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Bay Window Treatment Ideas

How To Cover Your Bay Windows

Christopher Smith

It was actually the perfect spot. Our California ranch style house had a massive picture window in the front room. The window extended from some inches above the floor to only a few inches below the cathedral ceiling. The walls and ceiling were redwood stained knotty pine and the floor was a matching hardwood. The window looked out over a flower bed, plants and the expanse of front lawn. It was the perfect window to get replaced with a bay window.

The window was almost square. It was 72 X 72 inches. We considered a bow window, but elected to install a bay window instead. We just felt that our particular house looked better with three panel bay window rather than the multiple panel bow windows. Our intention was to fill the seat board of the bay with potted plants we had sitting in front of this picture window. The new arrangement would give us a little more space in the room and improve the overall appearance of the house. It was time to go shopping.

Scratch vs. Pre-built Bay Windows

When we first got the concept of installing the new window, I commenced gathering plans for building bay windows. Thumbing through books and mags, and the web search engines, I found several plans for building bay, casement and garden windows from scratch. I also revealed that undertaking such a project was going to be pointless. Most of the major window manufacturers,eg Pella, Milgard and Anderson make both completely pre-assembled bay windows as well as pre-built components for replacement windows.

These days few contractors will take on the project of building a bay or bow window from the start. It simply isn't practical when for the same or less money they can install a high quality pre-built window. If the contractors use pre-built windows or parts for new house construction or renovation projects, then we could do the same for our remodeling project, we reasoned.

Installing a bay window can simply be a do-it-yourselfer project. Before you go the diy route , however , you may want to line up a contractor to help out if required. This is not going to be a job that you can complete during a Sat. afternoon. Chances are you aren't going to finish it in a weekend, in fact.

You are also going to want to line up some assistance. Bay windows and window parts are heavy. At least they're too heavy for one individual to control.

Be certain and check out the weather outlook, including the long range prediction. Installing the window means opening a hole into your house. It can take two days to get the new window in place and sealed. The very last thing you would like is for rain to come pouring in on your floor, walls or furniture.

Be sure and check your town or community construction codes. There may be special local necessities, such as having safety glass in low profile windows. You are possibly going to require a building permit anyhow, so that is also an excellent time to check the codes.

Tools and Materials required

The tools you'll need for this project include a tape measure, a framing square that you may use as a straight edge, a circular saw or miter saw, crow bars, drill and bits, level, stapler, utility knife, tin snips and a caulking gun.

The materials you'll need include the bay window unit, the support brackets, nails, roofing paper, shingles, roofing nails, exterior grade silicone caulking and fiberglass insulation. You will also need 1X6 inch boards for the window skirting. If you are enlarging an existing window, or if you are installing the window in a space that was formerly the wall, you will also need 2X4s for cripple studs and additional framing.

Basic Installation Steps

One. Build window position in the wall. Remove the existing window. Measuring the bay window, mark on the outside of the house the opening required for the new window. Using your circular saw, cut the necessary opening.

Two. Framing. Build the framing for the new window. This could likely include cutting through existing studs and putting in a new header, rough sill, jack studs and cripple studs.

Three. Install the support braces. A window up to 5 feet wide will take a minimum of two support braces. A wider window will need 3.

Four. Set the window ready. Lift the bay window on the support braces and slide it into the coarse opening. Shim as necessary to level the window. Anchor in effect.

Five. Build the window roof. Set the roof frame on top of the bay window unit and nail in effect. Fill the space between the roof and the top of the bay window with insulation. Fasten the roof sheeting to the frame and cover with roofing paper. Install the drip edges and the flashing and then shingle.

Six. Install the window skirting around the bottom of the window. Fill will insulation and then attach the skirt bottom to seal the beneath side of the window.

Seven. Seal the edges with silicone caulking.

This is a listing of the basic installation steps and they've been abbreviated in the interests of simplicity and space. The window unit you purchase will have complete installation steps. Take it from the voice of experience , it actually makes the project go much more smoothly and it is going to be completed in much less time when you read and follow them.

In our case, I had two buddies giving help with the project. We have worked together on other projects and work together well. We had the old window out and the rough framing finished on saturday afternoon. We buttoned up the hole with plywood overnite and went back to work the next day. By Sun. evening we had the new window installed and the roof and skirting finished. On Mon. afternoon I finished sealing up the outside and finished the trim work for the inside.

And, we were right. It was actually the perfect spot for a bay window. It looked great from the outside. Within, it became the focal point of the room and added a special charm to the house. The window gave the house added character and value .

When it came time to sell the house, it was one of the features that were particularly attractive to the buyers.