California Replacement Windows

Spring is a time when many homeowners begin their annual home improvement projects. One of the more popular projects in recent years has been upgrading the windows and doors to energy efficient dual pane vinyl replacement products. In California, the most popular form of vinyl replacement windows and doors is something called a "retrofit" frame. The term retrofit means to take an existing structure and modify it to bring it up to date, rather than tearing it down and starting from scratch. In Southern California, where earthquakes occur occasionally, many of the bridges and buildings have been retrofitted to withstand the force of a substantial earthquake. Instead of demolishing the entire building, they are able to add support to the foundation.

Retrofitting an existing window is a similar process. If you were to completely tear out the entire aluminum window frame, you would have to cut away the stucco around the opening, take off the wire and flashing around the 4 nail fins, then pull out the nails from the studs and remove the window frame. Then, when you nailed the new vinyl window in place, you would have to re-flash the fins and patch and paint the stucco. This process is the equivalent of tearing down the building and making the new foundation earthquake resistant, instead of leaving the building standing, and just doing the foundation over.

In California, we have access to vinyl retrofit window frames, which allow us to leave the flashing and stucco alone, and just replace the window. The procedure is less susceptible to post installation water leakage than the full tearout, not to mention it is a whole lot faster and cleaner. The real beauty of it is the fact that a fairly handy homeowner can do the job themselves, and save a bunch on labor costs. People have a tendency to think if a job costs thousands of dollars in labor to have it done, it must be because the people doing it are highly trained professionals with special equipment that the average homeowner does not have. You don't need any special tools to do this job, just fairly common tools like a drill and caulking gun. And after watching someone with years of experience do one from start to finish, you too, will be a highly trained professional.

So, if you are thinking of finally replacing those drafty old wood or aluminum windows with energy efficient vinyl retrofit windows or vinyl replacement windows, stop procrastinating and do it this year. Learn how to do it yourself so cost won't be a factor, and you can be enjoying a cooler summer and warmer winter in 2007.

John Rocco has been installing vinyl retrofit windows and replacement windows since 1978. To learn how to install vinyl retrofit windows in your California home, visit How To Install Windows