How to Install Window & Skylight Flashing & Sealants
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Best Practices guide to selecting & installing windows & doors
Window flashing & sealing guide
How to install flange-type windows
Skylights: choosing, installing, design issues, energy efficiency
Doors, Exterior Flashing Details
Questions & answers about installing window or door flashing or sealant or caulk

Window or skylight flashing & sealant application: here we provide best-practice details about flashing and sealing around windows to avoid air and water leaks. In this article series we discuss the selection and installation of windows and doors, following best construction and design practices for building lighting and ventilation, with attention to the impact on building heating and cooling costs, indoor air quality, and comfort of occupants. We review the proper installation details for windows and doors, and we compare the durability of different window and door materials and types.

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Installation Guide to Window Flashing & Sealing

This article includes excerpts or adaptations from Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction, by Steven Bliss, courtesy of Wiley & Sons.

See WINDOWS & DOORS our home page for window and door information, and also see WINDOW TYPES - Photo Guide for a photographic guide to window and door types and architectural styles. Our links at page left provide in-depth articles on window and door selection, inspection, installation, problem diagnosis, and repair.

ction Chapter 3, BEST PRACTICES GUIDE: WINDOWS & DOORS:

While modern flange-type window frames appear to simplify window installation, how best to integrate the nailing flanges with the sheathing wrap and siding has been a subject of debate, and recommendations vary among different window manufacturers, sheathing wrap manufacturers, and contractors. The approaches shown below represent a broad consensus of leading manufacturers and experienced contractors, but other approaches that follow the same basic principles can also work. These are:

Always lap higher flashings over lower to shed water.
Do not rely on caulking as a waterproof barrier, as it is likely to fail over time. (CAULKS & SEALANTS, EXTERIOR)
With heavy exposure to wind-driven rain and snow, use pan flashing to protect the sill and use flashing tape to seal the head flashing to the sheathing.
Leave horizontal joints unsealed at the top and bottom of the window frame to allow trapped water to escape.

Window Installation, Flange-Type
All clad and solid-vinyl windows come with an integral nailing flange or one that is friction-fit into a slot in the frame. In addition to simplifying the nailing, the flange helps to create a weather-tight seal at the head and sides of the window.

The most critical details are the head flashing, which should seal to the sheathing to pick up any dripping water from above, and the sill or pan flashing, which should freely drain to the exterior. The following approaches take advantage of the newer peel-and-stick flashing tapes, which have simplified the flashing of flange type windows.

Watch out: as our window photos above demonstrate, installing any window without proper flashing and sealing is likely to result in leaks into the building interior. The owner of this new home was very unhappy that each time it rained water ran down the inside of her walls at this window.

Installing Housewrap at Window Openings Before Installing the Windows

Figure 3-13 above shows how to flash a window installed after the plastic housewrap is in place. After cutting a modified “I” in the plastic housewrap, fold in the flaps, staple every 6 inches, and trim the excess.

Pan flashing. The next step, the pan flashing, is often omitted but is critical for leak-free performance in harsh weather exposures. The pan flashing can either be a custom metal pan, an adjustable plastic pan, or one formed in place from flexible flashing tape, as shown (Figure 3-14 below). If using flashing tape, first add a piece of beveled wood siding to the rough sill, sloping to the exterior. Remember to increase the rough opening height by 1/2 inch. Add patches of flashing tape to bridge the gap at the cut corners.
Install window. Next install the window, slipping the top flange under the housewrap. Most manufacturers recommend bedding the side and top flanges in a bead of high-quality sealant to create a backup seal, a good idea in harsh weather exposures. Do not caulk the bottom flange, however, which must be left unsealed so any trapped water can freely drain. To facilitate drainage at the sill, set the window on shims.
Side and head splines. Side splines of peel-and-stick flashing tape go on next, sealing from the window flanges to the sheathing wrap, extending 6 inches above the top of the window opening and lapping over the pan flashing. Finally, the head spline is slipped under the housewrap, sealing the window’s top flange to the sheathing. Patches of tape seal the diagonal slits in the housewrap.
Drip cap. If the window is trimmed on the exterior with wood casings, use a metal drip cap on top of the head casing and seal the drip cap to the sheathing tape with peel-and-stick flashing tape. When the siding is installed, do not caulk the horizontal joints above or below the window, which would create a water dam. Leave all horizontal joints unsealed to drain away any trapped water.

Figure 3-14: Formed-in-Place Pan Flashing for Windows or Doors.

As we note above, the pan flashing can either be a custom metal pan, an adjustable plastic pan, or one formed in place from flexible flashing tape, as shown (Figure 3-14 below).

If using flashing tape, first add a piece of beveled wood siding to the rough sill, sloping to the exterior. Remember to increase the rough opening height by 1/2 inch.

Add patches of flashing tape to bridge the gap at the cut corners.

Installing Windows Before Housewrap

When windows are installed before the building is wrapped, the key is to detail the pan flashing so it can properly lap over the housewrap. One approach is to leave the paper facing on the outer flap of the pan flashing so it can layer over the housewrap when installed.

Another approach, shown in Figure 3-15 below, is to seal the pan flashing to a flap of sheathing wrap that will be layered over the housewrap when installed.

