Repair vs. Replace Your Windows: How to Decide

Should you repair or replace windows that are foggy, leaky, cold, cracked, or broken, or just not doing their intended job? All factors being equal, it's likely that most homeowners would choose replacement. Windows are expensive, though, with whole-house replacement costing $7,000 to $18,000. Yet repairing windows isn't necessarily easy or cheap, either. When is it best to repair or replace the window?

When to Repair Your Window

• Broken glass: When a multi-paned glass is broken or cracked, first look into sash replacement.
• Single-pane windows: Single-pane windows can be effectively and inexpensively repaired by the homeowner or a glazier.
• Slow-moving sashes: When sashes are hard to raise, the cause is usually broken cords on sash weights. For spring-type sashes, the spring may have failed or come loose, and this type of problem can be fixed.
• Damaged drip cap: The drip cap, the exterior shield at the top of the window, can easily be repaired with a new rot-free, rust-free aluminum drip cap.
• Poor window casing: Damaged casing can be replaced with primed wood exterior casing found at most home centers. Low-maintenance vinyl and PVC products are alternatives to wood.
• Minor water leaks: Poorly draining gutters and drain pipes can force water towards windows. Window seals are meant to hold back water, but not water of such great force. Re-route your drainage system and see if this makes a difference.
• Cost is an issue: Window repair will nearly always cost less than window replacement. So, if money is an issue, opt for window repair.

When to Replace Your Window

• Foggy windows: Foggy windows are caused by water condensing inside of your window's double-paned or triple-paned insulated glass unit (IGU). Unlike multi-paned windows of the past, IGUs are sealed and permanent. Removal and replacement is the only option.
• Damaged mullions or muntins: Muntins and mullions are pieces of wood separating panes of glass. If these are faux muntins and mullions, set between two panes of glass for effect only, they cannot be replaced.
• Structural problems: When the outer structure of the window is failing, it's time to buy a new window. In some cases, the area around the window may be in poor shape, too: studs, house sheathing, siding, and insulation. This warrants both replacing the window and rebuilding parts of the wall. In this case, you'll be using a new-construction window, not a replacement window.
• IGU gas leakage: Window unit IGU gas leakage is sometimes, but not always, related to the problem of foggy windows. But the IGUs can leak gas and still not develop fog. When the gas is gone, the window's insulating properties dramatically drop.
• New house purchase: A new house purchase coupled a commitment to remain in the house for at least another 10 to 20 years is enough to justify window replacement. It's a smart purchase early on in your ownership of the house that pays off in the long-term.
• Major water leakage: Excessive water infiltration around the window might mean that your exterior window casing is bad. This isn't so much a window issue as it is an issue to do with your exterior as a whole. But if water does prove to be coming through the window, this is probably time to start shopping for new windows.
• Cost is not an issue: If money is less of an issue, then consider it money well-spent to put it towards window replacement.