Install windows and doors — study notes

Everything this unit asks of you, on one page. Read it end to end, keep it for revision, print it as a handout.

What this unit is about

This unit covers installing windows, door frames and doors — including cavity sliding units — into timber and metal wall frames so they sit level, plumb, not in wind, and weathertight. Getting it right keeps water out of the building, makes every door and window operate smoothly for its whole life, and is measured against the National Construction Code (NCC), Australian Standards and the manufacturer’s instructions — get it wrong and you’re looking at leaks, jamming sashes and expensive call-backs.

Prerequisite: CPCCWHS2001 — Work safely in the construction industry (your white card unit). Everything below assumes you already work to a SWMS and site safety rules.

1Plan and prepare

Read the paperwork first. Work instructions, drawings and specifications tell you the opening sizes, unit types, sill heights and finish details. Work out your sequence of work before you pick up a tool.
Plan for compliance. Your work must line up with laws and regulations, the NCC, Australian Standards, WHS and environmental requirements, the manufacturer’s specifications and your workplace’s own requirements — all at once. If the drawings and the manufacturer’s instructions disagree, raise it with your supervisor before proceeding.
Tools and equipment: select what the job needs, check each item is serviceable (leads, guards, blades, batteries, spirit level accuracy) and report any faults — a faulty tool gets tagged out, not used.
PPE per stage: what you wear changes with the task — eye and hearing protection when cutting or nailing, gloves for glass and sheet handling, dust protection when trenching or routing.
Inspect the work area: locate services (power, water, gas in or near the wall), assess hazards, and put risk controls in place — including signage and barricades where you’re working near others or at an opening.
Materials: select what the task needs, calculate quantities (units, packers, flashings, fasteners, sealants), handle everything safely and position it ready for use so you’re not carrying a window twice.

On the job: a two-minute check of the opening against the window schedule before the unit comes off the truck saves an hour of rework. Measure the opening; don’t trust it.

2Install window units

Check the opening first: confirm the wall frame opening gives adequate clearance for the window unit — width, height and squareness — before you lift the unit in.
Position with packers and flashings so that the head and sill are level, the stiles are plumb and not in wind (no twist across the frame), and the reveals or frame finish flush with the face of the inside wall lining.
Flashings go in as you fit the unit, not after — head flashing laps over, sill flashing catches water and directs it out.
Fasteners aren’t a guess: select the type, gauge and quantity from the Australian Window Association — An Industry Guide to the Correct Fixing of Windows and Doors, then fix the window to the wall frame with packers behind every fixing point.

A window unit in its wall-frame opening: even clearance all round, packing stacks at each fixing point, head and sill flashings in place, reveals finishing flush with the inside lining.

3Door openings, frames and jambs

Check the wall frame opening gives adequate clearance for the door frame before you start cutting stock.
Mark, then cut: set out the door jambs and head, and cut them to length allowing for the door clearances (the door’s gaps come out of these lengths — measure twice).
Trench the head to accommodate the jambs, keeping to the specified clearances so the frame comes together tight and true.
Assemble the frame square, fix it and brace it so it stays square, with flush rebates — the rebate faces line through with no steps.
Install into the opening with fasteners of the type, gauge and quantity from the AWA fixing guide. The jambs must be plumb and not in wind, positioned flush to the linings, the head level, and all appropriate flashings in place (external frames especially).

Check yourself: string a line diagonally corner-to-corner, or sight across the two jambs — if they don’t line up, the frame is in wind and the door will never close cleanly on its stops.

4Hanging the door

Hinges: mark out hinge positions on both the door and the jamb, and cut recesses so each hinge leaf sits flush — not proud, not buried.
Fit the door to the frame and adjust the gaps to the requirements of AS 2688 — Timber and composite doors: an even margin at the stiles and head, and floor clearance that suits the finished floor covering.
Door furniture and stops: fit and fix handles, latches, privacy sets, locks and the door stop components strictly to the manufacturer’s specifications — the templates and screw sizes in the box exist for a reason.
For assessment you’ll also hang a pair of doors — the same principles, plus matching the meeting stiles so the pair closes with a consistent gap.

5Cavity sliding doors

Rollers first: fit the roller hardware to the top of the door exactly as the manufacturer specifies — position, screws and adjustment range.
Hang and adjust: fit the door to the cavity unit’s track, then adjust the roller heights so the leading edge of the door is plumb and closes neatly against the cavity unit’s closing stile.
Fine-tune the packing of the cavity sliding door stile so the door runs true and the margins are even along the full travel.
Furniture and locators: fit flush pulls and other furniture, and the cavity door centring locators (the guides that stop the door rattling in the pocket), all to the manufacturer’s specifications.

