Bay Window Installation Question

[jamesblob]

I recently had a bay window installed in our living room, replacing two double hung windows with a picture window between them. After the installation I noticed that the plywood edge of the bay window casing was visible and that the molding framing the window is actually framing the edge of the plywood casing. About 1/2" of the plywood is visible around the entire perimeter of the window. I thought that the molding should cover the edges of the plywood. When I contacted the installer, I was told that this was the only way they could completely cover the gap between the window frame and the drywall surrounding the window. If the molding were moved in to cover the plywood edge, a gap would be visible between the drywall and the window frame. The molding that they used to frame the window is also 1 inch wider than the original molding. Shouldn't the molding be flush with the interior edge of the plywood casing of the bay window? Also, if the window were the same size as the window that is being replaced I would expect that the gap between the window and the drywall edge would be approximately the same as it was and that a larger molding would not be required to cover the gap? I expect that the bay window dimensions are smaller than the replacement windows, thus the problem. Any information would be appreciated.

[Window4U (IL)]

It's hard to second guess the installers without seeing what they had to deal with as for the reason they had to leave a reveal on the plywood.
The simplest solution would be to take the trim back off and apply a veneer band around the edges and then reinstall the trim.
Here is an example of the product I am speaking of: http://www.band-itproducts.com/index.ph ... peelnstick

As for the wider trim, that is normal. Bay and bows usually have 1 1/4" thick jambs and the normal jamb that is taken out is 3/4". Wider trim is necessary to make up the difference and is standard in the industry. Some window companies actually include 3 1/2" trim with the bay or bow when it comes.

[Tru_blue]

What your installer told you has a ring of truth to it, based on the size trim he evidently was using. A bay window can be several inches smaller on the interior side than it is on the exterior side, because it's angled, resulting in a large gap between the bay window interior and the existing drywall opening. This is normal for many (but not all) brands of windows. To bridge the gap, one must either re-drywall or cover it with a wider trim.

I've done hundreds of bays over the last 29 years, and for me, the endgrain of the plywood showing is never acceptable. It sounds like your installer has a "standard" wider trim that he uses, which is a bit short in your particular case. I would suggest possibly using a 1/2" wider interior trim than what is currently on there. If it's not available as a standard pattern it can always be custom made. However I know a lot of guys that would do just what your installer did and call it acceptable, or "standard practice." I would call it "disappointing," but not uncommon. Your installer probably had the best of intentions, it's just that different people have different standards of what "craftmanship" means to them.

Another trick is to glue on a solid piece of wood or an adhesive-backed wood veneer to the end grain before the interior trim is applied. Too late in your case but it turns out nice.

[Tru_blue]

Dave we must have started our replies at the same time, but I was more wordy so you beat me to it by a minute or three!

[Guy]

I agree with the others on the end grain being covered completely. Todays Bay units come smaller on the inside than the outside as Tru-blue stated in his post. Some manufacturers still make them the old school way, but not many. We always carry 4" trim when doing a bay window just in case we need it. Back in the mid 70's the old timer who I'd been working for since 1974 showed me how to deal with this. While we were installing a bay unit he told me to cut 3/4" board and trim the opening out on all four sides before we install the window. I was to nail the boards 1/4" short of the drywall edge. So if my wall was 5-1/4" thick I cut the boards off at 5". This left the boards 1/4" recessed in from the inside drywall edge. We then recessed the unit a 1/4" in from the edge of the drywall also. Ounce the frame was anchored in place and insulated we cut 1/4" mull casing down to fill the gap and flush up to the drywall edge. This piece would cover the exposed plywood edge completely and now give us a flush surface to nail the trim to. This allowed us to use the same sized trim that was existing and it also covered the ugly plywood edges of the jambs. I use this little scenario on almost anything that comes up short somewhere. If it's a specialty wood like Maple or Walnut I just make my own with my planer. It's worked well for me since then.

[Window4U (IL)]

I've done the same over the years in many situations Guy. Usually because of a salesmen not being able to measure correctly!

I've also done that scenario in situations when installing for someone else and running into a 6'3" Pella patio door being replaced by a 5"11" vinyl door.
Personally, I like to just order the special sized door unless someone is in a time crunch where the extra lead time doesn't fit their plans. Plus, Sunrise has a "Wisconsin Door" available that is 6'2" unit size as a stock door so that gives me a "no extra lead time" option now.

[jamesblob]

Thanks for the information. I wasn't sure that the window had been installed correctly. I can't say that I'm 100% satisfied with the installation, but I gather from all of the information you guys have provided it was installed correctly. I'll probably remove the trim and install a wider trim myself. Again thanks for all of the input.