Window manufacturers use standard sizes for their products. Understanding how windows are measured and sized is helpful if you are looking to install replacement windows or planning a custom-build.
How Window Sizes are Measured
Window sizes are measured in feet and inches, and the notation used to describe the size of a window tells you the width first and then the height.
For example: If a window is specified as 2-feet wide and 3-feet tall, it’s called a 2030.
This means the size in the framing of the building is 2-feet and 0-inches wide, and the height is 3-feet and 0-inches.
However, this measurement is for the rough opening in the house framing. The rough opening is the actual space between the studs from side to side and from the sill plate to header framing at the top of the window.
The actual dimensions of a 2844 window are approximately ½ inch smaller in each dimension.
The difference between the rough opening size and the window’s actual size allows the installer to make sure the window is set precisely level and plumb.
The slightly smaller size of the window than the rough opening also allows room for flashing around the edges of the window.
Standard Window Sizes
Standard sizes of windows depend on the type of window.
Double-hung windows slide up and down, and these windows come in standard widths between 24 and 48 inches. Standard heights vary from 36 to 72 inches.
Picture windows are fixed panes of glass that don’t open. The standard widths for these windows between 24 and 96-inches, and standard heights vary between 1-foot to 8-feet.
Sliding windows open from side to side. Standard widths for sliding windows are 36-inches, 48-inches, 60-inches, 72-inches, and 84-inches.
As you can see, all standard window sizes increase in even-number increments, and only some dimensions are available.
Custom-Built Window Sizes
What if you want to replace a window that is not one of the standard sizes, for example, in an older home or to match a unique design idea?
In this case, you need a custom-built window.
Professional glazing contractors like Vern’s Glass in Victorville can build custom sizes to match any size replacement window you need.
