Spiral balance quote.

Professional from Brookline, MA

Aug 16, 2018 8:12 am

I'm looking to get info for first time purchase of balances. I am a professional restorer but have not yet done spiral balances so any additional info you can pass along would be appreciated. I'll be ordering more for another job soon as those windows are nearly finished. This project involves two double-hung wood windows 36"Wx45"H. Previous fixer mounted a 6" block at top of Lower sash channel to cheat with a >40" balance which has failed. I'd like new balances to be full-length so they don't look as stupid as the current solution. I'll be installing 1/4" IGUs as part of restoration so they'll be heavy. the daylight glass dimension is 14 7/8" W x 40.75"H. The windows are made of wood.
I've included an image of the windows for reference. I am looking for 8 pieces of the appropriate series 500 balance.Finally, please advise which sash mount bracket to use with these balances.

1 user uploaded image

10 Replies

Paul from SWISCO

Aug 21, 2018 1:55 pm

The Series 500 balance with a 17-012 balance bracket has been used by wood window manufacturers as far back as the 1940's. The rule of thumb for balance lengths and wood sashes is to add 1" to the visible glass height for the top sash and 3" for the bottom sash. So for your 41.25" glass height, I recommend our S500-42 for the top and S500-44 for the bottom.

For an insulated glass sash with 31" by 41.25" glass, I'm approximating the sash weight at around 38 lbs. You should weigh your sash to be sure. If I'm right, you'd want to use the black tip color option.

Let me know if you'd like me to walk you through installation, as it can be tricky for this kind of window.

Professional from Brookline, MA

Aug 22, 2018 7:01 am

Hello Paul, the client has decided to use our services to restore their windows so when the time comes to order the parts, I will do so based on your recommendations. Thank you, Jeremy

Paul from SWISCO

Aug 22, 2018 8:22 am

That's great to hear. We wish you a smooth, easy repair. Thanks for choosing us.

Professional from Brookline, MA

Aug 28, 2018 6:12 am

Good morning Paul, I'm enquiring about a balance for a different project involving a wood Double-hung (non-tilt) window. I would like to order two pair of balances and would like some specifics.

The window in question is as follows:

Upper Sash: 36 3/4" H - 19.6 lbs.

Lower Sash: 37 1/4" H - 20.6 lbs.

Jamb Height: 73 3/8" H

Channel cut into sash seems to support 5/8" balance.

I'll need a pair for each sash, the feet, the charger tool and mounting hardware. I need the order can get sent as soon as possible so please call me and I'll give you a CC number if that's an appropriate method.

Thanks,

Jeremy K.

Contractor from Brookline, MA

Aug 30, 2018 6:29 am

I have two windows in need of balances. The first window in question (for my purposes #533) is as follows:
Upper Sash: 36 3/4" H - 19.6 lbs.
Lower Sash: 37 1/4" H - 20.6 lbs.
Jamb Height: 73 3/8" H
5/8" balance channel

Second window (#521):
Upper Sash: 52" H - 28 lbs.
Lower Sash: 52 13/16" @Left / 52 11/16" @Right - 28 lbs.
Jamb Height: 103 3/4" H
5/8" balance channel

Paul from SWISCO

Sep 5, 2018 2:09 pm

Hey, Jeremy. For your upper, sash we recommend the S500-35 and for the lower sash, we recommend the S500-37. The balance brackets would be our 17-012.

Paul from SWISCO

Sep 7, 2018 9:02 am

Sorry for the mixup, I see now that you have a second window.

For this one, the top sash would used a special order S500-50 with a black tip. The bottom sash would ideally be 52", but we cannot make them that long. The closest we can make is our S500-51, so you would need to drill a new screw hole an inch down.

If that sounds good to you, let me know how many of each you need and we can email you a special order link and price quote.

Contractor from Brookline, MA

Oct 13, 2018 7:20 am

Good morning, I would like to order some components per this thread.

For window 533- product #S500-35 (QTY 2)product #S500-37 (QTY 2)product # 17-012 (QTY 4)

For window 521-product #S500-51 (QTY 4)product # 17-012 (QTY 4 if applicable)product# 75-005 charging tool (QTY 1)

Please reply at earliest convenience as I am way overdue installing these sash.

Thank you, Jeremy

Tom from SWISCO

Oct 23, 2018 11:31 am

Thank you. I will now email you two order links: one for 2 S500-50 balances and one for 2 S500-51 balances. Each has a black tip. To reiterate, the S500-50 is for the top sash and the S500-51 is for the bottom sash. You will need to redrill the S500-51 installation hole down by 1" for it to work, since it's shorter than your original.

These order links will allow you to add these balances to your cart. You can then continue shopping for the other standard products you need as normal.