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Measurement for replacement windows

pulper_11 | Posted in Construction Techniques on May 17, 2020 04:22pm

Hello – I’m wondering if someone can help me with where to measure the width for a replacement window.  This window is long past due for a replacement and yesterday evening the glass shattered, which is a sign that I have to get on this.

I will be replacing the window myself.  I’ve done it a while ago but am getting older and can’t seem to remember how I measured, lol.  Everywhere I read indicates that width should be jam to jam.  Yet, that measurement is over one inch shorter than when i measure the width of the frame of the window.  Perhaps b/c of jam covers? (hopefully it can be seen in one of the pics provided)  I’ve attached a couple additional pics to show what i’m talking about.  Hopefully my terminology is correct.  

If you would let me know what you think, that would be appreciated.

Paul

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  1. user-7665738 | May 17, 2020 08:53pm | #1

    Hey. To be safe, take a small flat bar and remove the small piece of trim that sits against the window (not the casing). That should reveal the edge of the insert window on both sides. You might be able to sneak a measuring stick in the space to do the vertical measurement. It’s a vinyl replacement so chances are it’s going to be a pretty standardized measurement. If you know where you’ll be purchasing your new window from, you may also want to find what sizes they offer their single/double hung windows in so you have some available sizing knowledge when you measure up.

  2. pulper_11 | May 17, 2020 10:30pm | #2

    Thanks! Just so i'm clear, i'm trying to expose the right and left edges of the window frame so that i can measure from the right edge of the frame to the left edge? If that's correct, then i'm assuming those measurements are better than doing jam to jam in this case.
    Hopefully I haven't misunderstood you, just wanting to make sure I've got it right!
    Thank you for your reply,
    Paul

  3. pulper_11 | May 19, 2020 01:26pm | #3

    based on your recommendation, i've removed the trim that covers up the edges of the window. I'll attach a picture here.

    Then I measured from edge of the window frame to the other edge of the window frame (where the arrows are). I did that in three places, and the shortest distance (for width) was 51.5 inches.

    For height, I took the measurement from the top of the window frame to the highest point on the sill against the back of the stool. the shortest distance was 51 7/8 ".

    Please let me know if that makes sense.

    If so, would you also mind letting me know if I should reduce by 1/8 or 1/4 inch these measurements when ordering.

    Thank you.

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