How To Fix a Window Trim Piece

One of our friends is having a problem… it seems that the molding around their window has been deteriorated for many years and finally it gave away and their blind has fallen off.

The problem is probably bigger than they think it is. The way the previous repairs were made were just beyond bad workmanship it seems that they just threw some caulk or spackel on the molding and didn’t even care to sand it to make it look good. Most likely this was a shoddy job performed by someone who wanted to cover up some water damage as fast as they could.

To make a quick repair it might be possible to use a putty knife and a chisel to pry that molding up and then just replace it. What they might find under it is going to be bad though. If the actual frame of the window needs to be replaced then it means the window probably has to come out to do it. If there is just a bit of rot then you might be able to use a small piece of wood and glue that in with construction adheasive without removing the window.

To make the repair you will need to use a very sharp utility knife to cut the seam of paint and plaster between the piece of molding you are removing and the frame of the window. These moldings are normally held on with 2 inch brad nails but some people like to put in ring nails that have teeth that grip into the frame of the window.

If the nails aren’t coming out you have a couple choices. If you can pry the edge away you might be able to get a jig saw in there with a metal blade .. or you can try a hack saw or your final option is to just hammer the nails through the wood and hope they don’t cause damage to the frame. However normally with a good bit of prying you can get these moldings out.

Once the molding is out you will need to inspect the wood behind it for rot. I would suggest repairing it if it is your home but if not you can fill it with 2 part epoxy and hope it lasts another year.

Next you will need to install new molding. Cutting molding is not that difficult. First put the new piece against the wall and mark where the top edge should end and then mark a 45deg cut line and cut the piece.

Attach the molding with a few 2-1/2 inch brad nails and caulk any gaps with some siliconized latex caulk that is window rated.

Now you can paint and reattach your window blind.

 

Final Note

Hiding work that needs repair only makes things worse over time.

If you don’t end up fixing it when you first see the problem then whatever caused the problem and in this case it was probably water.. will eventually cause a problem that can not be fixed inexpensively or quickly.