Though I made a public commitment back in December 2011 to complete our storm windows by January 31, 2012, and I've thoroughly and completely blown that deadline (yeah, I'm aware it's been a year PLUS several months, is there a more severe way to say "blown deadline"...maybe obliterated?), I'm in no way throwing in the towel on the project. That being said, I'm also nowhere close to being done, but that doesn't mean I've not been working on the planning and building stages of this project from time to time.

Actually, ever since we removed those old triple track storms in 2005 I've been in my planning stages to build us some custom wood storm windows. I'm not going to call myself slow (I'll leave that to Wendy), instead i'll go with "thorough."

I've discussed my various ideas and approaches with everyone from neighbors to contractors, and almost everyone says, "Why not just replace your windows?" I usually either stare blankly until they leave the room, or if I'm drinking something I try to do a good old fashioned spit take in their face, it makes for good renovation comedy. 

Honestly, we've never even once considered window replacements for the original windows we still have. Long ago I read an article comparing old windows to new windows and learned some very interesting facts that really weren't surprising when I thought about it.

Fact 1: "A properly maintained historic wooden true divided light sash with weather stripping and storm window are nearly as energy efficient as a top of the line modern replacement window."

Fact 2: "An historic wood window with storm and proper maintenance will outlast a replacement by 100 years or more."

Fact 3: "Bears like beets. Bears, beets, Battlestar Galactica." (Wait, that's from something else.)

Beyond the character our old windows bring to our home's interior and exterior, the fact that keeping them is more eco friendly, or our desire to maintain the original fabric and historic integrity of our home, keeping our original windows and applying new storms is actually a better and far more cost effective long term solution for our house.

All that being said, we don't want to replace the old triple track storms that we removed with new triple track storms. We don't like how they look, we feel like they detract from the front of the house, and I just plain don't like them and how they function. Did I mentioned I don't like them?

It's also very important to remember that storm windows aren't a newfangled contraption. Homeowners have long known the benefits of applying an outer window to cover their inner windows to help keep warm in the winter, so why not do it the old way?

My research (see...thoroughness) led me to several places that make custom fixed glass wood storm windows. These storms typically hang or are clipped to the outside of a window assembly by way of mounting hardware on the exterior molding. They often mimic the look of the interior window, such as a two-over-two configuration, or have two large pieces of fixed glass, one in front of the upper sash, one in front of the lower. In the cases I've seen, all panes are fully fixed in place and are not movable. With these fixed glass storms you would put them up in the fall, take them down in the spring, and if we wanted to open a window while they are installed, the storms might lean out a bit to let fresh air in. Smith Restoration Sash sells a storm stay for just this purpose.

I walked around Old Town and was able to find a handful of houses that have this style of storm window. I really prefer the look of these storms to the aluminum triple tracks, and it just feels like the right option on our house. Sure, there's more maintenance involved in upkeep over painted aluminum, but I think a coat of paint every few years isn't a steep price to pay for a much better looking end result.

The problem with this approach, though it is the most historically accurate, is that it seems to be the least flexible. Storing the windows would be cumbersome, installing them each year is difficult and potentially dangerous to passers by (knowing me and my track record, I'd drop one on someone while changing it out), and there are no real options for screens in the warmer months. Besides all of that, the cost for these custom windows from a window shop, even just for five of them, yowza! We're looking at prices into the thousands!

Photo Credit: Adams Architectural Millwork Co.

Several years ago I saw an ad in Old House Journal for "wood triple track storms" created by SpencerWorks They supposedly looked like older storms, but had all of the convenience of the newer triple tracks with an embedded bronze track in the wood window. I liked the idea a lot, but I'd love to do my own version.

This concept got me thinking, how difficult would it be to build my own version of this? It wouldn't be a triple track, but it would be something more flexible and manageable than the large removable storms. So I got to work on a plan.

As I see it, we can have our cake and eat it too. The storms need to essentially be a frame that fits into our window openings and allows us to insert the panels we'd prefer, be it glass panels or screens. In our case, we'd be able to insert a fixed glass panel in the winter, but put in screens in the summer. This would be far easier to store in the off seasons since the only things being moved in or out are the smaller panels that would cover each sash (not the whole window), and would be easier to maneuver when installing since the pieces are so much smaller. To me it sounded like a win win. I even drew up a little sketch for how I planned to execute the build.

With the overall approach and concept down I started to focus on materials. I knew I didn't want to use any standard pine, there's no way it would hold up to the elements. Instead I wanted to use the wonderful weather resistant benefits of Western Red Cedar. I've long read of this miraculous species of wood, and without the choice of old growth tight grain yellow pine (the stuff available about 100 or more year's ago), I figured Western Red Cedar was a good option.

I found an online supplier (Sound Cedar Company) that I could order 4/4 kiln dried WRC in the lengths I needed. About a week after ordering all of it arrived just begging to be turned into storm windows.

The cedar is neatly stacked in the basement and has been crying out for a little attention for the past few weeks. Though the wait has been long, I'm finally to a point where the project is thoroughly underway. Keep your fingers crossed for me, I think I'm going to need some patience on this project. I don't think there is a square window opening in the house. I'll just keep my eye on the prize, a warm and quiet house and bedroom.