How to Repair Damaged Window Sash Cords | Ask This Old House
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.ค. 2024
- Ask This Old House general contractor Tom Silva helps a homeowner fix window sash cords to keep her double hung window in balance.
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Time: 1 hour
Cost: $10
Skill Level: Easy
Tools:
Screwdriver
Hammer
Utility knife
Shopping List:
Cotton line
Nails
Steps:
1. Remove the screws holding the stop beads with a screwdriver.
2. Remove the sash from the window opening.
3. Remove the screws holding the doors to the weight pockets using a screwdriver.
4. Take out the old weights and broken sash cords.
5. Feed a cotton line down the pulley hole and into the weight pocket.
6. Tie off the bottom end of the cotton line to the old weight on each side and return the sash weight to the window pocket.
7. Cut the opposite side of the line. Leave slack measuring about two thirds the length of the window opening.
8. Replace the door to the weight pocket using screwdriver and screws.
9. Pull on the cotton line and lift the weight almost to the top of the jamb. Fish the line along the dado cut of the sash. Tie a knot where the line meets the hole in the sash.
10. Put the knot in the hole and nail it into the sash using a hammer and nail.
11. Repeat on the opposite side.
12. Cut any excess cotton line using a utility knife.
13. Place the sash back into the window opening.
14. Replace the stop beads on the jamb using a screwdriver and screws.
15. If the pulley squeaks, use a silicone spray.
Resources:
Replacement sash cord can be purchased at a hardware store or home center.
The display window that demonstrates how sash weights operate was on loan from Boston Building Resources. (www.bostonbuildingresources.com/)
About Ask This Old House TV:
Homeowners have a virtual truckload of questions for us on smaller projects, and we're ready to answer. Ask This Old House solves the steady stream of home improvement problems faced by our viewers-and we make house calls! Ask This Old House features some familiar faces from This Old House, including Kevin O'Connor, general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, and landscape contractor Roger Cook.
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How to Repair Damaged Window Sash Cords | Ask This Old House
/ thisoldhouse - แนวปฏิบัติและการใช้ชีวิต
The easiest scenario ever for replacing the cords. It's never like this in the real world with 10 coats of paint, zinc window track, no access hole... But I still watched it, ha!
Right. I watched this video and then started this process. I have a six over one. The bottom was easy. The top? Two hours in and I've stopped for a Dr Pepper. Whew!
Yup , I replaced a bunch of them for a customer on some huge windows. They had paint, no access panels. I had to cut them in.
I came here to make the same... They can fill these videos in the dumpster! Magical wand repairs
@ReCycle Spinning I need mine fixed. Are you in maryland?
If the window isn't painted shut, the garbage house painters have coated the tracks, ropes, and the pulleys, which jams the window and keeps it from opening. I've repaired so many windows like this. It always starts with a tub of paste stripper to remove the 18 layers of paint so you can see what you're doing.
In my second life I want to hang out with Tom Silva all day long.
I read this wrong as first I thought you said that your second wife wanted to hang with Tom Silva all day long.
I’d do it now!
i would prefer to play with the home owner...
I've got dibs.
This will be my summer project in our 1910 Craftsman. The previous owners cut all the sash cords and caulked the windows shut including the opening for the sash cords. When I realized what the wife was talking about when she said they "sealed the windows" I almost cried. Who wants to live in a big old house where you can't open any of the windows on a nice day? And why spend the money on screens and storms if you are going to cut and caulk the windows shut?
I definitely would cry.
At least they didn't replace them with cheap vinyl windows!
Been working on mine last couple years. 1 summer to just cut and scrap all the caulk and silicon out. They were caulked closed from the outside and inside and they used silicon for window glaze. I would like to know where all the window weights went? No cords left and no weights left. They’re double hung gothic styled windows. Happy all windows are here, but only a handful of storms left. Such a nightmare from the last owner.
Most of the old windows I work on like this have been painted 20 times. Makes it much harder to get to the weights.
The Handyman use some paint stripper and rhen just stain the wood
The Handyman I'm working on mine now and they've been painted 6 times... also, they never cut an access panel for the weights! They had scored the lines so we just cut it ourselves but still. It turned out to be 200% harder than Tom's unpainted window. :O
mine are all nailed in, gonna have to tear out an replace/repaint. i guess the plus side is that they're painted so i don't have to match the wood/stain...
The trim around the window openings are the access to the weight pockets.
