Installing wooden windows with your own hands

Let's figure out what needs to be prepared, what materials and tools will be useful, how to select blocks, make the window itself and install it along with the window sill and ebb.

It should be noted that wooden windows are most often installed in wooden houses, but they can also be inserted into concrete and brick walls. Why is wood so important for a private home? Usually in small buildings in areas where there are many trees around and there are bodies of water, there is a high level of humidity. Natural wood will last a long time and not deform if it is processed correctly.

Among other things, wood is considered a sign of chic and prosperity. Today, companies engaged in the production of PVC and wood windows value wooden products more expensive.

As for fire safety and the absence of dampness, modern technologies come to the rescue - there are special compounds that can protect the material from negative factors.

Window selection

When buying them, you need to pay attention to the following parameters.

Wood. It is important to look not at the type of wood, but at the manufacturing features. It is better to choose products that are not made from the heartwood. It is also worth inspecting the material so that there are no noticeable resin pockets, serrations or knots on it. This indicates low quality products.
Frame. The corner connection is also worth carefully considering, since the dovetail connection is one of the most unreliable. The glazing beads should have a slight overlap on the frame, and the lower parts of the sashes should be covered with aluminum plates.
Wood coating. When touched, no roughness is noticeable on a good product. You can visually determine whether the thickness of the coating differs in different places.
Double-glazed window. For more effective protection from the cold, energy-saving double-glazed windows are chosen. They are not much more expensive than regular ones, but they reduce heat loss.
Accessories. If you decide to save money, it is better to choose cheaper wood, but not fittings. It must be of high quality, so it is better to buy products made in Germany or Austria.

They also pay attention to the price. If it is significantly lower than the cost of other wooden window units, this may indicate that the manufacturer has saved on fittings or other structural elements.

Preparatory process

Preparing the opening for installation begins with cleaning it of construction debris and dust. During this process, old plaster is removed and cracks are sealed. The main task of the preparatory stage is to adjust the window opening to the dimensions of the structure.

Measurements are made carefully, since during installation an error of even a few millimeters can lead to gaps.

Important! During preparation, it is necessary to make a technological gap, which will subsequently be filled with polyurethane foam.

The optimal gap width is 15 mm. In the lower part it can be 5 cm. This is necessary to properly level the glass unit.

We take measurements of the opening

Once the opening is completely clear, you should measure it carefully. The main goal is to determine the configuration of the opening itself, and based on it, the dimensions of the new window are established. If you have encountered or seen how openings are measured when installing plastic windows, then this is done in exactly the same way.

There is such a thing as shrinkage. Every house, even a new one, shrinks. And naturally, this can affect the symmetry of your window opening. Very rarely is the opening perfect. The window itself must certainly be slightly smaller than the opening, especially if it is not symmetrical. You must maintain the gaps, as shown in the figure above.

To make your calculations more accurate, it is better to use a laser tape measure. Or a construction thread, with which you can beat off the vertical and horizontal. If they are even, then your measurements will also be accurate.

How to make a window block

You can make a window unit yourself, but making high-quality and complex frames with your own hands will not be easy. This requires professional carpentry tools and woodworking skills.

Wanting to save money, home owners create simple designs and buy ready-made double-glazed windows. But this option is suitable for a country house or veranda.

To assemble wooden windows with your own hands, you need to prepare a hacksaw, chisel, square, drill and hammer. To ensure a tight fit of the elements, grooves are created. The profile is assembled from bars, which, after joining, are fastened with wood glue and screws.

For reliability, corner connections are reinforced with metal plates. But you will have to buy ready-made accessories for homemade frames.

After manufacturing, the glass of the required size is cut out and inserted into the frame, secured with a glazing bead. You can also buy ready-made double-glazed windows.

If ready-made windows are purchased, in wooden and panel houses they are secured with anchor plates made of metal. If the product needs to be fixed in the opening, a casing box is made. It is necessary to protect the structure from distortion during shrinkage of the building.

The casing is made from 100x100 mm timber so that the side parts have a vertical groove. This helps protect against stress when shrinkage occurs.

Decoration

How to install a wooden window in a frame house to make it beautiful? Several decoration options are offered for ordinary people. First of all, this is coloring. Today there are various dyes that do not fade and are suitable for application to any surface. Before painting, do not forget to clean the surface and treat it with a primer.

How to insert a wooden window that is decorated with lamination? The holes must be created carefully so as not to damage the top coating. Some people use self-adhesive to create an interesting design, but this work is painstaking and difficult.

The most original and interesting way to make a natural wood window structure unique is carving and creating patterns.

The article discusses how to insert glass into a wooden window, what materials are needed and a list of actions. If you adhere to the rules and take into account the technological features of the work, the design will last for many years and will delight you with warmth and comfort.

Installation process

Window frames are installed in a certain sequence.

