Keep Your Windows Working Proper

How to make sure your windows and doors open, close, lock and unlock easily for years to come.

Don’t you love how easily your windows and doors open and close? Keep them operating smoothly by performing these steps:

• Vacuum dirt from sill and track areas regularly, and before each washing.
• Check to make certain that drainage or weep holes are clear of dirt or obstructions. Weep holes can be found outside the window or door in the bottom of the frame. Use a small, soft bottle brush to clear openings.
  Note: If the window is ‘stacked”, there may be weep holes between units.
• Moving parts in hardware components and tracks and rollers should be lubricated regularly. In salt-air environments like Jacksonville Florida, this can mean at least monthly.
• Check weather stripping around operable window and door panels to be sure it seals evenly.
• Adjust sliding door rollers for proper height clearances. Most door rollers can be adjusted with a screwdriver through access holes in either the end or side of the sliding panel at the bottom. Be sure to lift the panel to take the weight off of the roller during roller adjustment.
• Roller screen doors can be adjusted to glide smoothly. Use a screwdriver – often in all four corners – to make adjustment.
• After making roller adjustments, it may be necessary to also make adjustments in the lock strike placement. Most strikes may be adjusted by loosening screw fasteners, moving the strike plate and retightening. Check for proper lock operation.
  

  
  How to maintain aluminum windows in coastal areas:

• Use mineral spirits to remove any salt deposits, dirt, etc.
• Use a light soap and water solution to wash windows, and rinse well.
• Apply a light car wax solution to the extrusion annually. Do not apply wax without cleaning the windows first. This is especially important in corrosive environments where salt deposits may be sealed to the extrusion by the wax, allowing the salt to continue to do what it is known to do – corrode the extrusion.
  In corrosive environments it is recommended that windows be rinsed regularly to reduce salt deposit build-ups and ease the annual cleaning process. This is especially true for anyone living near the ocean where salt water spray reaches the home.