Hi all,

My wife and I bought this house a few months ago and some of the windows have been replaced with vinyl windows. When the windows were replaced, the old casing was reused even though the pieces were too short, thus leaving no reveal and in some cases actually protruding beyond the jamb. I found casing to match the baseboard and other existing casing and am replacing the The widows have a wood 2" jamb extension which is nailed into the opening and caulked to the vinyl. The problem is that the jamb extension on some windows protrudes beyond the wall by up to 5/16". Should I try to remove the jamb extensions and cut them down so the face of it is flush to the wall, or simply put on the new casing and caulk behind it to fill the gap, or...

 

Not a pro at this, but just went through adding 6" extensions for my new thicker walls and new windows. Since things are only a perfect fit on paper, some of my extensions protruded beyond the wall. I don't like the caulking approach except for irregularities. I used a 14" Jack Plane, or a smaller Block plane would work and took the excess off with little effort. New wood and no nails made it easy. A belt sander could be used or depending upon your talent, a circular saw for most and a good hand saw to get the corner areas. I have a small battery powered circular saw I use for detail work and with a sready hand I could do it. But I have a lot of practice.

If you have a plane in your tool box I'd give it a try. If not the belt sander is always a useful tool to have around.

So, what's in your tool box?

Bud

 

Don't caulk something like that. It will look terrible and you wont have much support on the outside of the trim.

A belt sander is going to be slow going to remove 5/16". You can also wind up with a wavy edge if you are not experienced. I think it would be easier and probably faster to remove the wood, cut it down, then put it back.

 

I'd vote for remove & replace too. The best technique i have come up with is to use a jamb and base shoe combination to trim vinyl windows. I like to assemble the jamb first, shooting it together at the corners like a box, then stick it into the rough opening, center it on the window, shim it in place, flush it up with the surface of the wall (or slightly recess by 1/16") then shoot it to the rough opening.

The jamb doesn't necessarily have to fit up against the window tight... if there is an 1/8" gap, it doesn't matter-that's what the base shoe is for. The base shoe can be installed up tight against the window... no caulk required, and no tapering required.

 

Thanks guys,

Although removing the jambs does seem to be the quickest and easiest, further inspection told me it would be quite a chore without doing some damage to the vinyl or the wall. I thought of using a recip saw to cut the nails, but one side ( the one I hadn't removed yet) was too close to the RO to get in there, and the caulking between the wood and vinyl is some tough sh*$ (thermo-plastic?). The wife had some horrified look on her face when I mentioned bringing in the belt sander, so I've opted for the 10" jack plane. Two of the brads were into knots, and broke off when I tried to pull them. I'll drive them in far enough with a nail to not ding my plane. Been out in the garage tuning up the plane and it's ready to tackle in the morning when my son isn't sleeping in the room.

Thanks again,

Tom

BTW, Bud you don't wanna know whats in my toolbox.

 

LOL, what I hate most is having to buy the exact same tool I already have because I can't find it. The kids now have their homes and families close by, so who knows which house it is in.

If you can tune up the blade on a block plane, you probably know how to use one. I consider them old fashioned tools, they have actually been around longer than I have . Let us know how it turns out.

PS, rather than trying to find my sharpening equipment for my old 10", I just bought a new 14". Doesn't take much of an excuse for me and tools.

Bud

 

Thanks again for the suggestions guys, I planed down the protrusion, put the new casing on and it turned out great. Bud, my girlfreind always complains about my tools and "any excuse will do". But hey, she's not removing trim with a butterknife anymore.