Figure 3-15: Installing Flange Type Windows Before the Sheathing Wrap is Applied

Whether to seal the side window flanges directly to the sheathing or the housewrap is a matter of personal preference. Since few leaks originate at the sides of windows, either detail can work well as the flashings are detailed so each sheds water to the layer below.

Felt Paper Flashing or as Housewrap Around Windows

When using felt paper, paper up to the bottom of the window. Then install the pan flashing, window, and side and head flashings as shown in Figure 3-15 just above.

When installing the building paper later, layer successive courses over the side and head flanges, setting them into a bed of sealant at the sides of the window (see Figure 3-16 at left).

Leave the building paper unsealed at the head flashing, however, to allow any trapped water from above to escape.

Head Flashing Details for Round-Top Windows

To create a head flashing on round-top windows, one approach is to patch together several short pieces of flashing tape, making sure to start at the bottom and lap each upper piece over the preceding lower piece. Another option is to use a flexible membrane such as DuPont’s Flexwrap® tape, which can be bent to conform to the curve without cutting.

Sealing Details ford Mulled Windows

Where multiple windows are mulled together in the field, treat the space between the windows like a small section of sidewall. Make sure horizontal mullions are lapped properly so the sill flashing above laps over the cap flashing below. Use peel-and-stick flashing tape on vertical mullions, overlapping the vertical tape onto any horizontal mullions that intersect.

Window Installation, w/ Integral Brickmold

As reported in Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction Chapter 3, BEST PRACTICES GUIDE: WINDOWS & DOORS:

If installing windows with integral brickmold, proceed the same way as shown for flange-type windows above.

However, since there are no side flanges on the window, the brickmold goes over the side splines, which can be either felt paper or flashing tape.

Flashing tape is of less value with brickmold since the windows have no flange to seal to.

Apply a continuous bead of sealant on the backside of the brickmold before installing the window (Figure 3-17 at left)..

As an extra precaution against wind-blown rain entering behind the side casings, you can fold back the inside edge of the spline to form a one-inch hem, a detail developed by Pennsylvania contractor Carl Hagstrom.

At the head casing, a metal drip cap is required to protect the brickmold and provide a watertight seal. Slip the metal drip cap under the sheathing wrap and seal it to the sheathing with flashing tape.

-- Adapted and paraphrased, edited, and supplemented, with permission from Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction.

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Technical Reviewers & References

InspectAPedia.com^® - Daniel Friedman - Publisher & Editor.
Steven Bliss served as editorial director and co-publisher of The Journal of Light Construction for 16 years and previously as building technology editor for Progressive Builder and Solar Age magazines. He worked in the building trades as a carpenter and design/build contractor for more than ten years and holds a masters degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Excerpts from his recent book, Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction, Wiley (November 18, 2005) ISBN-10: 0471648361, ISBN-13: 978-0471648369, appear throughout this website, with permission and courtesy of Wiley & Sons. Best Practices Guide is available from the publisher, J. Wiley & Sons, and also at Amazon.com.
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  WINDOW FLASHING & SEALING Guide - see detailed links at page left

  Window Installation, Flange-Type
    Installing Housewrap First
    Installing Windows Before Housewrap
    Felt Paper Around Windows
    Head Flashing for Round-Top Windows
    Sealing Details ford Mulled Windows
  Window Installation, w/ Integral Brickmold

Basic Housing Inspection, US DHEW, S 352.75 U48, p.144, out of print, but is available in most state libraries; New York State version, ca 1955, source of our window parts and window repair sketches.

Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction, by Steven Bliss. John Wiley & Sons, 2006. ISBN-10: 0471648361, ISBN-13: 978-0471648369, Hardcover: 320 pages, available from Amazon.com and also Wiley.com. See our book review of this publication.

Carson, Dunlop & Associates Ltd., 120 Carlton Street Suite 407, Toronto ON M5A 4K2. (416) 964-9415 1-800-268-7070 info@carsondunlop.com. Thanks to Alan Carson and Bob Dunlop, for permission to use illustrations from their publication, The Illustrated Home which illustrates construction details and building components. Carson Dunlop provides home inspection education including the ASHI-adopted Home Inspection Training Program (home study course), publications such as the Home Reference Book, report writing materials including the Horizon report writer, and home inspect ion services. Alan Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors.

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.

Decks and Porches, the JLC Guide to, Best Practices for Outdoor Spaces, Steve Bliss (Editor), The Journal of Light Construction, Williston VT, 2010 ISBN 10: 1-928580-42-4, ISBN 13: 978-1-928580-42-3, available from Amazon.com

The Journal of Light Construction has generously given reprint permission to InspectAPedia.com for adaptations, quotations, or reproductions used at this website. All rights and contents of the JLC material are ©Journal of Light Construction and may not be reproduced in any form.

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Installation Guide to Window Flashing & Sealing

Installing Housewrap at Window Openings Before Installing the Windows

Installing Windows Before Housewrap

Felt Paper Flashing or as Housewrap Around Windows

Head Flashing Details for Round-Top Windows

Sealing Details ford Mulled Windows

Window Installation, w/ Integral Brickmold

Questions & Answers regarding this article

Ask a Question or Search InspectAPedia

Technical Reviewers & References

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair