getting a new window
2019-Jul-07, Sunday 09:27 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mellowtiggerSpeaking of forgetting...
I had to break into my own house yesterday after walking the dog. On Friday, after walking the dog that afternoon, I stupidly brought the key from its lockbox into the living room. So when I needed it Saturday morning... I had nothing. When I go on walks, I don't carry keys, wallet, phone, anything (because of the neighborhood crime), so I rely on that key.
When I realized my predicament, I knocked on 4 neighbor houses but nobody answered. It was after 8am, but everyone sleeps late on weekends. I finally chose the most-in-need-of-repair window and decided to break it. I climbed precariously on a wheelbarrow in wet soil to reach the window and pounded on it once or twice with a brick. Luckily, a neighbor entered his backyard at that moment to start mowing his yard. I asked him if he could call a locksmith, but he offered a small stepladder too. I took the stepladder instead of the phone call, got a much better angle of attack, and successfully broke the window and unlatched it. I crawled clumsily through the high window onto the floor then opened the doors and let the dog in finally. (And I put the key back in its place.)
So, now I've got a hole in a broken window that needs repairing. The whole frame is rotted out at that location, so I'm going to splurge and replace the whole thing (and maybe another one in similar condition). Instead of double-hung windows, though, I want casement windows to prevent the terrible air leakage that keeps this place cold in winter (and probably hot in summer).
Whenever I've gone out to the annual Quaker plant sale at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds, there is always Minnesota Rusco with a booth at the vendor area. I went to their website, and they're having a summer sale too, so I've scheduled an appointment for later this week to get a quote. I'm assuming it's about $1K per window, so I'll probably only do the 2 (of 4) worst windows right now. Even that much, however, should make a noticeable difference this coming winter. It depends on the sale price. If it's noticeably less than $1K each, then I might do all 4 that most need it. That would make my bedroom much more liveable during both winter and summer. No rush on that, though. We'll see how it goes during the appointment. Now would be a good excuse to add a storm door to the back door too, for the same air leak reason as the casement window replacements.
And I should probably consider those new keyless locks for both doors. Just enter a numerical code instead. That way I can't get locked out. I just don't know how safe they are against repeated intruder attempts, though. Worth investigating, so I don't have to break any more windows.
I had to break into my own house yesterday after walking the dog. On Friday, after walking the dog that afternoon, I stupidly brought the key from its lockbox into the living room. So when I needed it Saturday morning... I had nothing. When I go on walks, I don't carry keys, wallet, phone, anything (because of the neighborhood crime), so I rely on that key.
When I realized my predicament, I knocked on 4 neighbor houses but nobody answered. It was after 8am, but everyone sleeps late on weekends. I finally chose the most-in-need-of-repair window and decided to break it. I climbed precariously on a wheelbarrow in wet soil to reach the window and pounded on it once or twice with a brick. Luckily, a neighbor entered his backyard at that moment to start mowing his yard. I asked him if he could call a locksmith, but he offered a small stepladder too. I took the stepladder instead of the phone call, got a much better angle of attack, and successfully broke the window and unlatched it. I crawled clumsily through the high window onto the floor then opened the doors and let the dog in finally. (And I put the key back in its place.)
So, now I've got a hole in a broken window that needs repairing. The whole frame is rotted out at that location, so I'm going to splurge and replace the whole thing (and maybe another one in similar condition). Instead of double-hung windows, though, I want casement windows to prevent the terrible air leakage that keeps this place cold in winter (and probably hot in summer).
Whenever I've gone out to the annual Quaker plant sale at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds, there is always Minnesota Rusco with a booth at the vendor area. I went to their website, and they're having a summer sale too, so I've scheduled an appointment for later this week to get a quote. I'm assuming it's about $1K per window, so I'll probably only do the 2 (of 4) worst windows right now. Even that much, however, should make a noticeable difference this coming winter. It depends on the sale price. If it's noticeably less than $1K each, then I might do all 4 that most need it. That would make my bedroom much more liveable during both winter and summer. No rush on that, though. We'll see how it goes during the appointment. Now would be a good excuse to add a storm door to the back door too, for the same air leak reason as the casement window replacements.
And I should probably consider those new keyless locks for both doors. Just enter a numerical code instead. That way I can't get locked out. I just don't know how safe they are against repeated intruder attempts, though. Worth investigating, so I don't have to break any more windows.