Google window restoration. I Am sure there are plenty in Western, MA. Not cheap, but cheaper than new windows. And old windows are built to last a long, long time and are worth saving.

How did the painter define "glazing failure"? I would assume that he is talking about the putty that holds the glass panes in place and that isn't an overly complicated DIY project.

Since you say that he said that you should consider either reglazing or replacing them, then that sounds like he is talking about the glass in your windows, and that wouldn't make any sense.

Get a new painter. My windows are original to 1803. He is too lazy or incompetent to touch up some glazing? He doesn’t have the heart to save history..

I agree you need a different painter. For now let him paint them, and in the true New England fashion do one face of the house at a time with a professional window restorer as budget allows. Get exterior wood storm windows made at the same time.

We are already seeking bids for prefessional reglazing. Yes he means the putty that holds the glass in place. The panes themselves are fine. We may well just go ahead and have the painting done, put on some storm windows....and see what happens. After a couple of years maybe we will have recovered from projects we are already facing and be willing to DIY it. Thanks everyone.

The historic commission here likes original sash with storms as you describe. My 1830s windows repainted around 2006 are holding up better than my neighbors replacement windows from the same

time.

If reglazing is the only thing wrong here, that would be considered a normal maintenance item and definitely does not require the replacement of the window.

Plenty of How-To videos out there.

This guy has some great tricks: https://youtu.be/CngfJFxe2rk

Shorter video: https://youtu.be/AKKfW10Ygss

Storm windows should definitely help! We have a 1928 house and, in doing exterior renovations about 3- 4 years ago, we did all new storms, reconditioned 5 or 6 original windows (ie had the weight and pulleys removed and replaced with installation, installed new tracks for them to slide on, fixed panes etc) which cost about 1/3 to 1/2 the cost of new windows, and purchased 2 new windows for windows that were actually failing (ie sash was falling in on itself). We were lucky in that there is a local company that was able to do all of the above (their focus is just windows) as well as fix the failing exterior window trim around most windows due to shoddy aluminum wrapping installed by a previous owner.

My suggestion would be to focus spending your time/money where window repairs are critical (including taking a look at your exterior window trim that might need repairs/flashing, etc), but otherwise put your money towards high-quality storms that complement the historic nature of your house. We purchased flush-mount storms (ie they are flush with the exterior and don’t protrude). These are much better-looking, more historically-appropriate (similar in feel to what would have been original wood screens/storms), and they are very high performance re added energy efficiency. We have other original windows with issues needing to be addressed but I feel like the storms did buy us some time to replenish our nest egg first!

We have 100 year old windows. We've talked to a restoration guy at length. We were just chatting with him at an Old House show the other week. He said storm windows will preserve old windows.

Regarding the glazing compound. It's probably a linseed oil mixture, not a commercial silicone product. Over time (like half a century or more) this can dry out, crack and fall off. Depending on the state of the putty, this can be something to keep an eye on that will probably be fine for years to you're in danger of losing the window panes in the next wind storm. That makes advice from Houzzers tough. The linseed stuff is far better than silicone and you can buy it on-line.

To restore the putty properly, you need to clean off all flaking paint. Old windows probably have lead paint on them, so this complicates the process, but you can wear a high-quality mask. However, when looking at DIY, factor in that lead paint.

Most of our windows had pulleys and weights in excellent shape.

What you need to do is to go around to each of your windows and assess the state of it. We did a spreadsheet for our 58 windows. Look at the putty around each and every pane on the inside and out. If it looks cracked, see if you can pull a piece off easily. You'll get a sense of the difference between failed and cracked. That will help you figure out what to do. My guess is you'll have a window or two in need of some relatively urgent repair, and plenty that can wait for several years. For all of them, and especially any you are kicking the can down the road on, storm windows will help. Storms will also protect windows with weak putting from wind, allowing you to kick the can down the road on iffy windows from being a problem (not windows with too much failed putty, but windows with putty with some issues, but mostly holding).

On our house, one side gets far more exposure than other sides. The windows under the porch are more protected, so there are lots of factors that make the state of one window quite different from the state of another window.

We have one really crappy replacement window. It's certainly not better than our original windows with storms. It also happens to be behind hooks on our porch for a porch swing. We've made a guess as to what happened.

Although the ideal would be to reglaze the window entirely you could just repair the missing/broken or cracked glazing as a temporary fix (which, once painted and storm windows installed, might actually last a long time). You just clean out the old, loose glazing, clean the glass and wood and add new glazing putty in those spots.