How to install the windowsill yourself?

No window will look beautiful without a window sill. This important element should be installed correctly, because the microclimate in the room depends on it. In addition, it will be exposed to various effects: ultraviolet, moisture and temperature changes. Before you figure out how to install a window sill, you need to choose the material and the height of the location of the product.

At what height should I set it?

Experienced installers recommend having sills at a certain height specified in the building codes. However, this does not mean that they will have to adhere to everything. Each landlord can choose absolutely any height of the location of the product. As for the standards, these parameters were invented for convenient operation and security (with open windows).

In accordance with the norms, the window sill should be placed at an altitude of 700 mm, but not more than 1000 mm. This will allow the sun to pass into the room and perform the installation of heating equipment.

Kinds of window sills

Today, there are sills of different materials, but the most popular are plastic, wooden and stone structures. Plastic products are considered the most popular due to their high strength, low cost, durability, resistance to temperature changes and ultraviolet. It's easy to install the windowsill from plastic, and you do not have to cover it with protective compounds.

Wooden structures are excellent for log buildings and similar buildings. More expensive and high-quality products are made of beech, oak, mahogany, and more simple - from pine and larch. Among their advantages are a good thermal insulation, air permeability, durability and resistance to different temperatures. However, the tree is afraid of moisture and requires updating the protective layer every 3-5 years.

Stone windowsills are made of natural or artificial stone. Granite structures are considered to be the strongest. More beautiful and eco-friendly - products from marble and onyx.

Methods of installing window sills

To understand how to install a window sill yourself, you need to familiarize yourself with the various ways of installing it. It can be fixed with a special composition, screws, spring clips, pads. Easier and quicker the products are attached with screws. To do this, in the frame of the window, drill holes into which the parts are screwed. The joint is protected by a silicone sealant, after which the edge of the window element is wound under the frame and screwed with screws. Empty space is filled with construction foam.

Spring clips are screwed to the profile with self-tapping screws, and a window sill is installed in the groove between them and the frame. The pads are placed under the product so that its edge fits snugly against the frame.

Preparation

Before installing a window sill, you need to prepare a base for it. To do this, remove all debris, clean the surface and perform the markup. The top line of the structure should extend beyond the bottom edge of the window by at least 5 mm (this ensures an adjustment gap). The width of the opening, it should be more by 40-60 mm.

After that it is necessary:

• Outline a groove for the protruding part of the product with a margin of 15 mm (depth - 30-50 mm);
• On the markings, make a cut with a perforator and a grinder;
• Clean everything from dirt and remove the dimensions;
• Take the workpiece of the future design, measure all parameters and trim (the principle is described below);
• Outline and cut corners.

Trimming of window sills

Quite an important stage of work - cutting the structure (you can order it of the required size). Prior to pruning, special allowances of 50 mm are made. In this case, the window sill can have a length of up to 300 cm and a width of 25-70 cm. All unnecessary ones are cut off on the side adjacent to the walls. The cutting line should be located behind the ribs and retreat 5-10 mm from them. Such manipulations will not allow the product to close and allow to get a rigid joint with the frame. If you do not keep the stiffeners, the inner part will lose shape and bend inward.

For cutting a window sill use a saw, an electric jig saw or a hacksaw. It is very important to work with plastic carefully and not press strongly on it, otherwise there will be scratches or other defects.

Preparing the opening

First, prepare the opening, and then install the window sill. The windows must be mounted and protected from damage. Preparatory work can not be performed without beacons, which fill the solution (it makes the surface even). Under the product, there should be a gap of 20 mm so that the tube of the mounting gun with foam can fit there. If a heavy window sill is to be mounted, then the glue holding it will take only 5 mm.

It is very important to check the flatness of the bottom edge of the window, since burrs are very common at the junctions of the vertical and horizontal profiles. They must be cut off with a knife. Also identify possible defects on the lower profile. They are easy to see if you pull a thread from one corner of the window to the other. This is corrected by poddavlivayuschimi wedges and foam.

Installing a plastic window sill

Most often, private homeowners are interested in how to properly install a windowsill on plastic windows. To do this, perform the following manipulations:

• Clean and spray the surface with water;
• Construct a design in the groove under the window and insert wooden wedges (after 40 cm);
• Level the product with the help of a building level;
• Eliminate irregularities by lining of different thicknesses;
• Place on the windowsill heavy objects (for example, jars with water) and once again check its evenness;

• Fix it with a mounting foam;
• Attach the outer part to the frame using self-tapping screws;
• After a day, remove the load and remove excess foam.

Installation of a wooden window sill

It is very important to know how to install a wooden window sill, because in this process there are several nuances. It must necessarily be treated with protective compounds (especially in junctions). After that, the surface is cleaned, covered with a primer, and its invisible seams are frosted. The window sill is installed with a small inclination inside the room (with the help of wooden wedges).

The rigidity of the base is provided by blocks and cement-sand mixture, which must be raised above them at least 5-7 mm. The wooden structure is laid on the mixture and pressed so that it adheres to the wedges. Also, the base can consist of bars and mounting foam, which fills all the gaps.

If the window is made of wood, then you can attach the window sill with screws that come from the side of the facade. It is leveled after laying loads or installing struts (after a day they are removed).

Mounting of slopes

Now we know how to install a window sill, so you can begin to finish the slopes. They can be plastic, plastered, plasterboard, wooden. The most popular are plastic products. They are mounted immediately after the freezing of the mounting foam. The area around the window is leveled and puttyed, then in the foam around the frame make a groove (for strength). On the edge of the opening is attached a wooden bar, with which the plastic D-profile is held. The joint between the base and the slope is filled with mounting foam, and the gap - with mineral wool. After that, the product itself is fixed: one side is fixed at the frame, and the other at the plastic profile. The corners are trimmed with decorative elements.

Plastered slopes require a lot of effort and time. In this case, it is necessary to apply several layers of plaster, and each of them must dry thoroughly. After complete drying, the surface is ground and covered with paint and varnish compositions. It should be remembered that work can only be carried out in a warm room.

To obtain gypsum plasterboard slopes, it is necessary to cut a sheet of material under the size of the opening and attach it. Between it and the wall there must be a layer of thermal insulation. Drywall is primed, dried and covered with paint (in several layers). Such slopes have excellent decorative characteristics, so they fit perfectly into any interior.

Wooden slopes are usually made of pine, larch, spruce. In this case, the material is supplied in shields having a thickness of 8-16 mm. Before installation, they are cut and adjusted to each opening. Installation works begin with the top panel, after which they move to the side elements. Panels should be located in the same plane with the opening, after which they shpaklyuyutsya, painted and varnished.

It is necessary to install slopes correctly. The windowsills will only look as beautiful and stylish as possible.

Replacement of the product

The window sill is often exposed to mechanical stress, so it may be necessary to replace it. A quality installation will extend the life of the unit a little, but repair work may still be required over time. To replace the window sill successfully, you need:

• Dismantle the old structure;
• Install a new product in the same place;
• Plaster and paint the surface to restore its former appearance.

To update the design type, you can grind. The procedure is only possible if there is no mechanical damage.

It was described above how to install a window sill, so there should not be any problems with it. It is very important to know all the nuances and subtleties. If you mount the structure incorrectly, you can get a poor and uncomfortable room (possibly also a condensate sedimentation).