Old Stone House

Having experienced a number of aggravations while installing the first two windows, I was thankful that I could finally install the remaining window beside the door. This window installation was going to be the most involved as it required me to rip out a section of existing wall, lay a course of cinder blocks, and frame new interior and exterior wall sections. That being said, I was relaxed about doing the work as there wasn’t going to be any surprises… And for once I was finally right!

I removed the existing window (another well planned install by the previous contractor – the casing window opened into the side gate) and cleaned out all the shims and insulation scraps that made up the rest of the wall. I discovered that much of the insulation that was in the wall had slumped between the studs – likely due to water, which further explained why this part of the house has been so cold.

I mortared in a row of cinder blocks along the bottom on the opening to bring the foundation up to match the rest of the house (I’ll apply some parging next spring) and built interior and exterior walls (shaped like a wedge – the room isn’t square). Once the walls were insulated I popped in the new window (without incident).

I finished up the siding and installed the two layers of trim on the outside. It took less time to install this window – wall building included – then it did to install that cursed bathroom window. Nice to finally catch a bit of a break…