How do you fit an air conditioner in a crank-out window?

With a made-to-measure panel. The casement is opened and a clear plexiglass or polycarbonate panel fills the gap between sash and frame, with an opening for the unit or its hose. It should come out easily and leave no holes.

I rent my flat: what should I ask the owner before putting an AC in the casement?

Ask before installing anything, in writing. Describe the panel and how it's held. Agree on who takes it out in the fall and what happens if the crank or seal is damaged. A removable panel that leaves no marks is the easiest request for an owner to accept.

Can a casement window be replaced with a slider?

Not everywhere. Ahuntsic-Cartierville expects a casement to stay a casement, and Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce doesn't allow sliders in its significant sectors. Where it's allowed, a slider suits a spot where an outswinging sash is in the way. Check our borough permit guide first.

Are parts still available for an old casement window?

Often, yes. Many cranks, hinges and locks follow common patterns, and a pro can match them from photos. When the exact part is no longer made, an adapted operator sometimes fits; if not, a new sash or window may be the practical fix.

Why does my casement let in cold air in winter?

Usually because the sash isn't pulling tight. Worn weatherstripping, a lock that doesn't catch or a dropped sash leaves a gap, and each is a repair. If the draft comes from around the frame, the insulation or caulking behind the trim is likelier.

Casement windows · Montreal

Casement windows: hardware, air conditioners and replacement

A casement, or fenêtre à battant, is hinged at the side and cranked outward. In a plex flat or a condo, the problems are practical: the crank spins but the sash stays put, cold air slips in along the edge, or the air conditioner has nowhere to go. Most start with a worn part, not a failed window. We connect you with an independent local window professional who can tell a tired part from a tired window and price whichever it turns out to be.

Crank, hinge and lock repairs
Air conditioner panels for crank windows
Replacements that respect borough rules

Get a free quote 514-312-6772

Crank, glass and frame: each can be dealt with on its own.

Hardware

Casement crank hardware: what can be repaired

Most complaints trace back to a few moving parts, each replaceable on its own; our crank and hinge repair page has the detail.

The crank turns, the sash doesn't

The gear inside the operator has stripped, or the handle no longer grips the shaft. The operator is a replaceable part, matched by type and hand.

The sash won't pull tight or lock

If a keeper is bent or the sash has dropped, the lock can't catch, and the gap it leaves is where winter air gets in.

The sash drags or sags

Hinges wear, especially under a wide sash with a heavy thermos (the sealed glass unit). New hinges often bring it back square; a soft or warped sash is another matter.

Plexes and condos

Casement windows in plexes and condos

Casements turn up on plex façades, above the back gallery and in condo towers. Before anyone orders parts, know whose window it is. Tenants go through the owner or manager. In a condo, check with the syndicate: the borough's permit file for a condo replacement asks for a resolution or the co-owners' letters. Our condo windows page explains the process.

Summer air

Air conditioner in a casement: the plexiglass panel

A window unit is built for the sill of a sliding or hung window. A casement swings out, leaving nothing to rest it on.

The usual workaround

A clear panel fills the gap left by the open casement, with an opening for the unit or its hose. See plexiglass cut to size.

Renting? Ask the owner first

Put the request in writing and agree on who removes the panel. Owners can reasonably ask that nothing be screwed into the frame.

Take it out in the fall

Left in over winter, the panel keeps the sash open to cold and snow. Label it and store it flat for next summer.

Replacing

Replacing a casement window: hybrid, PVC or aluminum

If the crank is the only thing worn out, a new crank is the whole job. Replacement becomes the better answer once the frame has gone soft or out of square, or the thermos and hardware are giving out together.

New casements come in PVC, in hybrid frames (PVC inside, aluminum outside) and in aluminum. What your borough accepts can matter as much as what you prefer; the Sud-Ouest doesn't allow PVC outside. Our vinyl and hybrid page compares frames, and replacement windows covers how they go in.

Pricing factors

What casement work is priced on

A crank and a new window are different jobs. The pro will ask about:

A part (crank, hinge, lock) or the whole window
Size of the sash and the weight of its thermos
Frame material: PVC, hybrid or aluminum
Access to upper-floor flats or windows above a gallery
Extras: a screen, an AC panel, permit paperwork

A photo of the window open and a close-up of the crank let a pro quote before visiting.

Get a casement quote

The quote is free; an independent pro does the work.

Screens

Interior screens on casement windows

Since a casement opens outward, its screen sits inside the frame, held by clips that tend to go missing between tenants. A made-to-measure screen can be ordered with a hardware repair; see custom window screens.

Check your borough

Keeping the same opening type: borough rules

Most Montreal boroughs require a permit even for an identical window, and some also fix the style. In Ahuntsic-Cartierville, a replacement must match the building's typology (opening type, subdivisions, colour), so a casement stays a casement. Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce doesn't allow sliding windows in its significant sectors.

Check with your borough before choosing. The pro we connect you with can help prepare the file: the quote with taxes, numbered photos and the product sheet. Our borough permit guide links each borough's page.

Questions

Casement window questions

Explore your options

Independent pros take casement repairs and replacements across the island and nearby, including Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie, Villeray, Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce and Laval.

Send a photo of the casement, open

Show us the window open and the crank up close, and name your borough. An independent local pro will say whether a part will do or the window is due.