Restoration Register

Heritage window restoration in Peterborough, Port Hope and Cobourg

Port Hope and Cobourg have two of the best-preserved nineteenth-century main streets in Ontario, and both are full of original sash. A replacement window in a heritage conservation district is often not permitted at all, which makes the restorers listed here the practical route rather than the purist one.

The standard job is a full sash overhaul: strip failed putty and reglaze in linseed oil putty, replace broken cords and rebalance weights, consolidate rot in the lower rail and sill with epoxy, free painted-shut sashes, ease and re-fit to the frame, and weatherstrip. On commercial main street buildings the same trade handles storefront glazing and transoms. Where a heritage conservation district applies, as it does in parts of Port Hope, Cobourg and Peterborough, ask the restorer what the district guidelines actually require before you commission anything, because the permit is easier to get for repair than for any form of replacement.

What to ask before you hire

  1. Are the windows in a heritage conservation district, and what do the guidelines allow? Ask the restorer and confirm with the municipality before ordering anything.
  2. Will you repair the existing sashes or build new ones? Repair should be the opening position and is usually what the district guidelines expect.
  3. What is your approach to the original glass? Wavy glass survives in quantity in this region and it is worth pricing the work around keeping it.
Grant funding

Port Hope runs a grant program drawn from an annual pool of roughly $25,000, though our last verification is stale and it should be confirmed. Peterborough funds work inside its heritage conservation districts, and Collingwood funds 50% to $3,000.

Contractors on this page

Part of

All heritage service pages · Grants by municipality