Installing a basement glass block window (DIY)

I replace my old metal frame basement window with a new glass block masonry window.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• howto
• diy

[wakka9000plustax]

I've been installing for about 12 years. And not once have I had a draft above my windows after a complete install. DO NOT CAULK THE TOP OF THE WINDOW use mortar. He should have chipped out the the excess mortar on the wash. laid down the mortar set the window on top for a 100% guaranteed seal, which also makes the leveling and plumbing process easier. Use a grout bag for everything he didn't show, silica sand and type s or n mortar.

[bsbkeller]

Nice to hear from a pro but I respectfully disagree! The install instructions for the windows I used state that silicone based caulk should be used where the window comes into contact with wood. The instructions can be viewed at their website at IPSGLASSBLOCK. My windows have been up for a couple of years now and I have no problems or drafts. Also, I didn't use a grout bag, I just stuffed the mortar by hand with rubber gloves on. That worked for me and looks great.

[coachbill60]

This video is useless. Anything that you might have trouble with is edited out. This is not a hard job to do but I think people want to see the WORK being done.

[bsbkeller]

coachbill60, I put this video together because back when I started on the first window in my basement there was nothing like it on youtube. I focused on what would have been helpful to me to know as I was just getting started or thinking about getting started (which is where I think most people will be at who are looking this up). Sorry you didn't find the video helpful but saying it is useless is kinda jerky.

[mphamel]

Thanks for the video, as you said there aren't many videos like this out there, so it is very much appreciated. The windows look great.

[bsbkeller]

@artfd Thanks for all the info. The tip about the angle grinder is particularly helpful.

[artfd]

@bsbkeller I used a technique very similar to yours to install 3 glass block basement windows. They've held up through 6 or 8 winters, I forget which. Actually the glass block windows are holding up better than my old concrete block walls!

[artfd]

@artfd Demolition #4 and last: Now I'm not a mason, and leveling wet mortar on a window sill wasn't easier. I used the angle grinder's concrete abrasive wheel on the dried mortar bed, made it level & smooth very quickly, like a belt sander works on wood.

--- I have found my angle grinder helpful in many other household and automotive projects. It is a tool I wish I had bought years earlier.

[artfd]

@artfd Demolition #3: This ridge of mortar was trivial to cut with the angle grinder's concrete blade, and fell out in chunks with taps from a cold chisel. There was another problem: after I removed the concrete sill mortar I found the blocks below were the usual kind, with wide open spaces descending down into the wall. I put coarse gravel in those spaces & sealed them up with regular mortar, leveled out with a regular trowel.

[artfd]

@artfd Demolition #2: If my old aluminum basement window frames don't release easily with a tap from a cold chisel, I take the grinder to them, equipped with a concrete cutting wheel. This will even cut a window frame embedded in a groove in the concrete block. Also, my old windows were 14" high but fit into a 16" high opening. The concrete sill was simply built up with mortar applied at an angle to create a sloped sill inside and out. This was a lot of mortar to be removed here.