Poly Carbonate Storm Windows

The sister of a friend who lives in Kerkhoven, Minnesota called to ask Tom to create some shatterproof storm windows for her screen porch. When she built her screen porch, she did not realize that living in the woods with the strong winds that sometimes blow in off the prairie would mean that occasionally a fairly decent-sized tree limb would break thru her screens causing her to have to replace the screens regularly. She took to putting up a stranded plywood covering over her screen porch on the north side. But that blocked her beautiful view and made the porch and the kitchen next to it too dark on cloudy days.

She had an idea to install storm windows over the screens - ones that could be removed in the summer months when she wanted a breeze in the screen porch. But the storm windows would have to not shatter if a medium sized tree limb hit them in a heavy wind. She asked Tom for his advice and he suggested poly carbonate windows. They would scratch, but they would not break. And they would let the light into her porch and her kitchen.

These photos show Tom measuring for the new storms (left in September) and delivering them (right in November). They needed a little bit of shaving off on some of the edges in order to get them to fit in the real world. Window frames are not always level and plum - which was the case with these windows.

These photos show Tom installing the windows on the client's screen porch. Tom's friend was the helper who kept the screws organized and available. The windows were held in place with stainless steel button clips that can easily be turned to the side to remove the storms in the summer, and then turned back into place when the storms are returned for winter.

The client called Tom a few weeks later to say she loves her new storm windows and was surprised at how much brighter it made her kitchen. She had two corner windows in the kitchen around the corner from the screen porch so she was not expecting that one change on the porch to have so much of an effect on the sunlight that came into her kitchen. It is always heart-warming to know that you have made someone's life just a little bit brighter.
A job well done!