Double Glazing trickle vents - try-on?

[The Natural Philosopher]

there has never been a single building regulation that INSISTED on a single solution to a problem.

Even double glazing is not a requirement. Only overall insulation levels are.

[ransley]

Im in the US, here we dont have them I would not buy a window with them. Why would you buy a new highly efficent window and put a uninsulated hole in it. Is the hole for venting, if so here we open a window for air. You have significantly reduced the insulating value of a window putting a hole in it, why do you do that. It defeats the purpose of trying to save on utilities

[Bruce]

I recently had a quote for new windows and the trickle vents were quoted at £15 per vent, if that helps the OP.

[John Stumbles]

Well it could be that the DG firm have realised their mistake and are trying to worm out of it *AND* the trickle vents are a bad idea anyway! So despite them being in the wrong they might be doing you a favour by giving you your windows, your FENSA ticket and comfort and warmth in your house. If ventilation (e.g. condensation) proves a problem later on there are probably more energy-efficient ways of dealing with it that don't permanently compromise the efficiency and - let's face it - appearance of your windows.

[js.b1]

Trickle vents are required for 2 reasons

1 - To prevent excess moisture buildup So the rooms maintain a minimal air changes per hour (ACH).

2 - To prevent excess condensation on cold bridges Typically the top 6" of rooms re uninsulated eaves etc.

If you already have wall vents, they MIGHT not be needed.

- If you add CWI then unsleeved vents must be sleeved

- If you lose those vents you lose your ventilation

Additionally any open flue gas appliance needs ventilation, however that is now typically arranged by a dedicated baffled vent in the relevent room. Whilst a small gas radiant fire with input

[Usenet Nutter]

Is it....I'm in Scotland so it might be different ...I'm awaiting DG units fitting in my LR and one BR ..arranged through the Window Advice Centre and these units do not have vents fitted ...(although the one window I had fitted in my bathroom over a year ago does have a vent fitted but maybe that's because of the location)... anyway with it being a Victorian Tenement ventilation won't be a problem.

[Andrew Gabriel]

That reminds me, I was told they had to be shoot bolt multipoint deadlocks, and not the more common and less secure espagnolette locks.

[Peter Johnson]

When I had my sliding patio doors replaced by french doors the salesman said that the room was large enough not to require vents. The surveyor, however, decreed that as the old door had a vent the new must as well so one was fitted, at no extra cost to me. When the old door was being removed I saw that although it had the cover of a vent there was not actually a vent at all.

[Roger Mills]

Trickle vents are a PITA! Take your £54 reduction and do without them. You're unlikely to have insufficient ventillation by other means.

When I had some building work done in the mid 1990's, the BCO insisted on trickle vents - and the way in which the window company implemented this on aluminium thermal break windows was to reduce the size of the sealed units in the top openers, to be an inch or so less tall than the frames, and to fill the gaps with full-width plastic strip vents. This was fine - and as soon as the BCO had signed it off, I bought some new full-sized sealed units and got rid of the vents. [The vents and under-size units are still in my attic, so they *could* be re-fitted in the unlikely event that anyone complained.

Only this year, I've had some more new aluminium windows in a kitchen conversion - and trickle vents weren't even mentioned, and the BCO was quite happy - so they're clearly *not* mandatory under all circumstances.

[Usenet Nutter]

How much extra did that cost you??? Was it not an extravagance?

[Roger Mills]

Can't remember exactly - but it was under £100 for the supply and fitting of replacement units for 3 windows - and well worth it to get rid of the b****y noisy and drafty vents.

[Luke]

Thank you to everyone for your comments and advice. I have decided to keep the windows as they are and take my =A354 reduction - probably the best option all round and I don't think it's worth kicking up a stink over. As most people suggest, I am probably better off without trickle vents. Just to give you a bit more info about the house. It's a two- bedroomed end terrace house built in in 1993 with a room sealed boiler, no chimneys, no condensation or damp problems, don't know if it has cavity wall insulation (suspect not).

Oh and the DG company are based near Chippenham, Wiltshire not Leeds!

Luke

[Roger Mills]

Are you sure it's got cavity walls? A lot of new build around then used so-called brick veneer - with a wooden frame on the inside and one layer of bricks on the outside. They were quite well insulated, though.

[Luke]

Definitely cavity walls - I've drilled through them a couple of times (outside tap & Sky TV cable) and seen them with my own eyes when refitting the bathroom. Breeze block/clinker block on the inside then brick on the outside.

Luke

[js.b1]

That makes a big difference.

Condensation & damp are eliminated by a) heat or b) ventilation so they usually become noticeable when people move from single to double glazed (reducing ventilation). The best solution is to remove moisture at source - cooker hood & shower/bathroom extractor. That is two "vents" that are normally closed and you have control over them, rather than numerous trickle vents distributed about the entire house. Likewise easy enough to open a window once a day for a few minutes.

[Pete Verdon]

I'm surprised they didn't go back to the window company to do the same round again on someone else's windows :-) (see mandatory busybody light fittings in new builds that won't accept standard bulbs)

Pete

[F]

Ah! Two glazing businesses run by brothers for around 20 years then. The one near us to the north of Leeds is extremely good: decent prices, excellent product and faultless installation.