Replacing plastic window trim

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KeenDIYer

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Hi all,

Wasn't quite sure where to post this question so hoping general woodworking will do.

I'd like to replace the plastic trim on our bedroom windows with something that has a little more detail, preferably a wooden architrave.

Feeling all excited and productive I pulled off some trim to see what we were working with. As expected there is a large void. Rather than fill this void with bonding and then skim, could I not simply cover with an architrave that was wide enough? My plan was to frame the window with some 2x2 (or some square edged timber) which would then allow me to fix the architrave.

Not sure if this is how it's meant to be done, hence asking for help. I've attached pictures which hopefully explain things a little clearer.

We had a quote for a plasterer to come and frame, bond and skim both windows. It came to £1,500.

Thanks for any help.

David
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It's not structural, only aesthetic so you can do whatever you think looks good really. Just make sure that before you do you fill up any gaps for draughts etc.
 
I'm Sorry - I thought for a moment you said £1,500.

That's a typo right?

Either that or the typical "I don't want this job so I'll throw out a RIDICULOUS figure - and if he still says yes then its worth it"

Even in London £1500 is 2 weeks wages for a TWO DAY job. (skim first day - fit trim second day when dry)

Yes you can indeed cover this with something wider out of wood - google wooden interior window trim and you'll find a lot of examples, some of them very nice that are actually quite easy to do.

As a diyer and using wood, you might wish to consider the easier solution of using square blocks at the top corners instead of trying to get perfect mitres. If you attach the top first, then the corner blocks it's easy to work out the angles necessary to trim each end of the side pieces for a perfect fit, as it's very likely that the walls themselves are not 100% vertical, and the reason why getting perfect mitres becomes a bit of an issue.

The corner blocks can be plain or have decorative roundels or whatever and make the trim more of a feature.

Before fitting the trim however I'm going to assume that if you hold a straightedge on the plaster that that leaves a gap where it meets the window reveal (from the thickness of the plaster) which ideally needs to be addressed before fitting - if the section of wall directly adjacent to the reveal is reasonable regular, you could glue some shims to the back of the wood at that edge then glue the wood trim in place and fill the gaps.

Alternatively if the wall is uneven you could skim this yourself using an easy sand filler, like Toupret from screwfix (which I highly recommend as probably the best filler on the market) which can be put on quite thick without slumping, roughly levelled to the same as the plaster (but leave proud) then sanded back when dry using a longboard - which is essentially a long (300 mm or longer) flat bit of wood like MDF with a long strip of sandpaper glued to it. Sand perpendicular to the filler - so horizontally on the wall, using the wall and current plaster level as a reference point to bring the two surfaces co-planar. (you've still gome some of the wall paint right? otherwise use a light touch - when I say Toupret is "easy sand" it really really is and will feather out to nothing, I never use anything else now.)

Seal the filler with some dilute emulsion 50/50 to ensure adhesion - then you can glue the trim on without shims.

That's how I'd do it (and it's my profession).

lol or I can drive over from Bristol for £750 :)

edit: - hang on is that expanding foam? Hmm that changes things a bit - what's the trim in the reveal is that plastic as well?

If so it means that that trim also has to go, cut back some of the expanding foam to accomodate the thickness and put wood there (either same as the trim or quality plywood (NOT MDF for condensation reasons) that can be painted satin white, then use that wood to bridge from the reveal to the wall - simple enough, slightly more time and work but not crazy.

This is totally do-able by a homeowner with a modicum of skills.

re-reading your post, no you don't need to frame the window in 2x2 - for a start doing so will cover up most of the outer window frame which will just look odd - doing it my suggested way will mean you lose no extra depth to the frame, and will be enough to provide an inside edge for the trim to attach to at the window edge.

also 2x2 wood nowadays from the big stores is utter cr@p and will likely move and twist on you soon as it acclimitises to the central heating. A 12mm plywood strip, glued (and possibly plugged into the wall itself if you are a "belt and braces" guy like me) with some GOOD quality adhesive like stixall on the back and along the adjoining edge, which will still allow for seasonal movement OF THE uPVC FRAME (which most people forget is a thing) - will be enough, as I said above.
 
Firstly, thank you so much for the detailed reply.

That all makes sense to me. In essence, a bit of ply where the left piece of trim is (I was planning on taking this out anyway) and then architrave from this new piece to the wall.

One question that springs to mind, how would I go about fixing this thin piece of ply? You said screw and plug to wall but I'm not sure there is anything there that I can use. I will check this shortly.

Thank you for your suggestion of using the boxes for the corners. I have seen a few of these and they do look good and add a bit of detail.

Good also to know that his quote was as steep as I thought. Even more shocking to think that half is still way off the mark.

Thank you again for the reply, much appreciated.

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Here is a pic of the trim and side of the window itself. Unsure on where I could fix the ply here.

Cheers
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Whats on the outside? That looks like smaller window has been fitted into a larger hole and just wedged in with building foam.
make sure that is actually secure before filling that big a gap.
 
Thanks sunnybob, I'm presuming brick on the outside but the guy who lived here before was a right bodger.

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Get up a ladder and check. There are many shops that sell custom window factory rejects (wrong size, wrong colour, wonky hinge etc) at a fraction of new double glazed windows. There used to be one down in Torquay and I bought a small window there. I think thats what you have, a dirt cheap reject, squirted in with foam. Check that there are actually screws through into a solid wall somewhere.
 
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