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curt_saunders

OKNA window install questions

6 years ago

I am in the process of having OKNA Insul-Tec windows installed in my home.
My house was built in 1987 and originally had aluminum double hung windows. It has been resided somewhere in the last 10 or 15 years with vinyl siding. There appears to be some type of house wrap under the siding I assume was installed when the siding was replaced. It is not wrapped into the window rough opening because the windows were not replaced at the time.
I have questions about the quality of the install job I am getting.
Is this a typical looking install?
Should there be some kind of sill protection put down before placing the windows?
Is caulking the aluminum trim/flashing to the j trim standard procedure?
Should the window be installed on top of what I would call the inside decorative window sill?

Comments (26)

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  • PRO
    6 years ago

    Would like to see some close up ups of the exterior detail.

  • 6 years ago

    Look up the install instructions on Okna's website. They will provide the correct/minimum install guide and requirements. Looks to me like they skipped a few things, but I'll defer to the pros.

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Toddinmn I will take some more detailed close up pictures when I get home this evening.

    Steve J I actually called OKNA customer service to try and ask questions/get info on proper install and was told they do not share that info outside of their installer network.


    Thank you both for responding!

  • PRO
    6 years ago

    Rolling stream of consciousness answers:

    1. I wouldn't care, nor would I want, the WRB wrapped into the window opening. I can't stand that detail, but I acknowledge it is part of "AAMA's recommendations".
    2. It would have been helpful to know what the old Aluminum window looked like in the opening before. He appears to have shrunk the opening size slightly, but assuming that he didn't mis-measured the window, I suspect that newer siding was installed in a manner where the J-channel was installed over detail on the old window. Many times will the siding installer bring his detail to a screen track or something similar and if and when the windows are replaced, it creates this scenario where he has to measure to the reduced size, or cut back the siding.
    3. I am guessing the interiors can be trimmed out some some shoe or quarter round molding to make them look proper in this case.
    4. Tough to judge the cladding work as it is a bit far back, but there are plenty of instances in which openings are done similarly to this as long as the cladding and supplemental water management details are correct. As Todd stated above, tough to tell for certain with these pictures, but is is doable...yes.
  • 6 years ago

    This is the best picture I can provide of the old windows right now. They were a strange arrangement. They had what I guess you would call storm windows on the INSIDE. So what you see from the outside is the actual single hung part of the window itself.


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  • 6 years ago

    The house walls are 2x6. The edge of the window flange is set back approximately 1.5 inches from the face of the studs creating what I believe is an excessive outside window ledge and taking away a majority of the inside window ledge. We will no longer have space to inside mount blinds in these windows.

  • 6 years ago


    This is the gap at the top of the window on the inside. It is .75" from flange to drywall. I assume the gap was supposed to be smaller so the gray foam would make contact with the window opening?

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    Aluminum window trim/flashing is stuck to the front of the vinyl j trim with caulk.


    I showed this to the home inspector I used when I bought the house and this was his reply:


    "Yes I believe that piece across the top that is infront of the vinyl j-channel would be a very prone location for leaking."

  • 6 years ago



  • PRO
    6 years ago

    The way they wrapped the header is encouraging water to come in. I would have liked the aluminum at the sill to go further inwards, it will be relying on a caulk joint for water control. I would be concerned.

  • 6 years ago



    This was their 2nd attempt installing the windows yesterday.

  • 6 years ago

    Looks ok.

    also, those gaps in the pics you posted are probably smaller than it looks in the pic.

    taking a close up pic makes things look much larger than they really are.

    i had a customer tell me she had a huge hole in her screen and she took a close up pic and it looked large. I went to her home and you could barely see it, it was so small.

    i let her know i was upset about that..lol

    anyway, your install looks ok to me.

  • 6 years ago

    I agree the install they did yesterday was much better. Just funny the difference between the first time and the second time. Same crew.