Oakwood Windows: Repair, Storms and the COA

Oakwood, the historic overlay district just northeast of downtown Raleigh, has a period of significance of 1880 to 1941 and, in the city's words, Raleigh's largest collection of nineteenth-century Victorian-era dwellings. Most of those houses still have tall wood double-hung windows, often with original glass. Any change to them is an exterior change in a locally designated district, so it needs a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA), and the review is guided by the Raleigh Historic Development Commission's design guidelines. Those guidelines have a clear point of view on windows. Knowing it before you call a window company will save time and money.

What the guidelines favor

The RHDC's windows-and-doors chapter starts from a premise that surprises many buyers: repairing original windows is "more appropriate, sustainable, and cost-effective" than replacing them, and the guidelines state that life-cycle analyses show replacement windows don't pay for themselves in energy savings. Peeling paint, air leaks, sticking sashes and broken panes are described as repairable conditions that don't call for replacement.

In practice, the guidelines ask owners to:

• retain windows that contribute to the house's character, including frames, sashes, muntins, sills, moldings, hardware, shutters and blinds;
• maintain them by reglazing, weatherstripping, limiting paint removal and keeping sills draining;
• repair with recognized methods: patching, consolidating, splicing and reinforcing;
• replace only the deteriorated part in kind when a piece is beyond repair, matching the original in design, dimension and material;
• replace the whole unit in kind only if it's deteriorated beyond repair, matching sash design, pane configuration, trim and materials. A compatible substitute material is considered only if the original isn't technically feasible.

And three things the guidelines call not appropriate: removing original windows and trim from a character-defining facade, snap-in muntins that fake divided lights, and replacing clear glass with tinted or opaque glass. Changing, closing or adding openings on a character-defining facade "should never be considered." New openings, where truly needed, belong on rear or secondary elevations.

Storm windows: the energy upgrade that fits

The guidelines' sustainability chapter says that once windows are repaired, storm windows can deliver efficiency comparable to double glazing without losing historic fabric and for far less money. Their specifics:

• Narrow-profile exterior or interior storms that don't hide or damage the sash and frame.
• Exterior storms with a painted or baked-enamel finish compatible with the sash color. Bare aluminum may suit post-1945 buildings only, which rules it out for most of Oakwood.
• On double-hung windows, storm dividers should line up with the meeting rails.
• Interior storms should be tension-mounted with airtight gaskets.
• Keep storm weep holes open so condensation doesn't rot the sill.

Weatherstripping, attic and crawl-space insulation, and storms usually do more for comfort in an Oakwood house than new windows would.

Putting together a window COA

Raleigh's minor-work COA page spells out what staff need. For window work, plan to submit through the Permit and Development Portal:

• the signed COA application, the fee and a written description with exact dimensions, for example window trim widths;
• color photographs of every side of the house and the streetscape;
• for any new window or door, the manufacturer's specifications including a section drawing. Links to products online aren't accepted;
• paint samples if colors are changing;
• where helpful, evidence such as historic photos or Sanborn maps showing what the original windows looked like.

Minor-work applications are reviewed by staff in about 10 business days. Staff can't deny an application; if they find the work substantial, out of keeping with the guidelines or precedent-setting, it's converted to a major-work COA for the commission's COA committee. Once approved, the city mails a blue placard, which must be posted in public view during the work and submitted with any other permits. Incomplete applications stay open six months, then are voided.

Hiring for Oakwood window work

• Restoration carpenters who repair sash, replace sash cords and reglaze are a different trade from replacement-window installers. Ask for Oakwood or other historic district references.
• Lead. Nearly every Oakwood house predates 1978. Under G.S. 130A-453.24, firms paid to disturb paint must be certified renovation firms.
• Tax credits. The city notes that contributing properties in the Oakwood National Register district may be eligible for federal and state historic tax credits. Rehabilitation work must meet program standards; check before work starts.

For broader Oakwood context, see the Oakwood area page. For window costs and frame options, see our windows guide.