Window sills, thresholds and surrounds

Outside sills

A good sill slopes away from the window, sticks out 3 to 5 cm past the wall so water falls clear, and has a groove under the front edge, the drip, so water can't creep back to the wall. A sill without a drip is the usual reason for streaks and damp under windows.

Replacing old ones

Many old sills round Troyes are soft local limestone, worn, cracked or patched with cement. We often replace them when the windows are changed. The old one comes out, the new one is cut to the opening with its slope and drip, and bedded in mortar. Outside we use hard Burgundy limestone, granite or sandstone. Marble we keep for inside.

Inside sills

A shelf for plants, books or the cat. It can be thinner and polished, often matching the worktop or a stone floor. Over a radiator we notch or drill it so warm air rises in front of the glass.

Thresholds

They take the wear of every entrance, so hard stone, a slight slope outwards at an outside door, and a profile that fits the door seal. Between rooms, a threshold in the floor stone hides the change.

Surrounds

Two jambs and a lintel, sometimes a keystone. Remade where the old stone has failed, or added on a new extension.

Protected areas

The old centre of Troyes is protected, and so is the area round listed buildings elsewhere in the Aube. Changes to a façade there need the approval of the Architecte des Bâtiments de France, which often decides the stone and the profile. Get it before ordering, we'll cut to what they ask for.

Measuring

Old openings are rarely square, so we measure each one, front and back width, depth and reveal angle. A dozen windows means a dozen slightly different sills, numbered at the workshop.

House names in stone are on the engraving page. Call +33 7 45 20 76 39.