Mark Gay has spent 40 years restoring the windows most contractors want to replace.
Now retired from full-time work, he takes on select repair jobs around Cincinnati's West Side and brings every bit of that experience to each one.
Who you're calling
Older homes have windows that were built to last a century — if someone who understands them keeps them in good order. Mark Gay has spent more than four decades doing exactly that in houses across Cincinnati: re-roping double-hung sashes, re-glazing and repainting, repairing casement hardware and refitting storm panels.
He is not a window salesman. He doesn't sell replacement windows and has no reason to tell you that yours are beyond saving. When you call, you get a plain answer about what's wrong and what it will take to fix it — and if a repair isn't worth doing, he'll say so.
Because Mark is retired, he takes on a limited number of jobs. That means the person who answers the phone is the person who shows up and does the work, start to finish.
Why homeowners call Mark
- He understands the mechanics. Weights, pulleys, cords, hardware and glazing all work together. Mark knows how, so he fixes the real problem instead of patching the symptom.
- He does it right the first time. Forty years of hands-on work means no guesswork and no callbacks. The job is finished when it's finished properly.
- He respects the original work. Replacing old windows is expensive and usually unnecessary. A properly repaired original can outlast a new one and keeps your home's character intact.
- He's local. Mark works the West Side neighborhoods he knows, in the kind of houses he's worked on his whole career.
How a vintage double-hung window actually works
Each sash hangs from two cotton cords that run over pulleys in the frame and down to cast-iron weights hidden in a pocket behind the trim. The weights balance the sash, which is why a healthy old window glides with one finger and stays put wherever you leave it.
When a cord breaks, the weight drops to the bottom of the pocket and the sash loses its balance — it slams shut or has to be propped open. Paint buildup glues the sash to its stops. Glazing putty dries and falls out, and the glass works loose.
None of that is a reason to replace the window. All of it is routine for Mark. See each repair in detail.
The windows in Cincinnati's older neighborhoods
Westwood, Price Hill, Cheviot, Covedale, Sayler Park and the older parts of Delhi and Green Township are full of houses built between the 1880s and the 1950s — brick foursquares, Tudors, Cape Cods and bungalows with their original wood windows still in place. Those windows were made from dense old-growth lumber, with glass and hardware meant to be serviced rather than thrown away.
Mark has worked on all of them. If your home is one of these, there's a very good chance your windows can be made to work like new for a fraction of the cost of replacement. Give him a call and find out.
Talk to the person who'll actually do the work.
Mark answers his own phone and gives straight answers about old windows.
Call (513) 921-1244