[rdy2go]

The house was built in 92 and looks like no maintenance to the windows was ever done. I believe the windows are Marvin and are aluminum clad on the exterior. The location is central Minnesota, where ice forming on the bottom edge of the glass can do a job on wood. Also, some of the windows have damage on the hidden inside of the bottom member, caused by trapped humidity over the years. I have attached some pictures.

I am looking at a long project of progressively tackling all windows in the house. I was thinking about making some blank covers with hardboard plus foam board and some weather stripping, with a couple cross members held with butterfly nuts and bolts, so I can remove a sash and plug the opening while I repair it. I have a lots of questions...

1) Are the sahses very heavy? I am concerned that they may be too much for me and my wife (70's), in which case I would have to look for help to remove/install in batches instead of piecemeal.

2) What should I use to clean the wood, overall inside and in the hidden dark moldy areas at the bottom.

3) I was thinking to carefully sand the bottom quarter round profile by the glass, holding a wide drywall blade to protect the glass. I wonder if I should apply Minwax Wood Hardener, before or after sanding or not at all.

4) Do somehow similar work on the lower damaged hidden areas of some sashes. I suspect windows on the north side might need some Minwax High Performance Wood Filler, which hopefully will be hidden, and not become a cosmetic issue.

5) Use some Minwax stain to touch up the sanded areas.

6) Refinish the whole sash and window frame with... ? Should I use something like Minwax Helsman Spar Polyurethane? Is there a way to find if it will be compatible with the old finish? How many coats?

7) I wonder if I should break out and remove the bottom frame member that covers the mechanism. Last year I had to replace a couple of mechanisms and I found there was a lot of crud built in. I also noticed that the area under the cross member, was not ever finished, I do not know if because of process/savings or because they intended for it to breath. Should I seal/finish that area? The bottom members are nailed in. I was wondering if I should place them back with long #8 Phillips brass screws.

8) The pictures show some scratches on the bottom of the frames caused by the cats. Is there a way to deal with them? I mean the scratches, not the cats :smile:. At some point I thought about getting some properly milled 1/8" pine or even oak strips to recover a couple of the worst ones.

9) Should I systematically replace all the weather stripping? I wonder if Mervin still sells it for the old windows.

I will really appreciate any comments and suggestions...

 

[dd57chevy]

The first thing I would recommend is a careful check of the bottom sash rail (the bottom of the sash) . If there is noticeable rot , you may have to rethink your plans .

I wouldn't replace weatherstrip seals unless needed . There are usually two sets , primary & secondary . The primary seal (the one closest to home interior) is more important than the secondary one .

I would advise an amateur against removing the would operator cover unless absolutely necessary . They break very easily...….don't ask me how I know this …...:vs_whistle:

Whether you & your wife can handle sash removal , not sure . Casement sashes are more awkward to remove , & can be difficult if they're big .

 

[rdy2go]

The first thing I would recommend is a careful check of the bottom sash rail (the bottom of the sash) . If there is noticeable rot , you may have to rethink your plans .

I wonder if Marvin sells casement sashes to order for old windows. I would not mind replacing sashes if needed. I have finished new windows and doors in the past and I think I can do a decent job. The problem is if we need to get into replacing whole windows because of the way many are arranged in groups. Just to give an idea, the house, on the back side has a three level half-octagonal tower with five windows per level. We could not just replace one of them with a "replacement" unit because of size differences. I guess we would have to tear siding and drop a new (custom order ?) identical window.


It is a large house with 32 windows, so it is a serious project in terms of work and or cost if need to replace. I am retired, so I can put some time to it.

I would advise an amateur against removing the would operator cover unless absolutely necessary . They break very easily...….don't ask me how I know this …...:vs_whistle:

I wont ask :smile:. Last year I had to remove a couple and I guess I was lucky because I was able to clip some of the nails from the outside. I will just try to blow the hollow with a small Senco compressor.

Whether you & your wife can handle sash removal , not sure . Casement sashes are more awkward to remove , & can be difficult if they're big .

I think we will start on the walk-out basement level, where we can work from be both sides. The are about the largest we have and are on the north side, facing the lake, which gets a beating on the winter. It would be the window just under the one in the picture with the black mold. I expect it to be about the same.

 

[joecaption]

I'm sure I'll get a lot of flack and that's OK.
I would not even consider trying to just patch those windows up I'd replace them.
Of all the different types of windows that by far would have to be my least favorite.
Just to many parts to fail, how much air flow you get depends on what direction the winds blowing.

 

[rdy2go]

I'm sure I'll get a lot of flack and that's OK.
I would not even consider trying to just patch those windows up I'd replace them.
Of all the different types of windows that by far would have to be my least favorite.
Just to many parts to fail, how much air flow you get depends on what direction the winds blowing.

If I was going to stay in this house for long, like ten years, I would tear down the siding, of which we already had to replaced some, install new construction windows and put new siding. But we will not last five years on this house.

 

[carpdad]

Try some wood stabilizer after sanding lightly to rid of lifted fibers. Then primer, caulk against glass and paint. Mildewed corner may be fixed with bleach or such. Casements usually have weather seals that are good enough. Maybe the handle isn't closing the window tight?