Telly
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
- Joined
- Feb 22, 2003
- Messages
- 2,395
I've done quite a bit of window work over the years, mostly new construction or major renovation which allowed me to use "new construction" type windows, rather than "replacement windows", such as Pella aluminum-wrapped wood, Weathershield, and other brands I don't remember. Most of it is irrelevant to intense-sun southern brick construction that goes on here.
Here I had dark bronze-colored aluminum frame windows, various grades have been used for years in new houses around here. They were narrow-spaced insulating glass, and created before thermal breaks. All single-hung, or fixed.
Materials - I talked with installers around here, they had stories of plastic (vinyl, PVC) windows sagging in the heat, especially wider windows, and custom's like large fan-lights, etc. The plastic windows are only available in white or very light colors to try to minimize the softening plastic problem. I did not want white, I wanted the dark bronze look, and I wanted strong durable quality windows. I asked around, as to who they would use in their house, if price was not a big issue. They said DYC aluminum frame, thermally broken. No plastic glazing bead on the outside to weather, the glass installs from the inside, different than most windows. Tilt-in sash for cleaning, screens remove from the inside. They are the 8200-series.
I visited the company's main sales office and factory in Dallas, and I knew someone who already had the windows installed for some years. They deal wholesale only, so they would not sell to me directly - darn! I asked for a few local window companies that they distribute to, and picked one to do the install. Around $11k for over 20 windows a few years ago, some of the windows are 8' tall. Most are setup as "replacement" windows, as they are in brick. The others I had them order with the nailing flange ("new construction"), as I was renovating wood siding areas, ripping off siding and replacing sheathing. I actually did the renovation work partially, and just screwed back on the old windows over the new sheathing till the new windows arrived.
These windows have wide, strong aluminum frames, 3/4" insulating low-e glass, metal parts everywhere. Definitely burglar-resistant.
Removal/Installation in brick. In original construction around here, the original aluminum windows had nailing flanges on them, and they were nailed through the sheathing into the studs on both sides of the window rough opening. Then the house was bricked, keeping the nominal 1" air space behind brick. Bricks were brought up just shy of the window frames, and mortared.
To remove window in brick, the glazing units are removed first. The poor method is a suction cup is attached and someone breaks the glass. Once enough shards are removed, the sash can be pulled out. The better method is one person inside pushes out, while another on the outside heats up the glass edge and old glazing bead with a torch. Once the bead is out, the glass is heated to soften the mastic, and then the glazing unit can be pushed and pulled out, usually in one piece, no shards.
Either way, once out, a thin pry bar is inserted into the frame about mid-way up, and the frame is bent inward enough to cut it with a reciprocating saw. Once cut, grabbing the frame end with pliers and using the pry bar, the window frame is ripped off of the nails that attached it to the house framing, working all around in a circle.
The "replacement" windows do not have a nailing flange, as there is no way to install a window with one, and no way to nail it. So a closed-cell foam insulating tape is wrapped around the new windows frame, and the new window is inserted into the opening. Once plumbed, a few screws are driven at an angle through the top and bottom of the window frame into header and rough sill (this is inside the window opening, not seen). Then the exterior frame is silicone-caulked to the brick with a matching color all the way around. Once that caulk cures, there is no way that window unit is coming out without major cutting and banging (I have seen it!)
For the "new construction" windows I needed, they were "replacement" windows that we slid in factory-supplied aluminum nailing flanges into the frame extrusions all the way around. They were just flange stock, we cut to length. I say "we", as the installers knew how to do replacements, but no matter how much they told me that had done new construction, they didn't. I always had to stop them, about to put a window up without the 6" wide sealing tape on the rough sill over the sheathing, or forgetting about putting a thin bead of silicone caulk on the back of all nailing flanges. It was easier for me to do it myself, they just lifted the window into the opening and plumbed it when I told them to.
I'm happy with the windows, I like the sturdy commercial look, and there have been no problems.
Sorry for writing a book here, but thought some may like to see some of the behind-the-scenes on windows.
Here I had dark bronze-colored aluminum frame windows, various grades have been used for years in new houses around here. They were narrow-spaced insulating glass, and created before thermal breaks. All single-hung, or fixed.
Materials - I talked with installers around here, they had stories of plastic (vinyl, PVC) windows sagging in the heat, especially wider windows, and custom's like large fan-lights, etc. The plastic windows are only available in white or very light colors to try to minimize the softening plastic problem. I did not want white, I wanted the dark bronze look, and I wanted strong durable quality windows. I asked around, as to who they would use in their house, if price was not a big issue. They said DYC aluminum frame, thermally broken. No plastic glazing bead on the outside to weather, the glass installs from the inside, different than most windows. Tilt-in sash for cleaning, screens remove from the inside. They are the 8200-series.
I visited the company's main sales office and factory in Dallas, and I knew someone who already had the windows installed for some years. They deal wholesale only, so they would not sell to me directly - darn! I asked for a few local window companies that they distribute to, and picked one to do the install. Around $11k for over 20 windows a few years ago, some of the windows are 8' tall. Most are setup as "replacement" windows, as they are in brick. The others I had them order with the nailing flange ("new construction"), as I was renovating wood siding areas, ripping off siding and replacing sheathing. I actually did the renovation work partially, and just screwed back on the old windows over the new sheathing till the new windows arrived.
These windows have wide, strong aluminum frames, 3/4" insulating low-e glass, metal parts everywhere. Definitely burglar-resistant.
Removal/Installation in brick. In original construction around here, the original aluminum windows had nailing flanges on them, and they were nailed through the sheathing into the studs on both sides of the window rough opening. Then the house was bricked, keeping the nominal 1" air space behind brick. Bricks were brought up just shy of the window frames, and mortared.
To remove window in brick, the glazing units are removed first. The poor method is a suction cup is attached and someone breaks the glass. Once enough shards are removed, the sash can be pulled out. The better method is one person inside pushes out, while another on the outside heats up the glass edge and old glazing bead with a torch. Once the bead is out, the glass is heated to soften the mastic, and then the glazing unit can be pushed and pulled out, usually in one piece, no shards.
Either way, once out, a thin pry bar is inserted into the frame about mid-way up, and the frame is bent inward enough to cut it with a reciprocating saw. Once cut, grabbing the frame end with pliers and using the pry bar, the window frame is ripped off of the nails that attached it to the house framing, working all around in a circle.
The "replacement" windows do not have a nailing flange, as there is no way to install a window with one, and no way to nail it. So a closed-cell foam insulating tape is wrapped around the new windows frame, and the new window is inserted into the opening. Once plumbed, a few screws are driven at an angle through the top and bottom of the window frame into header and rough sill (this is inside the window opening, not seen). Then the exterior frame is silicone-caulked to the brick with a matching color all the way around. Once that caulk cures, there is no way that window unit is coming out without major cutting and banging (I have seen it!)
For the "new construction" windows I needed, they were "replacement" windows that we slid in factory-supplied aluminum nailing flanges into the frame extrusions all the way around. They were just flange stock, we cut to length. I say "we", as the installers knew how to do replacements, but no matter how much they told me that had done new construction, they didn't. I always had to stop them, about to put a window up without the 6" wide sealing tape on the rough sill over the sheathing, or forgetting about putting a thin bead of silicone caulk on the back of all nailing flanges. It was easier for me to do it myself, they just lifted the window into the opening and plumbed it when I told them to.
I'm happy with the windows, I like the sturdy commercial look, and there have been no problems.
Sorry for writing a book here, but thought some may like to see some of the behind-the-scenes on windows.
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