1. Do NOT use cotton sash cords. You will be back doing it again someday, okay maybe 50 years or so, but still also moths and wasps can eat it . Better to use no stretch Polyester 1/4" (not nylon) such as: McMaster-Carr:
3852T38
Use a Heat gun to melt the frayed ends upon cutting. Replace BOTH cords while you have the window open
2. save one of the old cords so you can measure the correct length to cut. This is much easier than trying to measure it in place. Add a bit for the knots. You can set the exact length when you tie off the weight. You want it to just bottom out, with the knot at the pulley, although this is not critical.
3. Have an extra person if possible to help you align the windows for safety while you install the ropes. The window can swing around once you install a weight,
4. Some dry lubricant on the sash stops helps the windows too. In theory, the screws on the sash stop will allow a bit of adjustment to get the window tight, but not too tight.
Cotton is authentic old-school material it's what they used long ago so it's appropriate to keep on using the old school, natural product. It ages well and looks good. Who wants plastic sash cords?
@@Rep0007 It sure ages, and insects love it! You have to replace it periodically. I did not suggest plastic, I suggest polyester rope, which looks almost like cotton, but runs smoother and will last longer. Now, if you have only a couple of windows, maybe you don't care, but I have 50 in my house.
Dude is like "I'll just tie a single overhand knot and that should hold it" in the calmest voice ever.
@@bacaliboy I would recommend a double knot, and it fits into a metal catch in the sash frame.
@burtony3 my window doesn’t have that access panel to the weight. How do we access it?
You guys are so flipping awesome, that's just what I needed to know as I work on my partners 101 year old home, thank you This Old House!
Was zen like watching Tom work on this, thinking back to all the old Windows in the house I grew up
A year ago I had a dream of buildings so magnificent it made me cry! Must have been a peek at Heaven! I love architecture!
A couple comments:
Should test the sash before cutting the cord and reinstalling the stop. If the weight or the knot is in the wrong position then it will not counter the sash correctly. Finding that out after cutting the rope and installing the stop will mean starting all over.
Wondering why not use a polyethylene rope with better UV resistance over cotton. Many sash ropes fail due to UV aging.
wow...! That's big...!
(And the way she hold the weight)
you guys are INCREDIBLE. thanks for spreading the knowledge!
When fixing these I usually find the rope doesn't go in from the top as easily as Tom's did in the video. Then it's necessary to remove the pulley at the top, feed the rope through it, and then add a bit of weight to the end of the rope. I always have a couple of steel nuts in the tool box to use for this, then drop them into the opening at the top and it brings the rope right down. Then you can re-install the pulley. A lot of times the pulley has a lot of dirt, rust, or paint in it and needs to be loosened up before it's re-installed. Work it around a bit until it spins and then give it a shot of WD-40 before putting it back.
Another issue is removing the doors to the weights. Part of the door is behind the parting bead, so I have to carefully loosen the parting bead by cutting the paint in front and back and gently pulling it out at the bottom and bending it to the side to allow for the door to be removed.
Hank, you beat me to it. I learned those lessons 40 years ago repairing every single one of the 20 plus windows in a hundred year old house i bought. Fast forward those years and i found the same thing in another hundred year old house.
Sadly, in my climate, repairing the weights didn't stop winter drafts so i ultimately ended up going with double paned replacement windows - no drafts, quiet, and heating bills cut dramatically.
I had the same problem. I didn't know how to pull the pulley, but I did have a bakers pie weight chain. I just taped it to the end of the sash rope and threaded it down. Worked like a champ
I can't wait to get working on repairing my first renovation project's windows. I hope more people save theirs rather than replacing them!
They are absolutely terrible and inefficient.
Great video !well explained .
GOOD VIDEO TOM ! THANKS !!!
I love these old windows. Our house has double hung windows with leaded glass for the upper window. Some of them are still working fine. It's crazy to think that this pulley system can last more than 100 years.
Thanks for the video, hopefully replacing the sash cord really is as easy as you made it look! I'm starting with the only painted window in the house. It also happens to be the smallest.
In the 1970s, owners put simple storm/screen alu. sash windows over the outside of our double hung, and works great. Removable panes. Now have double window configuration for all seasons. Never replace with new vinyl encasement windows like contractors want to sell you.
Superlative production You have inspired me to work on my channel, thanks. 🐼
Thanks so much for this! My single hung window cords just snapped last night, this should really help me replace and repair it simply.
How did it go?
@@andrewsstation6436 So my window setup was different enough from this instructional video that I had to figure it out on my own, but I did eventually figure it out.
@@hyperdrivepics That’s good that you were able to get your window fixed.
