Following Window Manufacturers Installation Instructions

This message is especially for anyone who is building a brand-new house and will be dealing directly with a home building inspector. If you don't follow the manufacturers installation instructions, you could find yourself in a world of hurt. Here's something that I would like to share with all homebuilders and window installers.

One of the homebuilders that I was working for, needed me to install about 50 windows, on an apartment complex that they were remodeling. At the time, I rarely read any of the window installation instructions that were placed on every one of the windows that I was installing, at the time.

I knew enough about installing windows and have been doing it for a long time, when suddenly, I got a lesson in,” How to install windows properly, following the manufacturers installation instructions and the building inspector was going to be my teacher.”

I had installed about 35 Windows, when the building inspector approached me and asked me if I had read the manufacturers installation instructions. Being the quick witted guy that I am, I instantly replied with a yes. He examined me carefully, like I had said something wrong and he was going to correct it.

He told me to follow him to the office. I felt like a young schoolboy who was in trouble for doing something wrong. I knew better than to talk back to the building inspector, and I followed him to the office.

This is where he proceeded to read the window manufacturers installation instructions to me. I got an instant lesson in how to install that particular window. We went back outside and inspected a couple of the window, that I had installed.

The good news is, I had installed them properly, except for the few of the screws that I had installed too close to the corners of the window flanges. He let me go on the note, that I would promise him to read the manufacturers installation instructions for my own protection, from now on.

I haven't broken that promise yet and this was about 10 years ago. I'm sharing this information with you, because, what if, I had used the wrong screws, caulking or flashing paper. This could have cost me a small fortune. Think about this, the next time you install any windows.