Window repair
Window Repair
Sash that will not stay up, windows painted shut, locks that no longer pull tight. We repair windows and we do not sell replacement windows, which is worth knowing before you read any further.
- Typical visit
- One to three hours
- Coverage
- All 21 counties
- Window replacement
- Not offered, deliberately
- Estimate
- Free, fixed in writing
First question
Whose window is this, actually?
New Jersey is the most densely populated state in the country, with a very large share of renters, two and three-family houses and condominium units. Before anything else it is worth establishing whose repair this actually is.
If you rent
Tell your landlord or managing agent first
In almost every tenancy the fabric of the building — doors, windows, frames and the locks in them — is the owner's responsibility rather than yours. We are happy to take the call either way, but a tenant paying out of pocket for a landlord's repair is a thing we would rather flag than quietly bill for.
If you are the landlord
You own it, and the clock may be running
Doors that will not lock, windows that will not open and missing screens are among the most common findings on a municipal inspection at change of tenant. Getting them done between tenancies is both cheaper and considerably less stressful than getting them done against a deadline.
If you are in a condo or co-op
The association may own the opening
In most New Jersey condominium arrangements the exterior of a unit, including windows and entry doors, belongs to the association rather than to you — though interior doors, shower enclosures and interior hardware usually do not. Check your documents before you commission anything exterior.
If you own the house
Then it is simply yours
Which makes it the straightforward case. The only thing worth checking is whether you are in a historic district, because that can affect what you are permitted to change on a street-facing elevation.
Inspections
What a municipal inspection looks for on windows
Windows are the second most common source of findings after locks, and the ones that cause the most alarm because people assume a finding means replacement. It almost never does.
| Common finding | What it usually takes to clear it |
|---|---|
| A bedroom window that will not open | The most serious window finding there is, because it is an escape route. Usually a sash painted shut or a failed balance, and usually an hour's work. |
| A sash that will not stay up on its own | A parted cord or a dead balance. Routine, cheap, and a very common finding in older rental stock. |
| A window that will not lock | The sash has moved and the keeper is out of register. Repositioned, usually with no new hardware. |
| Missing or torn insect screens | Required in a lot of municipalities on openable windows. Rescreening the frames you already have is the cheapest line on any inspection list. |
| Broken or cracked glass | Replaced in the existing sash. The frame stays, and in most cases so does everything else. |
Requirements differ from town to town and they change, so treat this as the pattern we see rather than as your municipality's list. Your local construction or housing office is the authority on your address.
Getting to you
How we actually reach your windows
The practical problem here is the opposite of a rural state's. Nothing is far away; a great deal of it is simply hard to get at. Telling us which of these you are saves a wasted visit.
Row and attached houses
Newark, Jersey City, Hoboken, Union City and the older parts of almost every town. No side yard, no rear access, and frequently nowhere to put a ladder. Upper-floor work is done from inside with the sash removed, and we plan that before we quote rather than discovering it on the day.
Two and three-family houses
Enormously common across north Jersey. Several tenancies behind one front door, shared entries that take four households' worth of traffic, and access that has to be arranged with people who are at work. Tell us who holds keys when you call.
Apartment and condo buildings
Loading restrictions, service lifts, certificates of insurance for the management company, and time windows when work is permitted. We deal with all of it regularly, but it is much easier arranged in advance than negotiated in a lobby.
Parking, honestly
In a lot of New Jersey there is nowhere to put a van. If you have a driveway, a permit or a spot we can use, that information is worth more to the visit than almost anything else you could tell us.
Permits
Will this need a permit?
This is the part most contractors are vague about, so here is our position in plain terms.
Repairs, generally not
Repairing what is already there — hardware, glass in an existing frame, a sash, a lock, a threshold — does not usually involve a permit anywhere in the state. It is one of the quieter advantages of fixing rather than replacing.
Replacements, often yes
Many New Jersey municipalities require a permit to replace a door or a window, and the requirements and fees differ from town to town. Rules also change. Your municipal construction office is the authority on your address, and it is worth a phone call before you commit to anything.
What we will not do
We will not tell you a job does not need a permit so that it looks cheaper, and we cannot sign off compliance on your behalf — that is the inspector's role. What we will do is tell you plainly when we think a permit is likely to be involved.
New Jersey conditions
What New Jersey does to a window
Salt air, a wide seasonal swing and an enormous amount of original sash.
Housing older than most of the country's
New Jersey has colonial-era buildings, Victorian and mill-era neighbourhoods, enormous post-war suburbs and modern condominium stock, frequently within a few miles of each other. Four completely different sets of hardware, and no single approach covers them.
Humid summers, dry heated winters
The state swings from muggy Augusts to indoor winter air that shrinks timber measurably. The same door binds in one season and shows daylight in the other, which is exactly why planing it is the repair people regret.
Salt air along the shore
From Sandy Hook to Cape May, salt-laden air corrodes hinges, strikes, rollers, balance springs and every small fixing holding them. Hardware that lasts fifteen years in Morris County can seize in five in a block behind the beach, and corrosion-resistant parts are worth specifying.
Nor'easters and coastal flooding
Winter storms come up the coast with wind and water together, and the shore counties carry the memory of what a serious one does. Doors and ground-floor openings in flood-exposed areas take damage that inland buildings never see.
Questions
Window repair questions
You replace doors. Do you replace windows?
No. Windows are repair only for us, deliberately. If yours genuinely needs replacing we will say so and tell you who to call.
A bedroom window will not open and we have an inspection.
Treat that as the priority. It is an egress issue, and it is also usually a painted-shut sash or a failed balance — an hour, not a replacement.
My windows are painted shut.
Extremely common in New Jersey's older housing. Scored carefully, they open without damage to the sash, the glazing or the trim.
The sash will not stay up.
A cord has parted or a balance has lost tension. Routine either way, and neither needs a new window.
I rent. Who pays for this?
In almost every tenancy, the owner. We will take the call either way but we would rather tell you than quietly bill you.
Our condo says the windows are theirs.
Usually correct in New Jersey. Exterior windows generally belong to the association, and it is worth confirming before commissioning anything.
Coverage
Window repair across New Jersey
A mobile service covering the whole state, from Bergen to Cape May. Pick your town below, or call and we will come to you.
Window Repair Across New Jersey
Related
Our other services
Ten services, one trade. Whatever else needs doing can go on the same visit.
Next step
Tell us what the window is doing
Free estimates across New Jersey, with a fixed written price before anything is touched.