Temporary double glazing

[matthew.larkin]

In the summer our house is "nicely ventilated" upstairs by several slightly draughty sash windows. Which isn't a problem, as they look nice, and any replacements would either be a) cheap but hideous looking or b) expensive but fine looking.

Winter will approach soon (summer ends this weekend apparently), so I'm looking for creative solutions to improving the heat retention in the rooms with the sash windows.

I have seen slightly ugly secondary double glazing panes of glass attached to the frames of sash windows, but I was wondering if anyone had considered / fitted / made temporary panels which could be put on during the winter, but removed in the summer and stored.

I'd want to do it without damaging the existing frame, or leaving unsightly brackets etc.

Any ideas on something I could DIY (DImYself?)

Matt

[Bruce]

Wickes sells a cheap "double glazing kit" consisting of soft plastic sheeting and double sided tape. You put the tape on the frame, and stick the sheeting to the tape. You then use a hair drier to shrink the sheeting so it becomes taut, and almost invisible.

It is surprisingly effective. You need to take care to remove all the double sided tape and any adhesive residue in the Spring.

We have used it for the last five years on our three front windows which are the subject of a conservation order. They cannot be double glazed with sealed units at a cost that we are prepared to pay.

[Doki]

Fix the draughtyness? Double glazing a draughty window isn't going to help - most of the heat lost in old windows compared to DG is by draughts, not through the glass.

[EricP]

There were kits available with a coil of plastic edging that you push on the edge of a pane of glass. You then screw twist clips around the window frame and simply turn them on the pane of glass to clip the pane over the window. You can even remove the clips in summer if you want but they are fairly innocuous.

[fred]

In article , Doki writes

Spot on and relatively easy these days with draught strip capable mouldings that are available:

sash repair kits look a bit steep though, I'd go for the components you actually need.

[Dave Liquorice]

Secondary glazing is awful. Lived in two places with it and both had rotten widow frames. It's virtually impossible to get a gas tight seal between the secondary glazing and the widnow frame. Warm damp air from the inside will get into the gap between the secondary glazing and the cold window and condense. This wet can very quickly lead to the frames rotting.

Look at fixing the draughts, not easy on a sash window if you want to open it but as winter is coming are you going to do that? Simply taping up all the joins will make a significant difference. Choose your tape carefully though you want something that won't leave a residue or take the paint off when your remove it in the spring.

[Owain]

But on really draughty windows it can go boing-flap in the wind.

Owain

[Timothy Murphy]

That is not my experience. I installed Polycell secondary glazing on about 15 large sash windows about 12 years ago, and was very pleased with the result. Two years ago I got a grant to re-furbish the original sash windows (the building is listed) and this was done to a very high standard (and at great cost) by the Original Sash Box Window Company - a UK organization which operates in Ireland.

The grant only covered 10 of the 15 windows, so I am able to compare them every day. The secondary glazing is at least as efficient, and is a lot quieter. (I was not allowed to install double-glazed sash windows, as they had to be restored as they were.) On the downside it is very hard to open the secondary-glazed windows, and hard to get at them to clean.

The secondary glazing is surprisingly unobtrusive.

Incidentally, I believe Polycell has ceased to supply kits for secondary glazing, at least in Ireland. I chose them originally because they were judged best by Which.

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember Timothy Murphy saying something like:

I've come across this particular piece of Conservation Officer Wankerism before. I've seen DG sash units that are indistinguishable from the originals and the insistence by the COs on single glazing is nothing short of pig-headedness.

[Timothy Murphy]

Yes, the double-glazed units looked identical to the single ones to me. I'm hoping to get a further grant to re-furbish the remaining 5 windows, and it will be interesting to see if the Conservation Officer has changed her ruling in view of the worries about energy conservation.

I'm in Tuscany at the moment, and the conservation rulings here are unbelievably strict. If we want to paint the house we are in we have to get the colour approved. We were refused permission to install a small door in a garden wall, and we were told that the style of the number we put on the door was inappropriate.

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember Timothy Murphy saying something like:

It's utterly daft, isn't it? Until the advent of COs all those houses were changing down through the centuries in natural process as people needed to or simply fancied a bit of a touch here or there. To attempt to preserve them like flies in amber is absurd, the moreso when it's somebody else's notion of what they should look like. I'm in favour of some degree of conservation, but along the lines of allowing the type of development that would have been seen in times past, if families need an extra room built on, that kind of thing.

[Bruce]

We have one really draughty window, and as long as we take care to ensure the film is firmly adhering to the double sided tape, it lasts the whole winter.

In fact we didn't remove the film from that window this summer, and it still looks fine.

[peter vernon]

Hi, I have a similar problem. I have taken the inside of my sash windows back to natural wood and waxed them. They look fantastic so I dont want to start drilling holes to put clips for holding secondry glazing during the winter. I think I have come up with a system using a translucent silicone rubber profile and some clear perspex. I will be getting it made within the next week or so to try out. If it works as planned the way it fits will need no drilling. The silicone channel section is cut to fit around the perspex. the perspex needs to be cut 7mm shorter than the amount of exposed glass it is covering. The design of the rubber extrusion will enable the whole unit to be push fitted into place leaving a 6 to 8 mm gap between the glass and the perspex. The seal will be air tight and also allow the sashes to be opened without removing the secondry unit. I will be happy to let anyone know how well it works and supply the rubber extrusion at cost.The unit price will be peanuts compared to the price of the perspex.

Peter

url:

[larkim]

thread. I took the "cheap" advice and used the temporary Wickes solution with the film of polythene, and I have been really impressed.

I have had zero condensation on any of the windows or plastic, and the overall temperature improvement has been noticeable.

Matt

[george [dicegeorge]]

larkim wrote: xxx

Vapour Barrier Product Code: 153230 * Weatherproofing Capacity: 2500mm x 2000mm * Size: 2.5 x 20m

How can I attach it to my windows? gaffer tape? [g]

[Bruce]

No, it comes as a kit complete with a folded sheet of plastic film and double-sided tape to stick it to the window frame. You apply the tape, then get the plastic film as flat as you can. Then you use a hair dryer to shrink it until it is tight and flat.

Cheap and effective, it works very well. I have used it on one window for each of the last five winters.