Hi Everyone .... I'm installing a few new vinyl windows in an older home, these windows were already replaced in the mid 80's with sliders, I think they took a short cut back then and now I'd like to fix it if necessary. What they did was pulled the old windows out and used a 3/4" filler on top of the already 1" rough boards to bring everything flush with the shingles then installed window and re-installed the Aluminum siding .... now that I've gutted the place and see that there were no headers installed for the larger window and see how they filled it I want to do it right ... I think the windows (any window) should be installed to the exterior sheeting whether it be plywood or 1" rough lumber for less chance to leak. Should I now install the brickmould to the 1" board or leave it and maybe flash it at the top. I guess it's good in a way as I plan on removing the old Aluminum siding and re-installing vinyl siding next year it would be good to have the brickmould out because I want to install leveler foam board and this way the j trim could be installed on top of the foam. What's your take on this ?

I hope that I came to the right place to ask this, however I apologize profusely if I didn't put this in the correct forum :eek: In any event, I've got an old 2-story brick house (the lower floor is bricked) with the old wooden windows still in them (see my photo). I'm going to get some new windows later on down the line, however I'm trying to weatherproof around them for the winter and I was wondering what I should squeeze into the gap between the window frame and the brick? Mortar or caulk? :confused: I've seen folks on other boards say that they use mortar, however it seems as though most folks just use caulk. The gap (#3 in the photo) isn't really all that wide (although it's a bit irregular in places)....ranging from 1/4" to 3/8" depending on what spot that you're in. Also, between the wooden window sill and the brick then there are some spots (#1 in the photo) where the brick mortar has crumbled away (and left a bigger gap between the sill and the brick). The old caulk that somebody had squirted there years and years ago had stuck to the mortar so well there that it ripped off small chunks of the mortar in those places when I was removing the old caulk. Is there an effective method to fix this?... Last but not least, I've discovered that I have 1 brick that is coming loose (#2 in the photo). In fact, it is so loose that I can move it far enough to begin sliding it out from underneath the sill (although I haven't actually pulled it out). I would definitely like to fasten that wiggly brick back down, but I'm an absolute novice when it comes to any kind of surgical masonry like that. Is there also an effective method to make that ornery brick behave better? :D Here's the link to my photo too: [url]http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg4/the_nightfly001/Window%20Sill/WindowSillGap0062.jpg[/url] Thanks to all the experts out there who answer these types of questions for dimwits like me! :)