Coil Balances Broken

Thanks for writing in. This looks like a Coil Balance system. Coil Balances are exactly what they sound like: coil tape units that work the same way other balances do, by maintaining tension that allows you to open and close the window at will. 

Clearly it looks like yours have worn down. I am confident we can help you replace these coil balances, but we need to see a picture of the pivot shoe that they attach to at the bottom of the window track. The pivot shoe is the plastic piece with the cam on either side of the window track from which the window pivots inward. The identity of the pivot shoe determines the identity of the coil balances you need. Many thanks.

Sounds great. We will be here. 

Thanks for getting back to us. This Coil Balance Shoe looks like our 15-087, along with the 15-086 Tandem Housing and 16-024 Mounting Bracket. This Coil Balance System uses our Series 180 Coil Balances. 

First, these Coil Balance assemblies are not whole parts. They are modular, meaning that you actually do need to replace each component individually, if they have broken or worn down. It is worth replacing at least the coil springs on both sides if one side has springs that have worn down; with all window balances, if one side has worn down, it's likely the other isn't far behind. If the Coil Balance Shoe and Housing assemblies are undamaged, however, you should be able to re-use them.

To know what spring weights you need for your coil springs, I would try to get as an exact window sash weight as possible. If your precise weight is indeed 25 lbs, you'd be fine with (1) of the S180-6 6 lb spring and (1) of the S180-7 7 lb spring on each side of the sash. This equals 13 lbs of support on either side of the sash, and a total of 26 lbs of support overall. Being within 1 lb of the actual sash weight is fine; however, again, I stress you want to confirm what the precise window sash weight is before proceeding. 

Finally, there should be cutouts at the top of the window tracks to get these assemblies out, but if there are none you will indeed need to cut them yourself. Let me know if you have any other questions. 

Honored to hear it! Thanks a lot for the kind words, it's a pleasure to help. Let us know if you have any other questions, and many thanks for considering our business.