Renovating is Hard

Today we set out to install the new basement windows. This involved removal of the existing windows, and the associated mortar.

Because the existing window frames were all rotted out, removal was a snap. I basically grabbed a hold of the security bars, gave a good pull, and voila. Window removed. There were hundreds of earwigs living between the wood and the concrete, which was exceedingly gross. Not knowing what to do, I grabbed the shop-vac and sucked up the little buggers before they could spread their way throughout the house. Ew.

Next was chipping away at the mortar that had been "holding" in the old window frames. This proved to be a challenge. One side went very smoothly, and the mortar was removed no problem, but the other side, for whatever reason, was  much harder and more difficult to chip away. Lesley and I must have spent several hours just chipping enough mortar out that we could get our window in. Unfortunately, we were unable to provide for the recommended 1/2" gap around the window, as that would have meant several more hours of chipping, so we settled for a snug fit. At one point, I thought we would never be able to get enough mortar out, so it was a relief to get out as much as we did.

Once we were satisfied with the opening, it was time to cut the 2x6 and 1x6's to length. This was the easy part. Cutting them to length, and dry fitting them was quick, and before long, Lesley was mixing mortar, and I was cutting dados in the boards.

Mortaring

Lesley is a pro at mortaring, and it wasn't long before we were fitting in the boards. We first mortared in all the cracks and divots in the existing wall, and then back-buttered the boards, pressing mortar into the dado grooves. After that, it's pretty well just a matter of fitting the board in place, squeezing out the excess, and cleaning it all up. Once complete, we took a little break to let the mortar cure before installing the window.

Rough opening complete

After forty-five minutes or so, the mortar was hard enough for us to proceed with window installation. This was the easy part. The window basically fit like a glove - a tight, racing glove, but a glove nonetheless.

Installed

Fortunately for us, the window went in plumb, level, and square sans shimming, so we were ready to screw it into place. The only shims needed were along the sides due to the planned-for gap, and before long, the window was secured.

Fasten-ating

All that was left was the spray foam to fill in the gaps. This stuff is super-messy, and we used way too much, but at least we know the window is well insulated. We'll be putting on cladding on the outside as well, but for now, we're calling it a day. We were hoping to get both windows in place today, but the time spent chipping away at hard-as-granite mortar made that impossible. We'll just have to wait until next weekend to complete the window installation.

Windowed