Just had vinyl replacmeent windows put in. The windows operate well and lock with no problem, but they seem crooked compared to the stops. Will this affect the seal? The contractor said it was because the frames were crooked and there was nothing he could do about it. Is this true?


Here's a pic.
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Thanks!

 

Do what??!! There's no excuse whatsoever for the window to be that cocked in the frame. They were straight when they came from the factory, why aren't they straight now? Get him back out there and have him install them correctly. Others will chime in shortly, so get some more opinions as well.

 

Thats just nasty looking. I know in some really old places they recommended getting the mechanically joined frames instead of the welded ones, so you could fit them in the really badly racked existing frames. The other option was to build down the cocked frame to square and install a smaller replacement.

Looking at how the repl frame is sitting compared to the stool that could be your issue. Can you accurately measure the wood frame on the diagonals? Top left to bottom right and top right to bottom left? If its off by more than a fraction, your old frame is badly racked.

 

Put a small level on your new window. Across and up and down and see if it is plumb and also level. If it is, then the window is pretty straight and the window frame is out of square. I run into this all the time in older homes. Good Luck

 

The way the sash is crooked with the masterframe of the vinyl window, it's a safe bet that the old sill that the window is sitting on is way out of level.

But that is no excuse. The installer should have chiselled the sill out under the window until it would sit level. Yes, you run into this all the time on older houses, but the vinyl window should be installed so that it is square, and it is obviously not. Rather than checking with a level I'd recommend checking the vinyl window frame for square, as Gunguy mnentioned... open the top and bottom sashes and measure the vinyl window frame diagonally... from top left to bottom right... compare that with the measurement from bottom left to top right. The measurements should be equal... or at least within 1/16" or so.

If not, I'd call the installer back.

 

Thanks everyone for your replies. So the sill is definitely not level, and the frame is not even. It seems that like XSleeper said, the window needs to be square, and so the contractor should have chiseled out the sill. When I measure the diagonals, they're off by about 3/4 of an inch.

Unfortunately, I already called the contractor to come look at the windows again and asked him if they should be so crooked. He said that it was because the frames were crooked and there was nothing he could do. That was before I posted and didn't know if this was true or that chiseling out the sill would be an option. I should have done more research before calling him to come back out the first time. Any suggestions on what to say in order to get him to actually fix his work?

Thank you!

 

Sorry, but your contractor gives skunks a bad name. There is only two ways to install a replacement window. Right and wrong. Unfortunately he chose the easy way out and did it wrong.
What to say??? "Correct this mess." Simple, to the point.

 

He said, "there was nothing he could do".

As you now know, that is a lie. Ask him to remove the window and chisel the sill until it is level and reinstall the window. Appologize for having to tell him the solution to this simple problem.

You could also ask him why his installers don't chisel the sills level. Look at the window from the outside with the screen removed, and ask him how the bulb seal on the bottom sash is ever supposed to seal where it meets the sill of the window. I can't imagine the window meets very well at the meeting rail either... and might bind when it locks and unlocks.

That's just shoddy work, IMO.

One thing chiselling the sill will do, however, is drop the top of the window down lower than your top interior stop can cover. So you will likely need to add a filler to the top of the window if the window did not come equipped with a head expander. (a head expander is a [ shaped piece that slips over the top of the vinyl window and covers unsightly gaps like that)

If he isn't willing to come back I'd call him every day until he does. The squeeky wheel gets the oil. If you haven't paid in full, withhold payment in full until you are satisfied.

 

If one of my guys walked away and left a job looking like that, It would be the LAST one of my jobs that he ever walked away from!!