balance inquiry

Hello,

I see that you purchased the S385-20 channel balances but I'm not sure how you landed on that series without having the original balances. If there is an identical window in the house with intact hardware, I would recommend starting by removing one of the balances to show us photos of. 

You'll also need to weigh the sash with the missing balances to determine the spring strength needed for your replacements. Once we can identify the type of balance that you need, that will help us make an educated guess regarding the channel length needed for your window. Thank you. 

Thanks for getting back to us. There are a few variations that are similar to the S385, such as the S380 channel balance. The only difference would be the depth of the bottom fitting. We also carry the S351 and S390 non-winged balances. Since the differences are very subtle, it is important to see an original balance since determining the length and strength option would still not work if the wrong balance series is being used. 

To get started, we'll need you to confirm if there is another window in the house with intact balances that you can show us to help determine the correct balance series. We'll also still need to confirm the exact weight of the window sash with missing balances to determine the strength option for your replacements. 

Please note that if your window does use balances like the S385, the length would normally correspond to the height of the visible glass height in the sash plus 1", which would correspond to a 21" long in your case. 

We can't make any guarantees but the S385 has been used with Viking windows in the past. Please give us a bit more time to determine the length that would work best for your window. Thank you. 

We appreciate your patience as we researched this for you. Based on your 20" visible glass height in addition to roughly 1/2" of glass that inserts into the sash frame at the top and bottom, that would calculate to 21" total glass height. We would generally add 1" to the glass height as a rule of thumb to determine the channel length for these types of balances. In your case, that would equate to the S385-22 with a 2120 strength option to support a sash between 8-12 lbs. 

If you need new top sash guides as well, see the 18-171 below. Take a look and let us know if you need anything else. 

Alternate view of 18-171

Alternate image for 18-171

Alternate view of 18-171