Bay & Picture Windows in Topsham, Maine

Census estimates put Topsham's median home built around 1980, with about 12 percent of the housing predating 1940 and roughly 26 percent predating 1960. The town's oldest houses cluster along the Androscoggin River near downtown and in the Pejepscot village area, where mill-era homes date back to the 1800s. Away from the river, Topsham's housing spreads into a much larger share of capes, colonials and contemporary homes built from the 1970s onward, as the town grew alongside Brunswick and the Route 196 commercial corridor into a broader mid-coast residential center.

Topsham's oldest core sits along the Androscoggin River near the falls it shares with Brunswick, with Pejepscot, a historic mill village along the river, holding some of the town's earliest housing. The town maintains its own Historic District and Commission, separate from Code Enforcement, that reviews changes within Topsham's local historic district downtown. Away from the river, Topsham has grown substantially along the Route 196 corridor, home to the Topsham Fair Mall and a wide range of newer residential subdivisions built out over the past several decades as the town became a commercial hub for the mid-coast region.

Building permits in Topsham go through the Code Enforcement Office, a Division of Planning at Town Hall on Main Street, covering siding, roofing, window and deck work. Topsham maintains its own Historic District and Commission, separate from Code Enforcement, and any exterior work inside the town's local historic district near downtown needs that commission's review before work starts. Properties along the Androscoggin, Cathance, Little or Muddy Rivers, or near Merrymeeting Bay, fall under Maine's Mandatory Shoreland Zoning Act, which can affect how close to the water new construction or rebuilding may sit.

Picture windows are large fixed units that frame a view and pour light into a room. Bay and bow windows project out from the wall, adding floor space and light from three or more directions. Both are heavier and more exposed than an ordinary window, so the structure, support, roof and flashing around them matter. The Cumberland Center colonial on this site received Andersen 400 Series bay, double-hung and picture windows.

• The opening, header and framing are checked; widening an opening may need a new header.
• Bay and bow units are supported with cables, brackets or a framed seat so they do not sag.
• The small roof over a bay is flashed into the wall and roofed or capped to match the house.
• Insulation goes into the seat and head so the projection is not a cold spot.
• Interior seat boards, casing and exterior trim are finished to match.

• A view you want to see more of from the main living space
• An old bay that sags, leaks at the roof, or feels cold at the seat
• Fogged glass in a large fixed unit
• A dark room that needs more daylight

• Size and configuration: picture, bay or bow, number of units
• Whether the rough opening changes size
• Support method and seat or roof finish
• Glass package and brand
• Interior finish carpentry

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 bay and picture windows overview.

For a deeper walkthrough of materials, code details and photos, see our full Bay & Picture Windows: The Structural Support Most Homeowners Never See guide.

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