Replacing or Restoring Historic Windows
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I have a 1901 Victorian farmhouse with original windows painted shut and broken weights. I’m going to do a lot of energy work on it so I’m debating replacing windows completely (or sash replacements) or doing my own repair/upgrades. My problem with the first option is they have sash horns (this is what they call them in the UK, it’s a decorative extension on the stiles on the upper sash) and I can’t seem to find a US manufacturer who makes windows that look like this. Is anyone aware of one or have recommendations for one that will not break the bank doing a custom sash? My other option is to do weather striping, install a spring based chain and replace the glass with a good IGU. My problem is I know how to source for the first two items, but have no clue where to get really good IGUs on a small quantity basis. Would love to hear others experience or recommendations. Thanks.
-Todd
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Replies
Personally I wouldn't consider window replacement in a 1901 Victorian. I would be firmly on the side of restoration in your situation (assuming they are original). Also I would avoid replacing the glass in the original windows as much as possible.
Replacing single pane glass in vintage windows is rarely a good idea and often way more trouble than it's worth.
Not sure how you feel about storm windows but my first choice in your situation would be to research the possibility of adding storm windows rather than replacing the glass with IGU's.
Performance-wise adding dual pane, LowE coated, storm windows to your refurbished originals would give you better energy performance results than substituting IGU's for the single pane glass in your original windows.
You could also add single pane, LowE coated storm windows for results that would at worst match what you would achieve by replacing the original glass with IGU's.
Seconding some of Greg's comments.
We restored 15 double hungs vintage 1914. Full sash strip, reglaze, refinish. Converted to single hung with top sash now fixed, 2" rigid foam replacing the top sash weight space. Both sashes weather stripped all round. Lower sash will be operable with new chains and old weights.
New storms are going on the outside. Take a look at Larson, Quanta, Monray or Allied (least to most expensive). I prefer the double tracks as slimmer than the triple tracks. Allied makes a single track but it is pricey.
Warning that restore or replace will be expensive either in $$$ or your time.
Good luck!
I used to be all for historic preservation, but creating more "museums" while the world is burning seems like misplaced effort at this point. In the US we have full-frame inserts--basically a new window that slides into an existing frame. There is rarely a good return on investment for that level of work but it would be the best approach, in my opinion. Or do a light restoration to the windows you have and add triple-track storm windows--it will perform just a bit below a whole new window.
If you go the restoration route, this Fine Homebuilding how-to article will be helpful: Restoring Window Sashes.
Thanks for the links. I used some FHB guidance 20+ years ago on a 1922 craftsman house and it worked great. That took care of air tightness, now I’m addressing the thermal. Sever people here and on other forums have suggested storm windows, but the exterior ones would block the architectural details. That, and one of the reasons we are moving to this location is the nice long shoulder seasons where you can open windows.
Interior storms mean the elements will continue to hammer away at your windows. Check out Allied for the least disruptive exterior storms.
https://catalog.alliedwindow.com/item/historic-one-lite-windows/historic-one-lite-1-panel-hol-a--2/item-1079
BTW the most helpful info I have found online for window restoration is here ...
https://www.youtube.com/c/WoodWindowMakeover/videos
I'm going to take a Contrarian view. I grew up in a house with double-hung wood windows with storms, and I currently own a house with them as well. I agree that from an interior appearance standpoint there is no equal. But that's where I stop. I've never seen storms that don't look far worse than modern windows. And there is more to aesthetics than just appearance. Part of what makes a house pleasing is a good tactile interface -- the places where you come into contact with the house are pleasing to the senses. This means things like doorknobs having the right heft in your hand, doors opening and closing with the right amount of effort, cabinet pulls not feeling like they might come off in your hand. Old windows have a terrible tactile interface. They stick, they slam, you feel like you have to baby them to keep from breaking the glass. Storm windows have an even worse tactile interface, opening and closing them feels like unpeeling a can of spam. Now it's true that some modern windows also feel like they're going to fall apart in your hands, but the nicest ones feel like fine pieces of machinery when you operate them.
Now let's get to practicality. Wooden windows need painting. A lot. I have painted many, many wooden windows. And puttied and replaced glass. It's just one of my least favorite jobs. Yes, a freshy painted wooden window looks great. If you love that look, rejoice, you'll be enjoying that look every five years or so for as long as those windows are in your life.
Wooden windows swell in the summer and shrink in the summer, which means in the summer they stick in their frames and in the winter they rattle in the wind.
You'll always find someone who says that wooden windows with storms is as good as a double-glazed window. That hasn't been my experience at all. Storm windows are not air-tight at all, and wooden windows tend not to be much better. If you live in a place where it's windy in the winter the wind will whistle right through that combination. There's a reason that it was a standard plot device in Victorian novels to have a draft of wind blow out a candle at a key moment; Victorian houses really were that drafty.
Now, what's true is that it often doesn't make economic sense to tear out a bunch of old windows and replace them with new windows. But by the same token, it doesn't make economic sense either to rehabilitate old windows, to paint them as often as they need to be painted, to replace the glazing as often as it needs to be done. It probably doesn't make economic sense to put anything other than the cheapest storms over them. I would make an argument that the cheapest possible route is to put cheap storms over the wooden windows, do zero maintenance, and when they fall out of the walls replace them with modern windows.
But there is more to life than just economics. What you choose is your choice. I'm just trying to point out that the choice isn't completely one-sided.
I agree with most all of what DC says above. But I lost the 'wavy glass" debate, and the Hardie versus cedar claps debate, etc. Perhaps I need debate training? I loathe high maintenance tactics.
Todd,
You might want to read this article: "What Should I Do With My Old Windows?"
Martin --
Do you have a a cite for his line in the article: "Research has shown that an old single-glazed window fitted with a low-e storm window performs as well as a new double-glazed low-e window."
I have read that claim many times and it just doesn't square with my experience. Maybe if you're just comparing the glass to the glass. But as a whole system? No way. The problem with single-glazed windows isn't heat loss through the glass, it's air infiltration through the frame. You only have to sit next to one of them on a cold windy day to see that.
Pacific Northwest National Labs funded storm window research some years back.
Google "pnnl storm window". You will get a bunch of hits like this ... https://labhomes.pnnl.gov/experiments/lowE.stm.
Probably unhelpful, but GBA Prime advertising is today recommending to me this product ... https://unicornspit.com/
DC,
See the first response to this GBA question:
https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/question/100-year-old-single-pane-windows-storm-windows-with-low-e-or-interior-panels
Both of those links are dead.