Fantastic video.
*pulley squeaks*
You know it might be a squeaky pulley
Me: no i think its one of the 4 blind mice in the next room over
Thanks for your video, you taught me how to fix it, yeahhh
excellent job. I just learned something.
5:20 Tom like "oh yeah that's nice" lmao
you a very great person
Me encanta este programa,
I think my window frames are nailed. But still this was very informative for how to route the ropes and weights. My ropes gave out. Thank you.
Yea but the top window is way harder - you have to fight with the parting bead which often splinters, is caked with paint and then needs replacement.
A functional top window is essential for ventilation and security.
Any advice on making these windows more energy efficient? Other than buying new windows
I am so mad that I thought this would be a tough repair and put off even looking it up
Laughed when I saw the stick lol that’s all too familiar
thank u :)
Do all windows have stop bead and access panel to get to the weights? I never see them....
if I have this kind of windows but I want to replace with new vinyl window ,Ist possible ? Do I have tutorial for it?
It's a long one😂
Tommy definitely done it lol 😂
We have old windows (1910) The can't be knotted but have an anchor shaped stopper which I cannot find anywhere. Any suggestions?
I've gotta pile of window weights from change outs,and I've fixed a few
Just fixed my squeaky windows with wd-40 after I found out what the cords were. Little spray in the pulley and down the side of windows and there is no more squeak!
Can we get a video of all Tom's hammer skills?
"Wow, that's BIG!!!"
"It's a long one."
🥵
No throbbing though .
That must be a good knot to hold the weight like that. I would tie about 6 to make sure.
Hmmm, okay so maybe I wont be fixing this myself lmaooo.
Just in case the weights aren't there, you can buy those weights, right? Since there are no weights, what is the proper weight to buy? I'm sure it has everything to do with the size and weight of the window, but it's not like you can weigh your window.
hey there! renting in a Victorian home with this same issue. called the landlord when I first moved in (2+ years ago) as, they told me they didn’t have the right parts for this (which I doubt as I see all the parts involved minus the weight which is concealed) and that there might be an asbestos risk to opening the frame panels. I took a peek and the only pieces that would have to be removed look pretty worn to me, similar as in the video so I don’t know how much they’re stopping in the first place. anyone know the potential risk of getting a second opinion/ DIYing this project? grateful for any advice 🙏🏻
Tom, you got a cold?
Good video. I also recommend this video, which gives a better instruction for how much cord to let out before tying it off: th-cam.com/video/HB_a3nNoFs0/w-d-xo.html
In theory, this job should take no more than an hour per window. Of course, that is assuming you don't take the opportunity while the sash is off to wash the windows (upper & lower sashes, both sides), take out the storms & screen and do the same, realize the locks never really latched tight so you remove the locks (which were painted over several times so you have to scrape all the paint out of the screw heads first) then need to scrape and sand the old paint, fill in a few spots with wood putty, prime everything, before putting in the new locks, etc. etc. Oh, and when you're all done, you realize the window right next to the one you just did looks really grimy next to your clean window, so ... In other words, carve out a whole day for this.
Words cannot describe how deeply I felt this comment, hehe. And thanks for the alternate video suggestion- I'm about to do this process to virtually every window in my 1921 house. Saving grace- many of them have never been painted and retain the original wood stain.
Actually, it takes longer than an hour because most people have to watch videos like this in order to figure out what to do, then go buy the necessary materials if needed, then start the repair
These windows are so beautiful when working properly and maintained well. But in 95% of cases, their caked in paint, (thank god mine are still original wood grain) both pulleys are snapped, and the window sill is somehow cracked😂🤦♂️
Do you need to paint exterior gas line in residential work?
Always a good bet...who needs rusted gas service?.......use rustoleum, and you want a grey color(I believe thats code)......the meters need to be grey as well
Thanks for the silicone
Can you replace using chains? Or should I buy rope?
This worked great for the lower window, but I ran into a problem with the upper window. I’ve restrung it’s weights and ran the rope through the appropriate pullies but I don’t know how to access the dados to fasten it to the sides of the upper window. Can’t slip that window out like the lower one.
My problem, too!
yea whatever but how do you do the outer ones??????
All of the sash cords in my Pella windows are broke. They're not rope like these in the video. Just a heavy string. Is there and way to replace those? The windows themselves are in good shape but can't be operated safely because they come crashing down when you open them.
Is this a trick question? Do exactly what they did in the video.
What kind of knot to tie on the window weight end of the sash cord would be helpful. Perhaps any old knot would do? Perhaps not?
