Window Replacement in Airdrie: Repair First, Replace When It's Right

A window needs replacing rather than repairing when the frame is rotted or warped, several sealed units have failed at once, or a single pane window is being upgraded. In Airdrie, a replacement in the same size and location needs no City permit; a change of size or location, or a new egress window, does. [1] We quote the repair first and the replacement second, on the same visit.

At a glance

Both prices

Repair beside replacement, one quote

Permit rule checked

Same size and place: no permit

ENERGY STAR

Vinyl windows, low-E and argon

When does a window need replacing instead of repairing?

Replace the window when the part that’s failed is the frame, or when so many parts have failed that repairing them one by one costs more than the window. Repair it when the frame is sound and the problem is glass, a sealed unit, hardware or seals. Most Airdrie calls are the second kind.

Frame

Wood sills and jambs probed for rot; vinyl corners checked for splits and warp; sash checked for square.

Count the failures

One foggy unit in a five-window bay is a sealed unit swap.

Single pane

Pre-1990s wood or aluminium windows can sometimes take a sealed unit.

Air and water

Drafts at the perimeter are a seal repair; water inside the wall is flashing or frame.

Retrofit or full-frame: which does an Airdrie house need?

A retrofit replacement fits a new window inside the existing frame and keeps the exterior finish, siding and interior trim intact. A full-frame replacement removes the old frame to the rough opening and starts again. Retrofit is faster and cheaper. Full-frame is the answer when the old frame is rotted, out of square or leaking behind the siding.

	Retrofit (insert)	Full-frame
What's removed	Sash and glass; old frame stays	Everything to the rough opening
Disruption	Hours per window, no siding or drywall work	Half a day or more; siding, flashing, trim
Glass area	Slightly smaller	Same as original
Right for	Sound vinyl or wood frames, most post-1995 homes	Rotted frames, water in the wall, size or style changes
Price	Quoted per window; the lower of the two	Quoted per window; includes trim, flashing and finish

Do you need a permit to replace windows in Airdrie?

No permit is needed to replace a window or door in the same size and location. A permit is needed when the size or location changes, when a window becomes a bedroom egress window, and when the opening is for a future secondary suite, where the accessory suite rules apply. [1]

Same size, same place

No permit. Most replacements in Airdrie.

Egress window

Opens from inside without tools; 0.35 m² clear, no dimension under 380 mm; 760 mm well clearance. [2]

Post-May-2016 houses

Replacement windows at U-value 1.61 or better, or energy rating 25; label left on until inspection. [1]

We check all three before quoting and say so on the quote.

What windows do you install?

Airdrie Window Repair installs vinyl replacement windows with ENERGY STAR certified sealed units, in casement, awning, slider, hung and picture styles, double or triple pane, with low-E coating and argon fill as standard. The maker, series and warranty are named on every quote.

Styles

Casement, awning, slider, hung, picture; matched to the windows that stay.

Glass

Double or triple pane, low-E, argon; triple worth discussing for north rooms and busy streets.

No house brand

We're a glazing company, not a manufacturer; we match style, colour and grilles.

How much does window replacement cost in Airdrie?

Window replacement in Airdrie is quoted per window installed, retrofit or full-frame, and every quote shows the repair price beside it. Replacing only the failed sealed units in the same house, from C$320 a unit, is usually a fraction of a full replacement.

From C$320

Repair from C$320, replacement quoted per window

Retrofit, standard size

What moves the price

Size, style, triple pane, colour

Full-frame

What moves the price

Size, siding and trim, flashing, interior finish

Sealed unit only, the repair

What moves the price

Size, tempered, low-E type

Egress conversion

What moves the price

Cutting the opening, window well, permit

Prices checked 7 September 2026. Every price on this site is a real from-price, not a call-to-find-out. Both prices appear on every replacement quote.

Are there rebates for new windows in Alberta?

Rebate programs change often and some have closed to new applicants. We check the current federal, provincial and utility programs on the day we quote and put what applies on the quote, with the program’s own page, rather than promise a rebate that has ended.

Programs checked on the day we quote

What applies goes on the quote, with the program page

Nothing promised that has ended

Rebates apply to replacement windows that meet a stated energy rating, not to repairs.

Why get a repair quote first?

Because most of the windows people ask us to replace don’t need it. A foggy unit, a stripped crank, a torn screen or a draft at the sash is a part, and a part costs a fraction of a window. When replacement is right we’ll say so, install it properly, and match the rest of the house.

Foggy unit: sealed unit swap

Stripped crank: operator replaced

Torn screen: rescreened in the frame

Draft at the sash: seal repair

Each is a fraction of a new window, and each is on the same quote as the replacement.

Get both prices today

Send a photo of the whole window and one of the damage. Airdronians get a repair price within one business day, and most jobs are booked for the following week.

Call

587-853-6745

Send two photos

Whole window plus the damage

Text

Photos to 587-853-6745

Other Airdrie repairs

Foggy sealed unit replacement

The repair most replacements should have been.

Broken window glass repair

Cracked or shattered glass in the existing frame.

Condensation on windows in Airdrie winters

Humidity or a failed seal, and how to tell.

Quick estimate

Your name, phone, neighbourhood and two photos. You’ll hear back within one business day.

Send two photos, get a price

By email or text within one business day.

Name *

Phone *

Email *

Issue Type

Preferred Contact Time

Neighbourhood *

Whole window from inside, frame visible

The damage crack, fog, crank or leak, close up

Additional Details (Optional)

I agree that Airdrie Window Repair may contact me by phone, text or email about this quote. Photos are used only to price the repair. *

Photos go to info@airdriewindowrepair.ca and nowhere else. Privacy

The window replacement Airdrie homeowners ask about most is a whole-house vinyl job after several sealed units fail at once, and that’s exactly the case where we quote the repair first.

Sources cited on this page

[1] City of Airdrie, “Installing new windows and doors”, airdrie.ca (archived copy 14 August 2026). Permits are required when a new exterior window or door changes size or location, or a window becomes a bedroom egress window; none for same size and location replacements; secondary-suite openings follow accessory suite requirements; after May 1, 2016 windows must have a maximum U-value of 1.61 or a minimum energy rating of 25 (9.36.2.7), label left on until the first inspection.
[2] City of Airdrie, “Secondary suite code requirements”, airdrie.ca (archived copy 9 October 2025): minimum clear openable area 0.35 m² with no dimension under 380 mm; openable from inside without keys, tools or special knowledge; 760 mm clearance in a window well. Corroborated by the Alberta Safety Codes Council “Bedroom Windows” tip sheet (NBC(AE) 2019 Article 9.9.10.1), safetycodes.ab.ca.

Related repairs

One broken part shouldn't cost you a whole window.

Two photos, one business day, a real from-price. Most Airdrie repairs are booked for the following week, and the technician who quotes it is the one who fits it.

Since 2008

Fitting glass in Airdrie

5-year warranty

Parts and labour

Within minutes

Emergency response, 24/7

From C$320

Real from-prices