Wooden double glazing panel leaking

[Barb]

Hi, I have a 10 year old house with wooden double glazing. One of the panels on one of the windows has leaked and now has permanent condensation.

It's one of those two-wing windows with two panes on each side, and the leaking one is about 14" square. I'm afraid if I leave it, it will rot the wood and collect moss and mildew - it's not drying out at all.

Is it possible to replace just the one pane? I can't run to having the whole window replaced right now, and it's on the front of the house and will look odd anyway - I certainly can't afford to have them all done!

If so, any suggestions as to how I can find someone to do it, without been force-fed plastic double glazing sales?

Thnx Barb

[Andrew Gabriel]

Yes. You might even be able to have the existing sealed unit remade if you have a glazing fabricator nearby. Try Yellow Pages.

Could you get the unit out yourself? (I'm not familiar with how sealed units are normally held in timber frames.)

A common reason for such failures is the inability of water to drain away from under the sealed unit. Water there freezes and wrecks the seal. Check that any drain holes are clear of debris.

[DIY]

I think you have two options. One is part diy; remove the defective sealed unit and take it to a double glazing repair firm for repair or replacement, then install the replacement unit. The other is non-diy; call a double glazing repair firm to fix the problem.

You should be able to find a local double glazing repair firm in your Yellow Pages or Thompson Directory. A double glazing repair firm only repairs faulty windows and doors, they will not try to sell you replacement units as will a double glazing sales firm.

[AJH]

If you live near Bristol go to Armour Sealed Units as they will make a new sealed unit for you at a very reasonable price. If not look up local sealed unit manufacturers on Yell.com or Google. Your unit will be likely held by timber beads, probably on the inside of the window. These are generally pinned in place and can be levered off carefully (paint may make them tricky to release). Take out the old unit and measure carefully or take to the suppliers. Dry the rebates out and paint with primer, fit the new unit in with butyl rubber tape (approx

3mm thick) and replace the beads.