Btw... ever seen lead protective caps on the tops of the sash weights? Here in Toledo's historic Old West End 1900-1920s homes, that's what I'm finding. Never saw that in NH's turn of the century homes. 3-4" tall cap (1/4" thick) of "sheet" (?) lead crimped at the top around the sash cord, with the frayed loose end of the knot tucked inside. Is it (a) dust protector, (b) rope fray protector, (c) failsafe back up knot holder (in the unlikely to impossible case that the knot comes out of it's holder? ...I've asked around town, but I don't know the answer!
Tommy so bad ass he used the claw end to hammer in a nail.
Only 2 people have ever possessed that skill Tom, and Mr. Norris.
ahh huh that's how its done is it? I wondered how to repair that
Please show us how to fix a modern window?
I'm a bus fan but it's cool what u doo
callum rennie No no no you're only allowed to watch 1 subject on TH-cam.. Go watch some more buses
But... I'm a Contranctor, bus fan and a train nut...
I need this 'cause my mom got snip happy with 2 windows.
2:02 Wow! Thats Big! Its a Long one......
We just bought a home built in the 70's that has double hung windows, but the cords are much skinnier, they aren't ropes like this one. A lot of the windows have broken cords that I'm hoping could be a DIY project to repair. Not sure it's the same setup as this one though since it isn't a rope.
You can use what you want based on the pulley groove. Cotton clings better in pulley wheel than nylon or polyester. Chain link was found in serveral windows of our 1927 Colonial. Works great and never needs replacement. Not sure why was not used on all 47 windows. Found 5/16" cotton cord blend is far better than say 1/4" nylon. Easier to tie off, grip and hangs taught.
2:03. Lol
can you make a video how to do hardwood flooring
+ sanjay Parsam - In the TH-cam search above type "how to install hard wood flooring"
This old house has countless hardwood flooring videos
let me just go over and get my handy dandy model double-swing window
As a joiner for 40 years, I’d never replace sash cord like that- always use a “mouse” and feed the new cord in one length through all pulley’s before attaching weights and sashes
Agreed
What does it mean to use a “mouse” to feed the cord?
@@catmanbk a mouse is a length of string say, 3ft long, weighted with a piece of lead or a bent 11/2” nail.
Once you have stripped the sashes out and recovered the weights, you tie the end of the sash cord to the end of the mouse and feed the mouse through the pulleys thus pulling the sash cord through. It just makes life easier and quicker.
At 62 now, I love renovating sash windows - it’s a dyeing art.
it’s very important to keep in mind when doing an old house is that everything sounds sexual.
Opened mine.. and a 10lb weight on one side.. a 9lb weight on the other side... my thoughts.. this cant be balanced..
Am i right?
Your unbalanced!..just kiddin'..... the reason for that is the back upper sash is always a little lighter, or else someone mixed the weights up in the past. The 10 lb goes to the bottom pane, the 9 lb to the upper pane.
@@oreokookie1000 someone had mixed up the weights.. Im not sure why.. but it was probably well before i was even thought of.. 🤣
The cords on my bedroom window in an old Edwardian flat just broke one after another over the past month, just from looking at the pane I'm not sure how the landlord would even be able to fix it without tearing the whole wall open. I'll just have to live with having a guillotine for a window
Yep. That's what wooden rulers are for.
Yep, I live in a old small urban apartment bldg., full of them broken cords all covered in years of paint. A stick and silicon spray gave me new appreciation for new windows you just pop out to clean. Plus new one's are insulated.
I guess the isolation factor of this type of window is far out of the normal scales. From factor A to G it must be like Z^9999. As if there is no window. Just a big hole in the wall.
of course.....you do anything you can in new england to insulate them....stuff them with pink panther, stuff cotton in the stops, and if you have a foreclosure house in the ghetto thats been vacant 20 years, all bets are off...i fix double hung windows for a living, sometimes for 2 weeks straight....the "this old house" window is a walk in the park, easy as pie, i could re- rope that one in 15 minutes.
I would be scared to crack the glass when he was hammering the nail into the sash cord.
ya gotsta be smarter than the hammer
How do you get the cover off to access the weights? I've been trying for a day and a half..screws are out, but the wood is coming apart trying to get it out. It's wiggling but feels like a jigsaw puzzle piece.
On Windows that was never worked on I found the access panel actually needs to be separated, the diagonal cut on the removable panel does not go clear through, a tap should do.
