Selecting the proper frame style when installing new windows
From GMWiki
Last week, I told you how to measure for your vinyl replacement windows when replacing aluminum windows. Now that you are prepared to order your new vinyl replacement windows, we want to talk about the various frame style possibilities accessible. In most of the country your alternatives are limited to either new construction or replacement frames. New construction frames come with a nailing fin to attach the frame to the studs throughout the construction of the new residence. The replacement frame is fundamentally the new construction frame minus the nailing fin.
But in the west, where stucco homes are typical, manufacturers came up with a third kind of frame called a retrofit frame. The retrofit frame has a fin about 2 inches wide, positioned flush with the outside face of the window. This is the best option when replacing old windows, but not all jobs will accomodate a retrofit frame application. So let's go over how to determine which frame is going to perform for you.
If you have a stucco exterior, retrofit is the way to go. You install the new window from the outside, and the flush fin covers the old aluminum frame that you are going to leave in spot. Then you screw the new window in using deck screws via the side channels as effectively as the top header. We will get into a lot more detail on the actual installation in a future report. If you have a stucco exterior, but there is a wood trim around the opening of the window where the flush fin would usually go, you can nonetheless use the retrofit style frame. You would require to take away the wood surrounding the opening, install the retrofit window, then obtain and install new wood trim. The old trim will no longer fit considering that the retrofit window frame dimensions will be bigger in width and height than the old window frame. An additional solution is to install the retrofit fin statues of angels on prime of the wood trim. You can do this as long as the depth from the face of the wood trim to the point in the home of the innermost portion of the old aluminum frame is much less than three inches deep. The cause is simply because a good top quality retrofit window will have a 3 inch frame depth from the back of the flush fin to the innermost portion of the frame. That innermost component demands to be further into the property than the innermost component of the aluminum frame so that the aluminum frame will be hidden following we apply the inside trim. What if you have brick about the window openings? Or siding? Then what? Well, if you can install the window against the face of the brick or siding and nevertheless have the innermost component of the vinyl frame be additional into the residence than the old frame, then you can use the retrofit style frame. If not, then you have to use the replacement style frame,then use trim to finish the outside. If you are in a position to get a retrofit frame with a relatively thin fin, you can also trim down the fins so the window fits advent wreath between the brick or wood. That would remove the need to trim out the outside. Some manufacturers of retrofit frames will have grooves in the back of the retrofit fins. You simply run a utility knife in the groove until you are able to break off that piece of the fin.
The major point to keep in mind when determining no matter whether or not to use a retrofit frame or a standard replacement frame is that in order to use the retrofit frame there requirements to be much less than three inches from the outside point where the pyx flush fin will rest to the inside point in the space where the old frame ends. If it's much less than three inches, go with the retro, a lot more than three inches, use the replacement frame and add trim to the outside in lieu of the flush fin.
Subsequent week I am going to explain the process of removing the old aluminum window.
