I am planning on a small addition to a house. I will have a poured frostwall foundation poured. Where one of the new poured walls meets the existing poured wall there is a steel-framed basement window. I am assuming that this window will need to be removed, and forming installed prior to pouring to form a return where the window was. My question is how difficult is it to remove these types of windows that are set into the poured wall? Thanks for your help!
Discussion Forum
Discussion Forum
Up Next
Video Shorts
Featured Story
Listeners write in about removing masonry chimneys and ask about blocked ridge vents, deal-breakers with fixer-uppers, and flashing ledgers that are spaced from the wall.
Highlights
"I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.
Fine Homebuilding Magazine
Fine Home Building
Follow
-
Fine Homebuilding
Dig into cutting-edge approaches and decades of proven solutions with total access to our experts and tradespeople.
Start Free Trial Now -
GBA Prime
Get instant access to the latest developments in green building, research, and reports from the field.
Start Free Trial Now
- Home Group
- Antique Trader
- Arts & Crafts Homes
- Bank Note Reporter
- Cabin Life
- Cuisine at Home
- Fine Gardening
- Fine Woodworking
- Green Building Advisor
- Garden Gate
- Horticulture
- Keep Craft Alive
- Log Home Living
- Military Trader/Vehicles
- Numismatic News
- Numismaster
- Old Cars Weekly
- Old House Journal
- Period Homes
- Popular Woodworking
- Script
- ShopNotes
- Sports Collectors Digest
- Threads
- Timber Home Living
- Traditional Building
- Woodsmith
- World Coin News
- Writer's Digest
Replies
The window unit itself is easy.
Then you have a meatl buck frame that is almost parto f the concrete wall.
Eye and ear and hand protection.
grinder
sawzall with metal demo blade
big hammer
cold chisles
three hours time
-OR-
Protection plus rent a demo hammer and an hour of time
Thanks for all of the great responses! Turns out that it took about 2-1/2 hours to remove, and some of that time was spent removing some drywall on a boxed out ceiling in the adjacent basement room. After removing the window unit itself, I ended up cutting the frame in half on each side and prying it out of the concrete with a demo bar and hammer. Thank God for Sawz-All's!
One thing I noticed while doing this is how the original contractor built the floor system. There is 1" styro on the outside of the foundation, and the builder let the sill plate and rim joist hang over the top of the foundation to make the edge of the rim flush with the styro. This places 2/3 of the rim joist (along with the load bearing exterior wall and roof system) hanging over the foundation. Around the windows the sill is cracking from the weight and the top of the rim is tipping out from the house. This house is 6 years old and was built by (according to the owners) a reputable contractor. The homeowner is a mechanical engineer and after some thought felt that it'd be okay, although I feel that this is based on how much it would cost to fix the problem.
What do you all think? I say that if they would've doubled the rim or atthe very least installed blocking over to the next parallel joist it would probably be fine. Thanks for your input!
Ugh!
Blocking heap big good stuff..
Excellence is its own reward!
Giant size slide hammer will rip em out faster than cuttin em out. Can get messy though.