How to Fix a Stuck Window

The sticking of a window [http://thebestremodel.com/interior-decor/basement-finishes-and-installing-a-ceiling.html] sash may be due to hardened paint, which fastens the sash to the frame, or it may be the result of damp weather. In the latter case, the wood in the sash and adjoining frame swells, causing binding, or the paint or varnish becomes soft and sticky, making it difficult to raise the sash. In most cases the trouble will disappear when the wood dries out, but during prolonged wet weather it may be necessary to obtain relief more quickly.

Tools You Will Need:

· jackknife

· screw driver

· plane

· medium sandpaper

· claw hammer

· flat wood chisel

· nail set

· pieces of cloth or felt for pads to protect woodwork from tool marks

· small paint brush

Materials You Will Need:

· beeswax

· linseed oil

· small quantity of paint or varnish to touch up the woodwork.

There are various reasons why windows stick and are hard to open. Some of the common causes and ways of repairing them are:

1. Sash Fastened by Hardened Paint

If the sash is held fast to the frame by hardened paint, it may be loosened by running the point of a knife blade around the edges, between the sash and the frame, being careful not to mar the surface.

If it should be necessary to push up on the center rail of the lower sash in order to raise the window, be sure that the thrust is placed near the side rails and not in the middle in order to avoid the possibility of breaking the slender rail.

2. Sash Binds

Examine the window to see where sash binds against stop beads or pulley stiles. Before doing any repair work, it would be well to experiment to see if a thorough waxing with beeswax of the parts in contact will not correct the excessive friction.

If the inside stop beads press too tightly against the sash, they can either be removed and planed down along the edge adjacent to the sash, or moved farther from the sash. If the stops are fastened by nails, it probably will be better to move them over a little, but if they are fastened by screws, it may be easier to plane them off.

In replacing the stop beads, it is well to remember that in order to make the windows more weather tight it is important to have but a small margin between the inside stop and the bottom sash, when the latter is down or closed.

The upper part of the stop, however, can be fastened with a larger margin between it and the bottom sash in the raised position, to allow the sash to slide more readily, since there is no problem of weather tightness when the lower sash is raised.

When the window sash swells to the extent that the vertical edges bind against the pulley stile, or running face of the window frame, the sash should be removed and the vertical edges planed off a little. They should then be coated with linseed oil and waxed when the oil has dried.