Has anyone else out there had their Sash windows restored by Ventrolla?
I have just received a quote for £2,300 to restore 5 windows which seems a bit steep to me! Although 3 of them are in a large bay and one requries a new sill.
It wouldn't cost much more to have them all replaced with double glazing! Although I'm in a conservation area so would prefer to restore if economical.
Any advice if this is reasonable or not would be appreciated.
Thanks Phil
I don't know that company, but had quotes for restore/replace for a single sash kitchen window in SW London. All said the window could not be refurbished and cheapest quote for replacement was >£1k, which we are going with.
It really depends on what needs replacing. If there's rot in one sill, there'll probably be other parts that will need to be replaced, and matching quality timber isn't cheap. If it really is a 'good as new' restoration with added modern draught proofing etc - and perhaps double glazed units - I'd say it's not a bad price.
That's why people replace sash windows with 'double glazing'. It's cheap and nasty. And you can bet your bottom dollar it won't last as long as your original windows.
Please don't. It is the cheap option, a bit like going for the Economy BSE burgers at the supermarket instead of the Aberdeen Angus Sirloin.
Christian.
P.S. The quote isn't million miles from some similar work quoted for me by the Original Box Sash Window Company. However, I'll probably do it all myself. If you are also so inclined, then
I know two people who have had their windows restored by Ventrolla (including Sash removal system & perimeter sealing) and both are very happy. I would expect you could probably get a good local joiner to do it just as well for less. Im very tempted to have a go myself.
As for double glazing - the reason it costs less is that it is an inferior product - I doubt youll be allowed to replace them anyway living in a conservation area.
Hi,
Try getting a couple more estimates.
cheers, Pete.
Thanks for the advice. I think I'll have a go on one of them myself and see how it goes. Thanks for the web link too, looks like I can get everything I need form there for a fraction of the price, although the address seems to have moved to
I've probably posted this before but the technique that worked for me was to take the sashes out, turn them round, and pin them in position (you only need a couple of nails in the box section to stop the top one coming down and a couple in the front edge to stop the bottom one falling forwards). Then you can do any filling, putty replacement etc from the inside, at your leisure, and regardless of the weather.
Depends how much restoration is needed. Our place had two sash windows left, and we decided to keep them. Ventrolla charged about £1500 to build and fit new double glazed windows in the existing frames and to restore and overhaul everything so it all worked and there wasn't any rot left. So your 5 don't seem too expensive in that context.
Having said that, this is several years ago and the windows still only have the original undercoat on because I couldn't persuade them to paint them and finish the job. Ideally I should take the windows out one at a time and paint them in the garage, but that would mean the windows are out for a couple of days and what you do with the big hole- one is a bedroom, one the diningroom- is a problem. I can see why they end up getting painted closed and I'm not sure if it was actually a good move since UPVC double glazing would have been cheaper, wouldn't have given me this problem and from a distance the UPVC windows at the front- when closed at least- look the same as the real sash windows at the back of the house. I should really figure out how to deal with them this summer since the paint is starting to degrade in places and the things will start to rot if I leave it another couple of years.
Consider painting with something like Dulux Trade Weathershield Exterior Quick Drying Satin (touch dry 1-2 hours). If you paint in the morning, you could install by evening.
You would probably have time to get a layer of Dulux Trade Weathershield Exterior Flexible Undercoat on as well. Recoat time 2-4 hours.
So, starting at 8am.
2 hours sanding/preparation/filling 4 hours undercoat + wait 2 hours topcoat + waitThat's 8 hours, achieved by 4 in the afternoon (with plenty of waiting time to do other tasks/have lunch) and waiting as late as possible in the evening to reinstall to give time for the film to harden.
Christian.
That's fine for one side, but I'd like to paint the inner and edges, then once dry turn the window over and paint the outer. To paint most of it in one position leaving a bit of easy internal touching up, I considered supporting the frame on the glass panes (four panes per window) so I can paint nearly all the wood in one go- but I'm a bit worried about putting load on the glass where it's not supposed to have load.
I'm thinking shutters may be an option; that way I can take the windows out, close the shutters when needed and there's no difficulty with time. I've not thought a great deal through this though. A pair of folding shutters on the inside should fold up quite neatly against the window recess when not in use and saves faffing about up a ladder. It also means the room can be made dark pretty easily- useful with a little boy who rises with the sun :)
Ah. I tend to use acrylics, which you can paint in a vertical position and, thus, paint both sides. Your alkyd gloss paints do prefer a horizontal orientation, though.
Even so, you could still paint both sides in a horizontal orientation during one day using the paints I suggested. The layers are touch dry in about an hour, so although you may not recoat them, you can carefully turn them over to paint the other side after two hour's wait. It may leave some tiny marks, but these can be dealt with easily enough, even after reinstallation.
Christian.
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