Window Replacement in Falmouth, Maine

Falmouth is one of the towns where a replacement window needs a building permit: the Code Enforcement Division's guidance says a permit is required so the new unit can be checked against egress rules, which govern the clear opening of bedroom windows. That matters most in older capes and farmhouses where original openings are small, and in 1980s homes where an insert window could shrink the opening below what the code wants.

About 42 percent of the town's homes were built before 1980, and federal EPA rules on lead-safe work apply to paid work that disturbs paint in homes built before 1978, so window work on those houses is set up with containment. Houses from the 1980s and 1990s, the biggest single block of Falmouth's stock, are now on their first generation of double-pane glass, and failed seals, fogging and sticking sashes are common reasons to replace. Choices include vinyl replacement windows and wood or clad units from Andersen, Marvin, Pella and Integrity, in double-hung, casement, sliding and awning styles. On the Foreside, windows facing Casco Bay should be rated for wind-driven rain and flashed into the wall rather than caulked alone.

Census estimates for 2020 to 2024 count about 5,300 housing units in Falmouth, with a median year built of 1986. Roughly 14 percent went up before 1940, about 16 percent between 1960 and 1979, about 31 percent in the 1980s and 1990s, and about 27 percent in 2000 or later. Around 84 percent of occupied homes are lived in by their owners, and about 81 percent of all units are single-family detached houses; the town's 2024 comprehensive plan notes that fewer than 10 percent sit in buildings of three or more units. An older layer runs underneath the subdivisions: a 1992 to 1993 survey recorded 985 buildings from before 1945, including farms, schools and summer homes in colonial, Federal, Greek Revival, Italianate and Romanesque styles. About 190 units are held for seasonal use.

Incorporated in 1718, Falmouth grew from a rural farming community into a summer destination and then a Portland suburb once trolley service reached the Foreside in 1898. The Portland Yacht Club has been in town since 1885, and the Norton House Historic District sits on Foreside Road. Mackworth Island, given to the state by Governor Percival Baxter, keeps the Baxter Summer Home. Gray Road carries Hall's Tavern and the Falmouth House, while Mast Road has the Elisha Purington House. Gilsland Farm, Tidewater Farm and the Town Landing keep open land and shore access among the neighborhoods.

Permits come from the Community Development Code Enforcement Division at 271 Falmouth Road. The town enforces the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code, which means the 2021 International Residential, Building, Existing Building and Energy Conservation Codes. Its permit guidance says work that alters or repairs a structure needs a building permit, and it specifically requires one for replacement windows so egress can be checked. Painting and similar finish work is exempt; roofing, siding and decks are not on the exempt list. Shoreland zoning covers land within 250 feet of Casco Bay, the Presumpscot River, Highland Lake and qualifying wetlands, and within 100 feet of designated streams.

A new window is only as good as the way it is set into the wall. Replacement windows go in either as inserts inside the existing frame or as full-frame units after the old frame comes out; the right choice depends on the condition of the frame, the trim you want to keep, and the siding around it. The site lists vinyl replacement windows and wood or clad units from Andersen, Marvin, Pella and Integrity, in double-hung, casement, picture, bay, sliding and awning styles.

• Each opening is measured and checked for rot in the sill, jambs and framing.
• Old sashes or whole frames come out; damaged wood is repaired before the new unit goes in.
• Units are set level, plumb and square, shimmed, and fastened as the manufacturer requires.
• Low-expansion foam and backer rod seal the gap without bowing the frame.
• Flashing, exterior trim or capping and interior casing are finished so the opening sheds water.

• Fog or condensation between the panes of insulated glass
• Sashes that stick, will not stay up, or let in drafts
• Soft or rotted sills and frames
• Single-pane glass or storm windows you take on and off every year
• Frost or ice on the inside of the glass in winter

• Number of windows, their sizes, and any custom shapes
• Vinyl versus wood or clad units, and the brand and series
• Insert versus full-frame replacement
• Glass package and grille options
• Interior and exterior trim work, and whether siding is open around the opening

Every job is priced from a free on-site visit. Typical ranges for the trade are on our window replacement page, and the details of this service are on the window replacement overview.

Back to the Falmouth exterior services overview, or see every town on our Cumberland County service areas page.