Whole House Window Replacement in Minneapolis — Keep the Woodwork
A bungalow or story-and-a-half with old wood double-hungs, aluminum storms, and stained fir or oak casing you do not want touched.
Reply within one business day. Or call / text 763-204-2099.
Whole house window replacement in Minneapolis, on a 1900s–1950s house, is mostly about the woodwork. JMB Builders measures every opening, plans inserts that leave the stained casing in place where frames are sound and full frame where they are not, orders everything together and installs room by room. Priced per opening on a line-item quote. Send photos and we reply within one business day, or book a free in-home estimate.
- Priced per opening, insert or full frame each
- Stained casing left in place on inserts
- Weight pockets insulated
The typical Minneapolis house from 1900 to the 1950s has wood double-hungs hung on ropes and weights, aluminum combination storms outside, and stained casing inside. On a whole house job the question for each window is whether the frame is sound. If it is, an insert goes inside it: the sashes, stops and weights come out, the weight pockets are filled with insulation, and the stained casing never comes off the wall.
If the frame has rotted at the sill or racked out of square, that opening goes full frame. On stucco, that means cutting the stucco back around the frame, flashing the new window, and patching to meet it. Most houses end up with a mix, which is why the quote lists every opening on its own line with the method we plan for it. You see exactly which windows need the bigger job.
Story-and-a-halfs add the upstairs: small windows in the gable ends and dormers, often reached only by ladder outside. Back doors, side doors and a patio door added during an old remodel can join the same order as a window and door package, so frame colors match. Lead time depends on the brand and is written on the quote. Andersen lines are stocked at Minnesota ABC Supply branches; other brands we confirm with our ABC branch before the quote is final.
Our job log has nine window and door installs in Minneapolis from December 2025 through September 2026, all for dealers and builders. Homeowners hire us directly. We pull the permit from the city when the work needs one.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough: a reply within one business day, or ask for a free in-home estimate. Or text the photos to 763-204-2099.
What you supply
- Brand, frame color, glass and grille pattern for the house
- A call on which doors join the order: back, side or patio
- Interior finish: a factory color, or a wood interior stained to sit near your casing
- Furniture moved back and window treatments down in that day's rooms
- Painting is quoted as a separate line, or leave it primed and caulked and paint it yourself.
What JMB supplies
- A measure of every opening, with each frame checked for rot and square
- A line-item quote: method, size and glass for every opening
- Old sashes, weights and storms removed and hauled away
- Weight pockets insulated before the insert goes in
- Stucco cut back and patched where a window goes full frame
- Exterior capping or trim and new interior stops
- Room-by-room install; each opening closed the same day
- Floors covered and dust kept to the work room
- One contact for the job and photos in your job folder
How it is priced: per opening
Quoted in writing from your photos, with a reply within one business day. What moves the number:
- How many openings take inserts and how many need full frame
- Stucco, lap siding or brick around each full frame opening
- Upstairs gable and dormer windows reached by ladder
- Brand, frame material and interior finish
- Glass package and grille pattern
- Doors added to the order
- Storms and old hardware to remove
Photograph each window inside and out, and one close-up of the sill. The in-home measure decides insert or full frame per opening.
How long it takes
Inserts run about three to five a day; full frame on stucco runs one to two a day. Most Minneapolis houses take several working days. Lead time depends on the brand and is written on the quote.
How your project works
- 1
Send photos, get a written quote
Send three photos of the space and a sentence about what you want. You get a clear, itemized reply within one business day. Prefer a look in person? A free in-home estimate is always an option.
- 2
Pick materials, or bring your own
We help you choose profiles and materials that fit the house and the budget, or match your existing millwork exactly — or you buy the door or trim yourself and we install it. Everything is confirmed before the crew is scheduled.
- 3
Clean, precise installation
The crew shows up on time, protects floors and furniture, and installs with tight joints and consistent reveals. Photos of the finished work go in your job folder.
- 4
Walkthrough and invoice
We walk the finished work with you. If anything is not right, we fix it before we call the job done. Then one invoice, paid by check or direct deposit — no card fees, no payment links.
Situations and options
All inserts
When every frame is sound. Casing stays, pockets get insulated, the outside is capped. The fastest whole house job and the least disturbance to plaster and woodwork.
Mixed: inserts plus a few full frame
The common case. Most windows take inserts; the rotted kitchen window or the leaky dormer goes full frame. Each is a line on the quote.
Windows and doors together
Back door, side door and an added-on patio door on the same order as the windows so the frame colors match.
Whole House Window Replacement in Minneapolis — Keep the Woodwork: questions, answered
Can all the windows in an old Minneapolis house be replaced without removing the stained woodwork?
Where the frames are sound, yes. An insert window goes inside the old frame: the sashes, stops and weights come out, and the casing stays on the wall. Openings with rotted or racked frames need full frame, and the casing there has to come off; we tell you which ones at the measure.
What happens to the weight pockets when old windows are replaced?
The ropes and weights come out and the empty pockets are filled with insulation before the new window goes in. Those pockets are often the biggest draft in an old window, so this matters as much as the new glass.
Do the old aluminum storm windows come off?
Yes. The combination storms are removed and hauled away, and the outside of the old frame is capped or trimmed around the new window. A replacement window does not need a storm.
Can windows be replaced in a Minneapolis stucco house without cracking the stucco?
Inserts do not touch the stucco. Full frame windows need it cut back around the opening so the new window can be flashed, then patched to meet it. Patched stucco will not match the old color exactly until the wall is painted or coated.
Do I need a permit to replace all windows in Minneapolis?
It depends on the scope, especially for full frame work or openings that change size. We check with the city and pull the permit when one is required. Egress windows for bedrooms are a separate job with their own rules.
How do I get a quote to replace all windows in Minneapolis?
Send a photo of each window inside and out, labeled by room, and we reply within one business day. Or book a free in-home estimate; we check every frame on that visit and decide insert or full frame per opening.
Recent JMB work, from our job log
59 installs recorded across 30 Twin Cities communities since Dec 2025. Window and door installs for homeowners and the builders we work with. Counts come straight from our job log; no customer names.
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Read morePage reviewed October 9, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All by city pages
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