help me!! jammed sash window expert advice needed!!

[sprinklemonkey]

hello all, I posted in chat but am trying here too for good measure!!

i'm in a rented property. My child has a large sash window next to her bed. To try to prevent accidents from a too-wide open window I (in naiive stupidity) hammered some nails into the wood on each side to prevent the window rising too high and keep it semi-closed so he can't fall out.

My child today forced and jammed the window open. sad I tried sorting it but now the nails are stuck below the top of the window somewhere on each side!! Not reachable or accessible. The window is even more open than it was so when I try to close it assume it's angling them even more at odds with the way we need them to be and getting more stuck with each push / pull.

Does anyone have any good ideas about how to fix it? Remove the window frame?? (Is removing a window frame hard?) Will I need to replace the whole unit? Really worried as am a LP with limited funds... :-(

Assume I will have to get a professional in. Thought about removing the window frame but really worried now about the cost and specialist nature of the problem!!

Many thanks
PS I have only just heard about "sash window restrictors" or I would have used them in the first place :(

Answering as best as I can from 3000 miles away - I'm not sure of the design of your windows, but it sounds as though you will have to remove the vertical wooden beads that hold the window in. They aren't hard to remove, but you will certainly damage/chip the paint in the process. Try cutting along the seam with a utility knife, then work a spatula or thin screwdriver into the crack. There are specialist tools for this, of course. sgmtools.co.uk/window-bead-removal-tools

After you remove the beads, it should be easy enough to swing the window out on its cords, and gain access to the nails you hammered in. Try looking on YouTube for "window bead removal".

You wouldn't have a picture of it, would you? I find it hard to picture what has happened.

thank you to everyone who made very helpful suggestions! removing the beading method did indeed work, a good friend who is a handyman came over and the work only cost £50, I need to patch up a few cracks in the wood and repaint a couple of edges but otherwise working perfectly!!

and have learned my lesson for future... :)

thank you everyone!!