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.

Installation Guide to Window Flashing & Sealing

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

Adapted from Chapter 3, BEST PRACTICES GUIDE: WINDOWS & DOORS:

[Click to enlarge any image, photo, or table]

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.

Article Contents

• WINDOW FLASHING & SEALING Guide
  • WINDOW INSTALLATION, FLANGE TYPE
  • INSTALLING HOUSEWRAP FIRST
  • INSTALLING WINDOWS BEFORE HOUSEWRAP
  • FELT PAPER AROUND WINDOWS
  • HEAD FLASHING for ROUND TOP WINDOWS
  • SEALING DETAILS for MULLED WINDOWS
  • WINDOW INSTALLATION w/ INTEGRAL BRICK MOLD

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.
  
  See 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 below 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 (Steve Bliss, J Wiley & Sons) 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 (Steve Bliss, J Wiley & Sons) .

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Reader Q&A - also see RECOMMENDED ARTICLES & FAQs

Comment:

(Apr 8, 2012) Anonymous said: excellent-clear -thorough

Question:

(Mar 8, 2013) doug norton said:
what is the appropriate range of aluminum flashing gauges for flashing around existing windows previous to re-siding a home?

Reply:

Typically aluminum flashing used on homes is 0.26". We do not recommend using the thinner 0.19 ga aluminum flashing.

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Continue reading at FLASHING MEMBRANES PEEL & STICK or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see these

Window & Door Leak / Repair Articles

• FLASHING on BUILDINGS - home
• WINDOW FLASHING & SEALING GUIDE
  • FLASHING DOORS, DETAILS
  • FLASHING MEMBRANES PEEL & STICK
  • FLASHING MEMBRANE FAQs
  • SKYLIGHT LEAK DIAGNOSIS & REPAIR
  • SLIDING GLIDING DOOR MANUFACTURERS & REPAIR GUIDES
  • SLIDING GLIDING WINDOW DEFECTS
  • WINDOW & DOOR FLASHING TAPE DETAILS
  • WINDOW / DOOR AIR LEAK SEALING HOW TO
  • WINDOW LEAKS INTO BASEMENT
• WINDOWS & DOORS - home

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WINDOW FLASHING & SEALING GUIDE at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.

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INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to DOORS & WINDOWS

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