Best paint for restored double-hung?

[Chris Solar]

Hi-

I'm restoring a double-hung window in my house, roughly following an article in Fine Homebuilding #161. The windows are about 100 years old, and I'm stripping off all the old paint. Likewise for the frame, of course.

I'm wondering what kind of paint to use, particularly for the sliding surfaces: the tracks in the jambs, and the sides of the sashes. I'm concerned that latex paint will be too soft, and so the sash will tend to stick in the jambs. Is this a valid concern? Would an oil-base paint be better?

After all the work of stripping old paint and putty, I don't want to screw it up at the end...

Thanks,

Chris.

[Joe Bobst]

Most primers, paints and varnishes tend to stay on the surface, exactly where you don't want them on a sliding structure. Seems to me that a penetrating, thermosetting resin would be best. For the small area you are working with a two part epoxy with just a dab of an appropriate thinner might be pretty cost effective. A Google search will turn up a fair number of possible suppliers. Good luck.

Joe

[dadiOH]

ABSOLUTELY!! Anything but latex...IMO, latex "paint" - top coat or primer - should never be applied to woodwork.

Realize that paint on sliding surfaces will wear off. Eventually.

-- dadiOH _____________________________

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[Dan Hartung]

Many old double-hung windows originally would have been left unpainted in these areas, for that precise reason. Although this left them vulnerable to moisture, it also allowed them to more easily expand and contract with the rest of the house.