Installing a New Single-Pane Window (glazing and all)

It took me about three conversations with my uncle, a professional painter who also works with windows, to understand what he meant by glazing. When I hear "glazing" I think of cakes and pottery, not windows. Modern windows don't need glazing, but the old single-pane ones do. "Glazing" is actually a putty that gets really hard over time, and it's used to keep a window pane in the frame. Just check out the outside of your window and you'll see what I mean. Those smooth, angled edges towards the edge of the window pane is dried glazing. If you're home is in a bit of disrepair (as was ours), some of it may be crumbling apart like aging rubber.

Removing The Window

I removed our old windows the easy way. I just turned my head the other way and bashed them in with a hammer. I learned later that you should really remove the glazing first and remove the window as a full piece, but busting through the panes worked just fine for me and it was much more satisfying. There's just more to clean up after.

Removing glazing, on the other hand, is a bugger! I spent a lot of time trying to figure out the best method here, and the best I could come up with was using a hammer and chisel to try to get a straight edge on the frame. You have to remove the glazing, otherwise your new window pane won't fit. Removing the glazing was probably the most time-consuming part of the whole process, and the most tiring, and the most frustrating. I feel like if I had known the frustration I would be feeling, I would have handled it better and wouldn't have stopped every five minutes to see if the new window pane would fit yet.

Pre-Paint the Window Frame

Since you're removing all the old gazing and most likely revealing bare wood, you have to paint the frame to 1) Protect it and 2) Give the new glazing something to stick to. Everything I read said to use oil-based paint, so we did, but I don't really understand the reasoning behind it.

The Glazing Dilemma

I read about 6 different guides (including the back of the glazing can), to get a feel for how to go about applying the glazing. Some said to put glazing directly on the frame, stick the new window pane on, then add glazing to the outside in a kind of glazing sandwich. Some said to skip that first part and just add glazing to the outside. I tried it both ways, and think that for the most part, one should probably just stick glazing on the outside.

Everyone I talked to who had done glazing before said they only put glazing on the outside of the window. One reason I can think of for putting it on the inside as well is if your frame has a rough surface and the glazing will add a bit of cushion to keep the pane from breaking. I kind of regret putting glazing on the inside of some of the windows because I'm just thinking about how much of a pain it would be to remove it later, should the need arise.

Finally Installing the New Window

This part is the easy one. You just fit the window into the frame, slip some glazier's points (little metal tacks that hold the window in temporarily) into the frame, snug against the window, and then apply the glazing. Here's a couple quick tips on the process:

1. You have to work the glazing with your hands to warm it up and make it more pliable. Make sure you have a clean, wide surface (that won't fall off a ladder) to rest the glazing on because once a lump of it falls on the ground, it's toast. I ended up with a lot of toasted lumps.
2. For big windows, get someone to help. I did all the the windows by myself because when you get the itch to fix something, it's best to scratch it before the feeling goes away, and my wife was not available to help. I just about dropped my 4 by 3 foot pane of glass several times because the window was behind a big bush that had me resting a ladder against it to get an appropriate height. Get help, or possibly suffer the embarrassment of returning to Home Depot to get a new pane of glass.
3. Make sure you have a few hours of daylight left before you start. This is also another mistake I made with the above mentioned window.
4. While I got the home repair bug in the winter, I realize now that spring would have been far more ideal for glazing, as when it gets cold it's impossible to work with. But then again, everything is better to do in the spring, so just know that it's possible. I did it against the advice of professionals.
5. Use a new spackling knife to shape the glazing, and clean it often to avoid the glazing from sticking on your knife. I used an old one without a good edge for the first window and then went out and bought a new one for the next window. The clean edge worked much better.

There you have it, it's not too difficult a task, and it beats using duct tape. I spent about three hours on your my window, but after that it went much more quickly.