After preparing the window opening, sealing tape and metal fasteners are secured to the frame. The tape is positioned so that during installation it is directed towards the street.
Then the window block is inserted into the opening and the metal fasteners are screwed to the wall. At this stage, a building level is used to ensure that the structures are positioned vertically.
When the structure is fixed, the space between the wood and concrete is filled with polyurethane foam. The gap with foam is closed with plastic strips.
After securing the window unit, you can begin installing the ebb. Before laying it, foam is applied to the concrete, and after it is laid, it is secured with self-tapping screws. It is important to insert the edge of the ebb under the frame into a special groove. If it is not there, you need to cut it in advance.
At the last stage, the window sill and slopes are installed. They first need to be cut to fit the size of the opening. After installing the window sill, the space under it is filled with polyurethane foam. It is also used for installing slopes.

Important! The sashes are installed only after the entire structure is secured.

Features of installing the window sill of wooden windows

Installation of a window structure in a block or brick house begins with the installation of a window sill; an exceptional case is the use of the plate mounting method. Also, after the main work, an attached type of window sill is installed, since it does not have sufficient load-bearing capacity.

In all other cases, the installation of the window sill looks like this:

first, a cement mortar cushion is laid and leveled;
the window sill canvas must be installed on the prepared base and secured to the bottom of the opening using regular or dowel nails;
to install a window sill up to 1500-2000 mm long, three fixation points are sufficient, with the side ones should be located at a distance of 150-200 mm from the edges, and the third one in the middle.

The outer edge of the window sill must coincide with the outer edge of the frame. And if the installation is carried out in an opening with a quarter, then you should first lay a layer of insulating material, for example, polyurethane foam. In some cases, a method of gluing to a silicone compound is used. Next, you should install the window unit, choosing the most optimal method for this, which, however, is determined by the type of the opening itself:

for an opening that is a rectangle, even with slight deviations, the option of installing the window in a simple and accessible way on mounting blocks is suitable;
if the opening is smooth, but the condition of the walls is unsatisfactory, then the so-called through installation is used, carried out using dowels;
If the opening is skewed, the condition of the walls does not matter, you should choose to install windows on mounting strips or plates. Using the very common but incorrect advice for leveling the opening with cement plaster does not stand up to criticism, since it does not provide the window structure with correct and uniform shrinkage, and therefore does not solve the main problem.

Safety precautions

In order not to cause harm to health during work, you need to follow several rules.

Installation of wooden windows requires the use of a suitable set of clothing. It should not restrict movement and have hanging elements. Gloves are also important, as they will protect horses from minor injuries. When dismantling old products or cleaning the opening, you should use safety glasses.
When working, it is necessary to hold the working tool correctly, avoiding accidents. When it can do harm. For example, it is a mistake to hold metal fasteners near a working drill, as it can jump off onto your fingers.
Only two people can lift the frames. This will protect against back injuries and help preserve the structure.
If the window frame is installed at a height, you cannot fully stand on the window sill without a safety net. In this case, all actions must be carried out from inside the premises.
To protect your respiratory system from dust, it is important to use masks. Ventilating the room and removing construction debris that remains after preparing the openings helps prevent dust.
There should be no draft in the room.

If you underestimate these rules, you can get serious injuries.

Recommendations from the experts

Professional builders recommend checking the mobility of the sashes after installation. It is a mistake to think that they will develop over time if they are difficult to open immediately after installation. If the sashes move with force, the position of the frame needs to be adjusted, so you should check it before all the gaps are foamed.

Important! Wooden windows, which are installed in compliance with all rules, can last longer.

After the foam has hardened, it is necessary to trim off its excess and close the gaps with compression tape. To avoid the formation of cold bridges, before installing the slopes and window sill, you need to check whether the entire space around the frame is filled.

Blitz tips

To make the casing, use wood with a moisture content of at least 10% , otherwise cracks will form inside the structure over time.
When making a pigtail, it is strictly forbidden to use metal fasteners.
Construction foam should not be used as a sealing material when assembling the casing. In this case, the wood is bonded, which prevents its natural drying.
When installing windows, it is important to make the holes for them correctly. The optimal distance from the window sill to the floor is 85-90 cm.
Experts do not recommend installing windows without installing frames, even if the house was built many years ago and the frame is completely dry. This is due to the fact that throughout its lifespan the tree has a tendency to dry out.
For greater efficiency and heat retention, wood windows should be installed closer to the outside of the window opening.
It is necessary to choose hard wood as a material for the window sill. A window sill made of laminated wood has the longest service life; a window sill made of solid wood has the shortest service life (as a rule, the product is subject to warping).
The angles of the window opening should be 90 degrees, and the diagonals should not differ by more than 10 mm. If the hole in the base is larger than the allowable size, more sealing material will be required. If you do not ensure that the corners are even, the box may warp.
It is important to correctly calculate the seating depth of the window in the opening so that the dew point isoline, equal to 10 degrees, passes in its inner part. Then there will be no condensation on the inside of the window.

Advantages and disadvantages

You can install wooden windows yourself, but this is associated with some difficulties:

an assistant is needed for the work, since it will not be possible to cope alone;
if you have no work experience, you can get the frame dirty or make mistakes that will lead to its distortion;
It may take several days to measure, dismantle old ones and install new ones, while professional builders do it in a few hours.

Installing a wooden window yourself means significant money savings. If you carry out the work, paying attention to every detail, you can do everything efficiently and without the involvement of builders.