How Long Does Window Installation Take In Exeter?

The question people ask before booking is usually about price. The question they wish they’d asked is about time. How long is the house going to be open to the outside? When do you need to move furniture, and move it back? Does a full house job fit into a week or run into the next? The answers depend on the property, the window type, and sometimes on what’s been hiding behind the old frames for the past 80 years.

How Long A Single Window Replacement Takes

Two to four hours for a single window is the realistic range. Where you land in that depends on the window type, which floor it’s on, and the wall construction.

A standard ground-floor uPVC casement in a cavity wall - the kind on most Exeter semis from the 1930s onward - is the fastest job. Two experienced fitters can remove, replace, seal, and tidy a standard casement in around two hours. First-floor takes slightly longer; the work is the same but access adds time.

Sash window replacement almost always takes longer than casement. Original timber sash frames on Victorian properties are often stuck solid - bonded to the surrounding wall with decades of accumulated putty, paint, and filler. Getting them out cleanly without damaging the plasterwork takes patience. Allow three to five hours for a single sash on a Victorian Exeter terrace.

Wall construction is the third variable. Exeter has a lot of solid brick and stone, particularly in the older parts of the city and in Heavitree, St Thomas, and Pennsylvania. Solid walls are less predictable around openings than modern cavity walls - frames get fixed into rubble fill, lime mortar, all sorts. That adds time compared to a clean cavity wall job.

What A Full House Replacement Looks Like

A three-bedroom Exeter semi with eight to ten standard casement windows is typically done in one and a half to two days with a two-person crew. Four bedrooms, twelve or more windows: two to three days. These are realistic figures for modern cavity wall properties with no complications.

Victorian terraces take longer per window and per property. Solid construction, sash windows, bay windows that are effectively three separate jobs not one, first-floor access issues - it all adds up. A full sash replacement on a three-bedroom Victorian terrace in Exeter is a two to three day job. Sometimes longer if the brickwork around the openings is in poor shape.

Scaffold is the variable most people forget to account for. Bungalows and ground-floor jobs need nothing. A standard two-storey semi is usually fine with ladders and a step platform for the first floor. A three-storey townhouse, anything with dormers, or a first floor that isn’t safely accessible from a ladder needs erected scaffold - which adds roughly a day each way for erection and striking. That extends the overall timeline by two days even when the window work itself is quick.

Why Exeter’s Victorian Stock Takes Longer

Exeter has a higher proportion of pre-1919 housing than the national average. St Leonard’s, Pennsylvania, stretches of Heavitree Road, St Thomas, and parts of Topsham all have dense concentrations of Victorian and Edwardian terrace and semi stock that behaves differently from anything built after the war.

The original frames weren’t inserted into a formed opening - they were built into the wall. Taking them out means working around old plaster, rubble fill, and fixings that bear no resemblance to what you’d find in a modern property. When the frame comes out, the opening usually needs making good before the new one goes in. That’s included in a proper installation quote, but it eats into the day.

Bay windows on these properties are a particular case. What looks like one window from the street is three separate units at angles, with corner posts and a bay cill that often needs replacing at the same time. A single ground-floor Victorian bay can take two people half a day.

Internal reveal work takes longer on these properties too. Deep solid-wall reveals with original plasterwork need more care than the shallow reveals on a modern build.

What Happens On The Day

A good crew works one window at a time, sealing it fully before moving to the next. The house is never fully open - just one exposed opening at any point. In Devon’s climate that matters; rain can appear from nothing even on a clear morning.

Before the crew arrives, clear roughly a metre of floor space in front of each window being replaced. Furniture, curtains, blinds, valuables - all need to move. The crew will put down dust sheets, but fine plaster dust travels further than the sheets. Cover anything that can’t be moved.

By the end of each working day, every fitted window should be sealed externally, handles operational, and locks engaging. An installer who leaves an unsecured opening overnight hasn’t finished the job. If the project runs across two days, the property should be fully secure each night. Any remaining work should be internal making-good only.

What Affects The Timeline Most

Property age and wall construction are the biggest factors. A 1970s Exeter semi with cavity walls and standard uPVC casements is about as straightforward as it gets. A Victorian terrace in Heavitree with original sash windows, solid construction, and a ground-floor bay is a different job in almost every respect.

Window type comes second. Like-for-like casement replacement is the quickest. Sash replacement is slower. Non-standard sizes need extra care setting the frame accurately.

Doing more windows in one visit is more efficient per window. The crew arrives with everything loaded, works through systematically, and doesn’t need to set up and pack down multiple times. If you’re replacing the whole house, one project is cheaper and less disruptive than several smaller visits spread over months.

Lead time from order to installation is typically three to six weeks for standard uPVC and four to eight weeks for aluminium or timber. That’s fixed - it’s the manufacturing period, not something that changes with urgency. Plan for it early.

Questions To Ask Before You Confirm The Date

How many windows will the crew do per day? A vague answer is a problem - push for a specific number based on what they saw on the site visit. That number tells you how many days to clear and how many mornings of furniture-shifting to expect.

Does the quote include internal making-good? Some installers include it, others don’t. If it’s not in the quote, you’ll be arranging a plasterer separately after they leave.

Is scaffold needed, and is it in the quote? Scaffold is sometimes listed separately. If it’s needed and not in the quote, you’ll get a surprise addition before the job starts.

Is FENSA registration included? For replacement windows in England and Wales it’s a Building Regulations requirement. Not optional. Your solicitor will ask for the certificate when you sell. Any installer who can’t confirm they’re registering the work shouldn’t be on your shortlist.

For a site visit and a straight answer on how long the job will take for your specific Exeter property, get in touch.

Frequently Asked Questions