Garden Shed #26 - Building the Window Frames

I finished building the shed window frames as shown below. They are ready for my DW to paint when she gets the chance. As I have noted in previous posts, these are 2'x3' and will end up costing about $10 each, including glass and hardware.


All four of these will be tip-in windows - the tops will tip inwards about 8 inches to allow ventilation in the summer time. The bottoms will be hinged.

Building the window frames

The general construction of these frames is a lap design (similar to the doors). This is really simple and makes for a very strong window. This technique also makes use of some of the short cut-off ends from the trim and doors.

The following diagram should help you understand how the process works...


First, I built the "blue" parts. These are assembled with 2" brads through the cross-pieces (using an air nailer) and Titebond waterproof wood glue. The cross-pieces are cut extra long as shown. I align one side (in this case the right side), and let the other side extend over. You can cut them to exact length if you want, but I prefer to trim everything off at one time.


Then I build the "orange" parts. These are really simple - glue and 1.25" brads. The outside pieces have the support rib aligned to the edges, and for the center piece, I align it up the middle (shown). The support ribs will overlap the "blue" end pieces and make assembly easy.


I assemble the frames by gluing and nailing the "orange" center pieces to the ends. Here is a picture of the front side. Notice that the cross pieces and support ribs are long, except on the bottom, where I took the time to align everything.


Here is a picture of the back side. Where the cross-pieces and ribs overlap, I use a 1.25" deck screw instead of nails. I pre-drill the holes to avoid the wood splitting. One screw at each overlap should give plenty of strength to the frame (screws are not shown in the picture).


Once assembled, I use the table saw to clean up the edges.


Now that the frames are assembled, we will paint them, then attach the glass using a few support clips and silicone caulk. I will attach hinges to the bottom and a small bolt-latch at the top.


I'll take pictures of the installation, showing how they tip-out.