Installing a window can seem daunting, however, if you take these steps, it’ll be a breeze.
First put a molding strip inside your window opening for the stained glass window to rest upon.
Second, place the stained glass window into place, using wedges of wood to make window fit straight and balanced within the window frame.
Third, add another set of molding strips to the front of the stained glass window to hold securely in place. Viola, you’ve done it!
The thing you need to know is how wide the outside border of the stained glass panel is that you are installing. Typically windows that are going into a casing permanently would have a 1/2″ lead came border all the way around. Larger windows can have 1″ border. You want the molding to cover HALF of the lead, so that the lead makes a nice border and shows evenly all the way around. Often wood shims are added to straighten the panel within the casing. So if you have a 1/2″ border all the way around the panel, your molding would be 1/4″. This would also be the “lip” that the window would be seated in within the framework.
Check out this install of a large stairwell window on the landing. The window is over 6 feet tall, and the opening is over 6 feet above the landing, so lots of strong hands and a ladder helped this go smoothly.