Remember: once the linings are on, the inside of that cavity is gone forever. Get the unit plumb, straight and packed correctly before the plasterers arrive.

6Clean up

Clean the work area to legislative and workplace requirements — safe waste disposal (offcuts, packaging, sealant tubes go where your site’s waste plan says), and safe materials handling for anything left over.
Tools and equipment: check them, maintain them (clean, sharpen, recharge), store them properly and report any faults so the next user isn’t handed a problem.

Know this cold

The knowledge evidence for this unit, distilled. If an assessor asks, you should be able to speak to every line.

Rules and references

Reference	What it covers	When you use it
NCC (National Construction Code)	Building compliance — weatherproofing, glazing, performance of openings	Every installation must comply
AS 2047	Windows and external glazed doors in buildings	Selecting and installing window units and external glazed doors
AS 2688	Timber and composite doors	Door quality and the gaps/clearances when you hang a door
AWA — An Industry Guide to the Correct Fixing of Windows and Doors	Fastener type, gauge, quantity and fixing positions	Every time you fix a window or door frame to a wall frame

Everything else you must be able to explain

Workplace quality policies and standards that apply to window and door work — tolerances, sign-offs, defect reporting.
Safety requirements for the task — manual handling of heavy units, glass handling, power tool safety, working near openings.
Flashing: why it’s there, the requirements, and installation techniques — head flashings lap over what’s below them; sill flashings collect and discharge water to the outside.
Plans, specifications and drawings — reading window and door schedules, opening dimensions and finish details.
Tools and equipment — their characteristics, uses and limitations (levels, squares, routers, trimmers, drills, chisels, saws).
Setting out windows and doors, and calculating material quantities for the job.
Materials used in windows and doors and their characteristics — timber, aluminium, composite; how each behaves and fixes.
Door types: flush panel, framed and panelled, glazed; hinged units including standard doors, sliding doors, flywire doors, combination window–door units, door sidelight units (glazed or unglazed) and internal doors — plus jambs, stiles, sills and flashings.
Door furniture: flush pulls, latches and deadlocks, push plates and closers, handles and locks — and where each belongs.
Installation processes end to end: flashing, packing, fixing, adjusting.

Where people slip up

Mistake: fixing through the frame with no packer behind the fixing point. The screw pulls the jamb or stile into a bow and the door or sash binds. Correction: a packing stack sits behind every fixing, so the frame is supported before the fastener goes in.

Mistake: trusting the wall opening to be plumb and square, and levelling the unit “by eye” off the studs. Openings rarely are. Correction: level and plumb the unit itself with your spirit level, and check for wind by sighting across the stiles or jambs.

Mistake: lapping flashings the wrong way, or leaving them out because “the cladding will cover it”. Water travels downhill and finds every gap. Correction: head flashing always laps over the layer below it; sill flashing must catch water and direct it out. Flashings go in as the unit goes in.

Mistake: grabbing whatever screws are in the pouch to fix the unit. Fixing type, gauge and quantity affect how the unit carries wind loads. Correction: select fasteners from the AWA fixing guide and the manufacturer’s instructions — every time.

Mistake: cutting hinge recesses too deep. The door becomes hinge-bound — it springs back off the stop and strains the screws. Correction: the hinge leaf finishes flush with the timber face; check the door’s gaps against AS 2688 as you go.

Mini-glossary

Jamb: The vertical side member of a door frame.
Stile: The vertical edge member of a door or window frame/sash.
Head: The horizontal top member of a door or window frame.
Sill: The horizontal bottom member of a window frame — sloped or flashed to shed water.
Reveal: The timber surround fixed to a window frame that the unit is fixed through; it finishes flush with the internal wall lining.
Plumb: Perfectly vertical, checked with a spirit level or plumb line.
In wind (winding): Twisted — the two stiles or jambs are not in the same plane. A frame in wind will never close properly.
Packers: Thin shims (timber or plastic) placed between the unit and the wall frame to hold it level, plumb and supported at fixing points.
Flashing: A waterproof layer or strip that directs water away from the opening — head flashing above, sill flashing below.
Rebate: A recess cut along a frame member that the door closes into; rebates in an assembled frame must be flush with each other.
Trenching: A shallow housing cut across the door head to receive the tops of the jambs.
Door furniture: The hardware on a door: handles, latches, deadlocks, privacy sets, flush pulls, push plates, closers.
Cavity sliding door unit: A prefabricated pocket built into the wall frame that a sliding door disappears into; includes the track, closing stile and split studs.
Centring locators: Guides fitted at the bottom of a cavity unit that keep the sliding door centred in the pocket.
SWMS: Safe Work Method Statement — the documented, step-by-step safety plan for high-risk construction work.

Reaching the end of the page also marks these notes complete.