Step-by-Step Guide for Window Pane Replacement
Is your window pane cracked? Is it just a minor repair to a standard window? If so, you may not have to hire a professional for window pane replacement.
This simple step-by-step guide will show you how to replace a broken window pane. However, if the damage is severe, you may need Toronto window replacement.
If Total Windows Replacement Is Not Needed, These Are the Tools You Will Need to Do the Job Yourself:
- Replacement pane
- 5-in-1 painter’s tool
- ½ inch putty knife
- 1 inch sash paint brush
- Gloves
- Hammer
- Rag
- Safety goggles
Step 1: Wearing safety glasses/goggles and gloves, use a rag to cover the broken pane. Loose the shards using a hammer to tap the center of the damaged area. Carefully remove any pieces that are still embedded in the window putty. However, if the window sash is still in the opening, you should remove the putty before you remove the damaged glass.
Step 2: Using the painter’s tool, carefully pry out the loose putty. Use the heat gun to soften any remaining intact putty. Move the heat gun back and forth, keeping it about an inch away from the putty. To keep the adjacent paints from cracking, cover them in sheets of doubled aluminum foil. Rake out the putty using the chiseled point of the tool.
Step 3: From the grooves where the glass sits in the sill (or the rabbets), pry the damaged metal glazing points. Making sure to get to the bare wood, scrape the rabbets and then sand them. Apply primer to the exterior of the bare wood to prevent the oils from drying out of the putty. Once the primer has dried, press the putty into the rabbets. Make it malleable and warm by kneading it in your hands first.
Step 4: Using the tips of your fingers to evenly apply pressure, wriggle the window pane into the putty. Push down until it is centered. Leave about ⅛ inch of putty between the rabbet and the face of the window pane, making sure that no voids remain under the pane.
Step 5: On the glass at the center of each pane on the side, flatly place a glazier’s point. The tip of the putty knife should be fitted against the raised shoulders of the point. Until it is seated firmly in the wood, gently rock it from side to side, using pressure that is slightly downward. Repeat this process on all 4 sides of the window pane. Next, scrape off the excess putty on the other side of the sash by flipping it over.
Step 6: Prepare the putty into a long rope with a diameter of about ¾ inch by warming it in your hands. Once you have placed it around the edges of the glass, firmly push it against the rabbets that are exposed (overlap the ends if more than one rope of putty is needed).
At a 45-degree angle to the pane, rest the putty knife with its tip on one corner of the glass and the top edge of the rabbet. Using your index finger to flatten the blade, keep it at an angle as you go along each side of the pane, leaving a neat crease in each corner. Remove any excess putty.
Step 7: Give it about a week to dry before priming and painting as needed.
Contact Total Home Windows and Doors if you need more tips on window pane replacement. We can also provide you with a free quote for energy-efficient vinyl windows. Call us today to get started.
