Sash Window Repair

Tools:

window saw
utility knife
finishing nails
hammer
pry bar
sash chord (rope)

1. Use a window saw (figure A) to cut through the paint that has sealed the window shut on both the outside and inside. Slide the thin saw blade between the window and the sash, carefully, going around the entire window until it moves. A pocketknife or utility knife will work as well, but the window saw is the safest and the easiest tool for this job.
2. Using a pry bar, carefully remove the window trim (figure B). Here's a tip: When you get the pieces of trim removed, use pliers or nippers and pull the nail through the backside of the trim (figure C), rather than knocking it back out the front. Then it will pull clean through the back, and the front surface will remain clean. When you reattach the trim later, you won't have the old holes to fill and cover.
3. Carefully tilt the window and examine the sides. You'll see a long slot with a round hole at the bottom. That's where the cord is knotted and secured to the window. With the window in place, mark next to that knot on the window jamb (figure D).
4. Pull the old sash cord out of the window and set the window aside. Be careful to hold on to the old cord or the weights might fall down into the wall. Tack the ends of the cords into the window jamb to hold the weights for you.
5. Remove the old sash cords and run a new sash cord through the pulley system. Tie the new sash cord to the weight. You might have to remove more trim from the front of the windows to access the weights (figure E).
6. Pull the new sash cord to lift the weight to the top of the pulley. Then lower the weight about 4 inches (figure F) and tack the sash cord in the trim to hold it in place temporarily while you tie the knot. Tie a knot in the new sash cord at the spot where you marked the old knot on the window trim (figure G) and cut off the excess. Repeat this procedure on the other side of the window.
7. Insert the knots into the holes for them on both sides of the window (figure H) and remove the temporary tacks. Now tack the sash cord to the grooves in the windows to secure it (figure I). (This tacking step is not temporary.)
8. Test slide your windows up and down, and you're ready to replace the trim. Touch up with paint any places that might need it, but be careful not to paint them shut again!