Common Window Problems in Tulsa, OK

Replace

Fog or haze between the panes: Replace the glass unit or the window

If the haze is inside the glass, it will not wipe off from either side. It means the seal around the double-pane unit has failed, and the gas that insulated it has leaked out.

Some glass shops can swap just the sealed unit. On an older window, a new window usually makes more sense than new glass in a tired frame.

Before anything else, look for the maker’s name on the frame: many window warranties cover a failed seal.

It depends

A draft or a whistle: Find where the air gets in

On a windy day, hold a lit incense stick around the edges of the window and watch the smoke.

If it only moves where the sash meets the frame, new weatherstripping or caulk may be all it needs. If air comes through a cracked, warped or loose frame, or the window is old single-pane glass, replacing the window is the real fix.

• Smoke moves at the sash only: weatherstrip and caulk first
• Smoke moves at the frame, or the frame is out of square: replace

It depends

Won’t stay up or won’t open: Sometimes a fix, often a sign of age

A sash that drops or slams shut usually has worn balances, the springs or cords in the sides of the frame. A sash that will not open is often painted shut or swollen.

On a newer window, a repair shop can often replace the balances. When the window is old, or several windows do it, replacing them fixes it for good, and every window opens easily again, which matters in a bedroom.

Replace

Soft or rotted wood: Replace it if the wood is soft

Press a screwdriver into the sill and the bottom of the frame. If it sinks in, the wood has rotted, and water is getting in around the window.

Paint covers peeling, but it cannot fix soft wood. A new window stops the leak before the water reaches the wall around it.

• Paint peels but the wood is hard: scrape and paint
• The screwdriver sinks in: replace the window

Replace

Cracked or broken glass, or hail: Replace the glass or the window

Cracked glass lets water in and can break the rest of the way at any time, so keep people away from it and tape it if you have to.

After a hail storm, photograph every damaged window before anything is fixed and call your insurance company: many homeowners policies cover hail damage.

One crack in a newer window may only need new glass. When several windows on one side of the house are hit, they are often replaced together.

It depends

Won’t lock or close tight: Check the lock first, then the frame

If the two halves of the lock no longer line up, the sash has shifted or the frame has settled. A loose or broken lock on its own is usually a cheap part.

If the sash will not meet the frame at all, the frame has likely warped. That gap lets air and water in too, and the window should be replaced.

• The lock is loose or broken: a new lock
• The sash and frame don’t meet: replace

Usually a fix

Water on the inside in winter: Usually the air, not the window

Water on the room side of the glass on cold mornings means the air in the house is humid. Run the bath and kitchen fans, and keep the humidity lower in winter.

If it runs down old single-pane or metal-frame windows every day, the glass is simply too cold: double-pane glass with a warm edge stays drier. If the water is between the panes, see “Fog or haze” instead.

Replace

Old single-pane, high bills: Replacing is worth pricing

Look at the edge of the glass. One sheet means single-pane; two sheets with a spacer between them means double-pane.

Single-pane glass lets far more heat through than double-pane low-E glass, so the room is cold by the window in winter and hot in an Oklahoma summer. Storm windows help some; new windows fix it.