Painting period windows properly
Paint on a sash window has one job: keep water out of the timber. Once it cracks at the joints or along the bottom rail, rot follows. We scrape loose paint back to a sound edge, sand smooth, fill open joints and prime every patch of bare wood before the undercoat and top coats.
Old windows often carry layers of paint that may contain lead. Our Mirka dust-free sanders extract at the source, keeping dust out of the room. Our carpenter takes on broken cords, rotten timber and new sashes, and we decorate once the joinery is done.
Listed buildings and the conservation area
Check with Huntingdonshire District Council before changing window colours on a listed home or in the St Ives conservation area. If you're weighing up a repaint against new windows, our sash restoration page explains what paint can and can't fix.
St Ives at a glance
- 18 milesby road from our Landbeach base, about 24 minutesOSRM routing
- 7%of properties were built before 1919VOA Council Tax stock
- 152listed buildingsHistoric England
- 1conservation arealocal council
- 24%are terracedCensus 2021
- 3%date from 1919 to 1939VOA Council Tax stock
How we approach sash window restoration
Each sash is worked up and down during the job so every face gets painted while the runners stay clear. We finish in eggshell or satin, with a thin line onto the glass to seal the putty. Outside faces wait for a dry, settled spell. At the end, Graham checks each window opens and closes properly before we leave. The full method, products and FAQs are on our sash window restoration page.