I'm getting insulating storm windows made to cover my single-pane windows.
I've just had Diamond Glass out to make an estimate.  

Any other companies recommended?  The price seemed reasonable given the  large
area to cover, and the window guy seemed happy enough with the idea that I
might do some of  my own work.

21 responses total.

Well, the storm windows arrived a few weeks ago, but not all are mounted yet.
The main problem is size, in that I need a helper to mount the big ones.  I
also had to come up with my own mounting system, and got a machinist to make
some little mounting blocks for that purpose.  

Things to pay attention to:
Fit, the measuremnts are worth sweating over.
Mounting the first time is the hardest.   Mount the least visible/critical
windown first so that any mistakes are as hidden as possible.  After the first
a system tends to become obvious.

We put wood-frame insulating storms on the inside, with weatherstripping.
Do you know how to be a fair witness?  I suggested a do it yourself conference
but have no idea how to establish it, and you seem mechanical enough to help.
I don't recall if you responded to the suggestion (co-op conference, item 34).
My roommate loves fixing things and we are building a house and would like
to exchange ideas on making and fixing stuff.

This year I've been replacing the worn and shrunken rubber strip seal on most
of my windowpanes with regular glazing compound.  These are aluminum framed
casement windows, some with big fixed panes in the middle.  Originally the
glass was held in place by a special rubber molding strip, which (of course,
after 50 years!) is not much of a seal.  So what I'm doing is cutting that
out, cleaning the aluminum frames and the glass, and trowelling in glazing
compound (a specific kind of putty) to hold the glass in place.

It's slow work, taking about 3-5 hours for each big window (8 small and 1 huge
pane), but should last a few years.  And I'm more than halfway done, too! 
The only tricky bit is getting a smooth surface on the stuff; but by now I've
had plenty of practice.

It's also been a nice opportunity to replace a few cracked or otherwise
damaged (can you say BB gun?) panes.

I did that when I bought our old house.  I was disappointed that the glazing
only lasted for about seven years.

By then I'll probably either have moved out of the area or else will be
seriously considering new multi-layer modern windows.  Or maybe I'll just do
a better job of getting that clean edge...

Would silicone caulk last longer than glazing compound?  We put that on the
new windows that we were glazing, over butyl gaskets.  

Silicone caulk would probably not be able to to support the glass, or at least
not while uncured.

That's what glazing points are for.

It's hard to drive glazing points into aluminum.

We have storm windows with aluminum frames. The panes have aluminum rims
with little lugs on the top corners to hold the window in when it is slid
up/down in the frame. Both lugs have broken off one of the panes. I
thought of just gluing on pieces of plastic or metal rod to replace the
lugs, but wondered if there is a standard replacement available. I do not
see how to remove the old corner fittings that had the lugs. 

r.e. #9.  So it is ;-)  I wonder if little dabs of hot-melt glue would be the
ticket?  They could be covered with whatever glazing material you are using
and become superfluous once the glazing material sets up.

Cyanoacrylic glues should work too - and they don't require a power source!

I've been using little bits of wood to hold the glass up (as a matter of fact
I need to go to the hobby store to buy more thin/narrow strips of wood) until
the goo cures.  One tricky thing is that (supposedly) I shouldn't let the
glass contact the aluminum.

We are throwing out all sorts of thin strips of wood, look on the porch at
Felch in a large brown bag, they are sticking outof it.  
Does your house have metal going all the way from inside to outside?  If so,
I would not worry a whole lot about heat transfer from aluminum to glass, if
that is the problem with them touching.

By "thin strips" I'm referring to something that's a pretty consistent 1/8".

I think the problem with the glass touching the aluminum is with
thermal expansion and contraction. It could even break the glass.

So how do aluminum storm windows work?

Gaps?

Some kind of seal along the edge where it contacts the regular frame.

But as you no doubt suspect, aluminum frames aren't that efficient.  Nor are
metal studs directly attached to metal walls.  Oh well, can't win em all. 
If I'm still on the property in 10-20 years (a good chance, since I've got
room to expand on) I might do something serious about it like an external
layer of insulation and siding.

The purpose of storm windows is to deflect wind and rain, which greatly
reduces the heat transfer coefficient on the outside of the primary
windows. Otherwise the insulation value is very small. 

(I finally must give into observing that "aluminum storm windows" are
impractical as they would require a higher use of electricity for
lighting.)

We will be adding a second set of windows on the inside of a thick (9") wall,
on the outside of which are already outswing casement windows.  This leaves
us 8" of space between the inner and outer windows for some device that will
block light at night, block direct glare during the daytime, and add
insulation.  One possibility is a sheet of board insulation, which would have
to be taken out in the daytime.  Another is venetian blinds or roller shades.
But we are hoping to build something out of rigid insulation board which will
be self-storing, and fold or pivot out of the way in the daytime, and close
medium-tightly to reduce heat loss at night (by cutting one 8" air space into
two 4" space plus adding 1/2=1" insulation).  Idealling it should not be
necessary to open the inner window to do this, as that would allow warm moist
air to condense on the outer window.  The inner window will be double pane,
which makes it difficult to use a magnet system.  Jim is still talking about
putting some control through the frame of the inner window somehow.  Any
clever suggestions?  Are there magnets strong enough to work through 1" of
double glazing?  

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