each rough opening separately and carefully. Order windows that fit.

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