ᐅ Knee wall windows installed too low—what are your thoughts?

For our single-family house with laminated safety glass (VSG), the tilt lock was sufficient. The window can only be tilted and can be fully opened for cleaning purposes using a key.

It is a 15m² (approx. 4.2 x 3.5m) children’s room with only one window. Fortunately, this is the only window that is not high enough due to the roof slope. I visited the window manufacturer today, and he suggested using a front-mounted roller shutter box that is only 15cm (6 inches) high and can be installed directly under the rafters, instead of the more common top-mounted boxes that are 30cm (12 inches) high. This way, the visible area at the highest point will be about 160cm (63 inches). The window frame and other components will start above 160cm (63 inches).

Hello @dobbelhaus! I’m bringing this topic up again and would be glad if you’re still active here. Have you made progress with your building project or implemented it as planned? We are currently facing the same challenge.

kevbuildthis schrieb:

Hello @dobbelhaus! I'm revisiting this topic and would be glad if you’re still active here. Have you made progress with your building project or implemented it as planned? We are facing the same challenge right now.

Hello,

I’m no longer active in this forum but just received an email about your post. We installed the window in this room exactly as I described in my earlier post. It worked quite well, and the result isn’t bad at all. Take a look at the photos.

Wow, many thanks! What are the current window dimensions you have planned (width/height), and how large is the room (in square meters)? It would be great if I could ask you a few more questions in the coming days, if you don’t mind, even via private message. 😉

For us, the knee wall will be 2 meters (6 ft 7 in) high minus 16 cm (6 inches) for the floor construction. We have also decided to forgo the built-in shutter box. The clear rough opening height is currently planned at 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) measured from the top edge of the unfinished floor. Subtracting the floor construction leaves about 1.55 m (5 ft 1 in) of window height, with fixed glazing at the bottom. Above that, there is a 35° pitched roof with a 40 cm (16 inch) overhang. The room is about 13 m² (140 sq ft) in size. With a room width of 3.8 m (12 ft 6 in), we have currently planned a window width of 2 m (6 ft 7 in).

Of course, many thoughts come to mind… How will it look, including from the outside? Will there be enough light given the height and roof overhang? Or would a prefabricated dormer be better... and so on. I guess you know all these considerations very well. 🙂

Oh, and I’d be happy to bring a case of pilsner from our region to your next barbecue! 😉

kevbuildthis schrieb:

Wow, thank you so much! How large is the window currently sized for you (width/height), and what is the size of the room (in square meters)? It would be great if I could ask you a few more questions in the next few days, if you don’t mind, even via private message. 😉

For us, the knee wall is 2 meters (6 ft 7 in) minus 16 cm (6 inches) floor construction height. We are also already leaving out the built-in roller shutter. The clear rough opening height is currently planned at 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) measured from the top of the raw subfloor. Subtracting the floor build-up leaves about 1.55 m (5 ft 1 in) height for the window, with fixed glazing at the bottom. Above that, there is a 35° gable roof with a 40 cm (16 inches) roof overhang. The room is about 13 sq m (140 sq ft) in size. With a room width of 3.8 m (12 ft 6 in), we have currently planned the window to be 2 m (6 ft 7 in) wide.

Naturally, all kinds of thoughts run through your head... How will it look, also from the outside? Is there enough light given the height and roof overhang? Or would a prefab dormer be better… and so on. I guess you know almost every line of thought. 🙂

Oh, and I’d be happy to support your next barbecue with a case of pilsner from our region. 😉

I will provide you with all the measurements tomorrow and answer your questions here. No need for a private message, maybe others would like to follow along who have similar issues coming up. I could also take some photos from the outside.

Thanks for the beer offer, I’m sure your beer is tasty, but I’ll do it my way too 🙂)