Use a heat gun or paint stripper
Its never easy, when the wood was installed a hundred yrs back, the pinewood was brand new and flawless.....best thing is to be gentle, use linseed oil, and take your time, if they splinter then break out the gorilla glue....I do this everyday for work
The siliconed pulley will be squealing like a stuck pig within a few weeks. Soap is actually really good for stuff like that and more less lasts forever.
Peter Morgan Bees Wax works good too!
ball wax, and coconut oil
I've used WD-40 or engine oil. The WD-40 lasts surprisingly long, but engine oil will last longer. Parafin or soap on the tracks helps, too.
2:03 That's Big. It's a long one.
😀👍
Some beeswax rubbed on the new cord will extend its life.
2:02 uhhh....
Smart move picking a house where the windows aren’t painted and with screws holding the access panels to the weight pockets.
Been living in our old Dutch colonial house 36 years (built in 1924). It's what I originally loved about the house. All of the downstairs woodwork, besides in the kitchen, had never been painted. My Dad used to always be the one who fixed my window ropes. He passed away in 2021. I'm going to now give it a try on one of my living room bay windows that needs new ropes.
@@jeriw3876 Look into sash chains. Do it once, get it right and they last forever.
Good luck.
😎
There are many similar projects in Woodglut's plans.
What university you have to be born in for anything go the way it does in these videos?!
Leaves the squeaky pulley then when everything is done sprays it without even using a straw. SMH
2:03 eyes closed
They all aren’t this easy, not by a long shot. Most of them have many more complications, unfortunately.
Ah, yes...window weights. I bought a big old home with oversized windows that all came with a matching set of prop sticks. The fix is easy enough and beats the hell out of an oversized window coming down on a kid's fingers.
great work most people would just tear out that window and replace it with a dumb vinyl window. vynle windows look like a pile of crap that someone puked on but you mage the better choice to fix that original window original is always best
Lukethplumber Not to mention the look of the hand blown glass ones. When I was living at my parents they had a old farm house 123 years old. All original windows.
Lukethplumber that old window leaks like crazy get a new vinyl window with tripple pane glass and wood grain looks great
When i'm replacing broken sash cords I find that a lot of the old wood windows that don't have the metal weatherstrip that goes in the side groove wobble from side to side and let in air. For those I usually staple some 1/8" thick by 1" wide felt weather strip along the side. Sometimes only one side but sometimes on both sides. Just make sure you don't cover the knot hole and groove in the sides so you can get the sash cord in.
A door!!!! What!!!! We're my builders lazy!!!! No fare!!!
Not as easy as they are are showing here. It took me along time. I tried for at least 15 minutes to engage the screwdriver in the groove of the screw!!! Then I dropped the rope in the chamber through the pulley hole. It just kept going but where!!!? The other end didn't show up. Very hectic job. Now I am here to see how long the rope should be, but he didn't say!!!
put the window on the sill, pull the rope that's attached to the weight so the weight is at the very top, then make the rope long enough so its knot fits in its hole, cut the excess rope and you're done.
Long enough that you can lower the sash to the sill. Short enough that the weight doesn't touch bottom when the sash is all the way up.
He did say " about there " and sounded like he meant it.
Actually not a double hung. Only the bottom sash moves.
That has got to be the world's worst knot to tie for a weight.
I just can't believe, that somebody went "Naw ditch the hinges, let's make a wall cavity, put a counter weight and pulley system inside.. " ... wtf
still34u it is a cool work of machinery
How would a hinge work on a sliding window? With a hinged window you'd need space to swing the window.
well for the most part, you always have enough room to swing a window open.. btw that's what I'm talking about - what other benefits do sliding windows have?
still34u they don't get ripped off the house by the wind!;-)
LMFAO!!! Know a little bit about what you're talking about before you talk shit. Think about it at the time this was really nice technology to have. You only had Windows That Swing Out this was a lot more convenient plus you could fully open the upper sash which was really useful at the time. Of course now it's just more of a historical thing which is why people like to try to restore it and keep them. I personally think they are ridiculous but I happen to restore them for a living so I've had to deal with them for years
Anyone giggle when the script went:
It's big.
It's a long one
Yeah it was STILL squeaky after all that silicone! (Hastily ending video...)
Jeez. Oil your pulleys and wax your tracks! Squeeeeeak!!!
Get a new one .
He kinda creeping
Cut the line about here???? What??? U don't have a metric? U think a newbee can intuit like a master??? Sometimes these videis have humungess gaps in reality. Good video but no measuring b4 cutting the rope has me uneasy and unimpressed