Save America's Windows

Whiting is a fine powder used to polish oil residue off of glass after glazing. Chemically, it is calcium carbonate. The original whiting was chalk stone ground to a powder and sifted or bolted for different particle sizes. Most Whiting today is limestone ground to a powder. You can usually get whit...

I have painted aluminum storm on a couple of projects, for appearance, to change the color. I don't recommend painting aluminum for protection. It usually does not need it for protection. If aluminum storms get painted, some knowledgeable painter in the future will probably paint them again and clog...

How do you mark the panes when you remove them, so you can get them back into the same lites?s I don't mark them. I always remove the panes in the same specific order and stack them. Every time I handle the panes I keep them in that same order in the next stack. When I set the panes in the sash they...

Tips: - clean and lubricate all parts - if you need parts the brand and part number are often marked on the operator arm - the bottom horizontal piece of wood is often easy to pry up (wedge and wiggle) to investigate the operator condition - if the glass storm panel may have been left on, making the...

I customized the Stortz triangle scraper for sash deglazing:
-- ground to corners to a slightly less than 90 degree angle for removing front putty
-- ground a profile on the other point to match the typical ogee profile

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8" is longer than I have done, but it should be possible. It's possible that it can be mended leaving both pieces right in place, if the two pieces of glass are still aligned in the same plane, and close together. It may not work well if there is anything in the crack, like residue from past wi...

"Demonstration of how spring-bronze weather stripping works on a French style (in-swing) casement window. Rare to see it correct; I wanted to document it for future restoration work." (video courtesy of Peter Lohmann)

One project had limited funding and requirements to make the windows safer and stabilize the windows for future work. The wood sills had weather checks and a heavy paint buildup that was alligatored and ready to start flaking off. There was no money or time to set up for lead-safe work, strip the si...

Keeping your hands clean. First, get less on your hands. Spread a rag out on your bench. Sprinkle a little whiting on it. Pat your hands on the whiting to coat your palms and fingers. Then pick up your wad of whiting and roll it in the whiting on the rag. Get the putty on the sash as quickly as poss...

White oak is fine for window sash. The heartwood is quite decay resistant. I have seen 300 year old sash made out of it.
It's not common because other woods (like pine, cypress or fir) are less costly and more easily worked and machined.