Cut to size at the counter
Glass cut to size, pipe threaded, and screens and panes replaced at the counter
Glass cut to size, pipe cut and threaded, and screen and glass replacement for windows and doors, done at the counter.
Chapter 01
A torn screen, a cracked pane, a pipe that has to be a length nobody sells
Windows and doors fail in small, fixable ways. A screen pulls out of its spline at one corner and flaps all summer, a pane cracks from the edge inward, a screen door's mesh gets punched through. None of it needs a whole new window, and all of it can be put right.
Plumbing and pipe work fail the other way: the length you need is not a length anyone stocks, or the end has to carry a thread to meet a fitting. Older windows in South Philadelphia rowhomes often aren't a standard size either, which is exactly why glass cut to size matters.
Pressed-tin ceiling above racks of extension cords, tools and parts bins
How glass, pipe and screens get done at the counter
Glass is cut by scoring one clean line with a wheel cutter against a straightedge and then running the break so the pane parts along the score. The pane is cut slightly smaller than the opening so it can seat, which is why the opening gets measured and not just the old glass. Edges are sharp when they come off the cutter, and they get handled that way.
Pipe is cut square, reamed to remove the burr from the inside edge, and then threaded with a die so the fitting starts on by hand before it is wrenched snug. Pipe threads are tapered so they seal as they tighten, and a fitting that binds early is a thread that needs another look.
Rescreening replaces the mesh in a frame you already have. New mesh is laid across the frame, pressed into the groove with a roller, locked in with spline and trimmed flush. Window screen repair and screen door repair are both on the shop's own list of lock-and-hardware work.
Chapter 03
Before you carry it home, and when to bring it back
Wrap cut glass and carry it on its edge, not flat. A fresh-cut edge is the weakest part of the pane, so the best protection is a careful trip home and a pane that goes into the frame the same day.
On a new thread, use the right thread compound, turn the fitting on by hand first and then snug it with a wrench. If it fights you early, bring the pipe back instead of forcing it. A forced fitting is how a thread gets damaged for good.
The counter is at 1113 E Passyunk Ave, open Monday to Friday 9 AM to 6 PM and Saturday 9 AM to 5 PM. Call (215) 468-4819 with what you need and the people who cut it will tell you what to bring.
Glass cut to size, pipe cut and threaded, and screen and glass replacement for windows and doors, all at 1113 E Passyunk Ave. Call (215) 468-4819.
Three jobs, three tags on the bench
The cutting and threading happens at the same counter where the keys are cut.