window or NO window,,,that is the question

[Just Don]

Going to do exterior rehab on older 40's house. First off comes asbestos slate siding. Sidewalls blown with cellulose insulation.

Windows and door also need replaced. Typical of that age house 'tub only' is on outside wall,,window above. City code says if you replace windows with same size no permit needed. Siding and doors same way. IF any permit is needed they come in and inspect whole house and SEEK to condemn anything older than60's or 70's. AND no they say 'grandfathered in' has expired and no such thing.

First thing they see is foundation on a crawl space house doesnt have frost footings,,,gone!!!!

Anyway not to get inspected,,,tub window gets replaced with all vinyl double hung with a plastic curtain over it,,,will that repel enough water to survive? Eventually will put a shower over tub since tubs only are obsolete. Ceramic tile all around and under window

Only other thing is to close off and NO window at all but that makes a bath pitch black even during the daytime,,,least fav option

ONLY other way would be to 'sneak' a high short window up high but this house fronts on busy main street and hard to miss that work if inspector is driving by while so doing.

Shortest double hung is 36",,shortest sliding window is 24",,,any other options??? What do I do?

[Account Closed]

Done it before:

Tile up the wall and around the entire window. Have enough slope to the window ledge to drain well, but not so much slope that a bottle of shampoo won't sit on the ledge.

Use vinyl frame window and one way glass made for bathrooms. Have a window that opens and have a screen on it.

You can use plain tiles (cheap) and a trim of something really nice (expensive, but you aren't using many of them). It really dresses up the bathroom.

If this is a rental, you'll have to inspect the caulking between every tenant, but you should be doing that, anyway.