Re: uPVC worries

[Harry Ziman]

Its not right in my opinion - there is no reason why you should accept a crack. Insist they change it.

Just had a bad dream of a day with window fitters. > > They've done a good job on most of the house but today did the > (90degree) bay window. When it came to the point of putting in the > main pane, which is big, about 1.2m x 1.5m, the fitter found the frame > was bowed upwards in the middle of the bottom part. He appeared not to > have cut the existing frame level or he shoved too much foam in > resulting in the upvc being forced up. The result was that the dg unit > was tight as a gnat's wotsit in the middle of the bottom horizontal > part of the frame and at the upper corners of the top frame - imagine > a pair of (( turned through 90 degrees for an exaggerated idea of it. > So much so that he had to bend at the top to stand a chance of getting > the bead in, during the course of which he put a crack in it. > > I'm concerned. Am I right to fear that forcing a dg unit into a frame > will strain it and potentially weaken it early in its life? Should I > demand that they fix the issue of the flexed and cracked frame and > reinsert the dg unit before I pay them? > > Of course I should. I know the answer already (having a good rant on > here can be very clarifying for the mind sometime), but any further > thoughts/observations on these sorry cowboys are welcome. > > tia > > Ants

[Dave Plowman (News)]

IMHO, the frame should be perfectly level and square after installation and sealing.

I installed a Screwfix UPVC window and patio doors, and the instructions were very explicit about not warping anything. I packed and fixed them solidly at the correct intervals before using any foam - and that sparingly.

I'm sure practice makes perfect, but it took me quite some time to get things right.

Two years on, both are working great.

[Colin Wilson]

I`d be concerned too - Shouldn`t upvc double glazed frames generally have strengthening rods inside them, so there shouldn`t have been any movement anyway ?

[troubleinstore]

As you say "Just had a bad dream of a day with window fitters" is it really worth losing sleep over...?

-- troubleinstore

mail can be sent via website. Email address in posting is ficticious and is intended as spam trap

[Dave Liquorice]

They do but thats more to stop them bending under their own weight. uPVC is very flexable.

As to the OPs problem. The frame should not be distorted at all, units should fit easyly. Any stress on a unit is highly likely to make the unit fail early. Get 'em back to fix it properly. Not quite sure if the crack at the top is in the beading or the frame itself. Niether is good, the latter really bad and needs to sorted out. I don't think you can repair cracked uPVC, at least not by methods available to a DG installer. I suspect a cracked frame means it's time for a new frame. Prepare for extended discussions.

Who did the work? A sub-contractor to a national chain(*) or regional firm or a small local company? Start with a telephoned complaint, follow it up in writing and start keeping copies and records of everything. Try and get the boss man involved, with one of the nationals that'll be the local franchise holder, the national head office won't be very interested in my experience.

(*) It can be difficult to tell if you have subbies or real staff as subbies may well be provided with a uniform and logo'd van etc.

[Jerry Built]

Well, you are right, of course you should. The glass won't flex to go in the frame, and it should be an *easy* fit, supported

*gently* all around. I can't see why the fitter thought that bending the top up would help in any way, the corners still dictate the fit. The frame needs to come out, be properly re- fitted (replaced if cracked), and if the DG unit has been forced into the frame already, that too should be replaced, as it may well have been damaged (the glass will not flex along its length, but the *seals* may have been affected by one side of the unit moving relative to the other.

Make sure that any guarantee you have will cover your bay window for replacement panes and fitting if they insist on re-using the DG unit. Requesting a special additional note on it might give useful leverage in getting a new pane fitted.

Make sure that the fitting is done properly so that support of whatever is above the windows is OK - many, many installations I've seen suffer from sag and cracking to the brickwork/render above the window.

J.B.

[T i m]

When it came to the point of putting in the

I'm no DG fitter (nor would want to be) but did help my mate fit 8 uPVC frames (including two dormers and one 45 deg bay) and *none* were bent, bowed, out of plumb etc.

Why, because we took the time to do the right 'prep' (running the angle grinder / bolster over high spots, playing with loads of different shims, removing the frame several times till we got it right etc), time most 'fitters' don't have or won't offer (low margins etc).

There is no reason why your DG bay frame should be 'bent / bowed' in any direction .. I just hope you haven't made your final payment yet?

Yes, you could just leave it as is and turn your back on it but why should you? If you had you car repaired and the boot lid was sticking up at a funny angle you would take it back and get them to sort it wouldn't you?

All the best ..

T i m