With our fair city booming, it seems like we can’t quite keep up with the newest ‘it’ neighborhood. Be it 12 South, Germantown, or East Nashville, one thing is for certain –you can’t drive down a Nashville street without spotting signs of construction.
Although many are buying older property only to tear it down and start fresh, many property owners are looking into keeping the current framework and making adjustments to maintain a modern house within a century-old home. Among the attributes of an older home one can sometimes find original hard wood, beautifully high ceilings, and stunning crown molding. To that end, uneven floors, poor insulation, and old windows can be included on the top of the repair work to-do list. But don’t be so quick to judge those old windows, a few quick fixes may be all you need. Let’s take a closer look at how to tell if your old windows can be saved.
Wood Problems The wood around your older windows may not look pretty, but don’t judge a book by its cover. According to This Old House, older wood is actually far superior to the commercially available lumber of today and much of what may not look good externally, doesn’t reflect the quality of wood underneath.
Insulation Problems It’s no surprise single pane-windows leak air like a busted dam. One option is to replace the glass with a more up-to-date insulating glass, however this can get pricey. Your best bet is to look deeper into the window’s sash. The problem could be as easy as some replacement weather stripping –saving you money, and keeping you warmer during those pesky polar vortexes.
Paint Problems In many of these older Nashville homes, the easiest way to clean, cover, and coordinate was to slap another coat of heavy, most likely lead-based, paint down over every inch of the walls. This often included window frames rendering the entire window incapable of opening. Thankfully, window framing can be completely stripped and repainted – just keep in mind that the pulley, sash cord, and parting bead will need to remain unpainted for easy opening and closing.
Saving old windows can help maintain the architectural integrity of your new, old, home. So before writing off those old Nashville windows, take a closer look and talk to a professional who can help further determine if repairing is a viable option.