Any point in upgrading glass in existing window frames?

[dr_bogenbroom]

My windows are 30 years old and the frames are in decent condition. The glass planes just have air in the gaps rather than argon.

Is thee any point in me DIYing putting in modern panes of glass to increase heat retention or is it a waste of time and money?

I’m currently looking to replace seals, tighten screws and apply new sealant where there are gaps first to see if a couple of rooms feel a little warmer.

Thanks

 

[JohnD]

Yes, it will be a lot cheaper, and your old frames may be much better quality.

 

[aveatry]

One by one I have replaced a lot of my DG glass and old hardened rubber seals and each time I have noticed an improvement.

 

[dr_bogenbroom]

One by one I have replaced a lot of my DG glass and old hardened rubber seals and each time I have noticed an improvement.

I’m assuming you did this DIY - was it fairly straightforward? YouTube seems to suggest so

 

[crank39]

Its easy for me to spend someone elses money but I personally would put the money into replacing the windows and I'll tell you why...

1/ The windows are already 30 years old
2/ The frames themselves won't be multi chambered thus not energy efficient
3/ The rubber seals/gaskets have hardened and maybe perrished so an extra cost
4/ Locking mechanisms, handles or hinges could be wearing and potentially next to fail so an extra cost
5/ Internal/external silicone likely shrunken and requires scraping noff and resealing, so an extra cost
6/ After spending all that money your windows are still 30 years old and have no guarantee, new windows would come with at least 10 years guarantee

 

[aveatry]

I’m assuming you did this DIY - was it fairly straightforward? YouTube seems to suggest so

It depends on the system as yours is old I am guessing externally beaded which I think might be easier than internal as some also have double sided tape.
I first took the glass out to properly measure it but from then on I could measure the glass size without removing it, I knew where to measure from then took 10mm off leaving 5mm all around. I also fitted the spacers better than the original fitters did as they were twisted and s pushing up into the seal.
Get yourself a big pack of mixed spacers and when done with the windows you will use them for everything but you may be able to use the old ones.

 

[JohnD]

Are your old windows plastic?

 

[dr_bogenbroom]

Are your old windows plastic?

Yes - the guy that built this house had a double glazing business so I’m hoping he installed good quality frames. They are in remarkably good condition considering g their age. Below is a pic (not best lighting and I fitted a new handle today):

 

[dr_bogenbroom]

It depends on the system as yours is old I am guessing externally beaded which I think might be easier than internal as some also have double sided tape.
I first took the glass out to properly measure it but from then on I could measure the glass size without removing it, I knew where to measure from then took 10mm off leaving 5mm all around. I also fitted the spacers better than the original fitters did as they were twisted and s pushing up into the seal.
Get yourself a big pack of mixed spacers and when done with the windows you will use them for everything but you may be able to use the old ones.

Yes the beading is on the outside - thanks for the spacers tip

 

[dr_bogenbroom]

Its easy for me to spend someone elses money but I personally would put the money into replacing the windows and I'll tell you why...

1/ The windows are already 30 years old
2/ The frames themselves won't be multi chambered thus not energy efficient
3/ The rubber seals/gaskets have hardened and maybe perrished so an extra cost
4/ Locking mechanisms, handles or hinges could be wearing and potentially next to fail so an extra cost
5/ Internal/external silicone likely shrunken and requires scraping noff and resealing, so an extra cost
6/ After spending all that money your windows are still 30 years old and have no guarantee, new windows would come with at least 10 years guarantee

Yeah new windows would win hands down - we got triple glazed put in the two bedrooms facing a busy road and they’re great… but we have a 12 more windows and we just don’t have the money for brand new double or triple glazing

 

[aveatry]

Yes - the guy that built this house had a double glazing business so I’m hoping he installed good quality frames. They are in remarkably good condition considering g their age. Below is a pic (not best lighting and I fitted a new handle today):

View attachment 364327

Yes you pull out that rubber bead which probably will be hard and shrunk then the whole glass can be pushed into the space where the bead was that then gives you room on the outside to push the plastic beading forward and it will unhook its self, mark on the beading right and left top and bottom.
But before you start get some new beading, there are sellers on ebay and you buy a mixed tes pack with a selection of profiles which you can match up with your old ones, remember that the old ones will of shrunk. To be sure just buy enough for a couple of windows before you get miles of it.

 

[aveatry]

Its easy for me to spend someone elses money but I personally would put the money into replacing the windows and I'll tell you why...

1/ The windows are already 30 years old
2/ The frames themselves won't be multi chambered thus not energy efficient
3/ The rubber seals/gaskets have hardened and maybe perrished so an extra cost
4/ Locking mechanisms, handles or hinges could be wearing and potentially next to fail so an extra cost
5/ Internal/external silicone likely shrunken and requires scraping noff and resealing, so an extra cost
6/ After spending all that money your windows are still 30 years old and have no guarantee, new windows would come with at least 10 years guarantee

I disagree with most of this - ultimately new would be better but
The frames themselves won't be multi chambered thus not energy efficient canto argue much with this one but you will have to have big vents that you currently do not have.
The rubber seals/gaskets have hardened and maybe perrished so an extra cost - yes but its not that much.
Locking mechanisms, handles or hinges could be wearing and potentially next to fail so an extra cost yes but its not that much and they may well be fine.
Internal/external silicone likely shrunken and requires scraping off and resealing, so an extra cost - can be touched up and again not a lot of cost.
So all in all £1,000s less than replacing.

 

[crank39]

I disagree with most of this - ultimately new would be better but
The frames themselves won't be multi chambered thus not energy efficient canto argue much with this one but you will have to have big vents that you currently do not have.
The rubber seals/gaskets have hardened and maybe perrished so an extra cost - yes but its not that much.
Locking mechanisms, handles or hinges could be wearing and potentially next to fail so an extra cost yes but its not that much and they may well be fine.
Internal/external silicone likely shrunken and requires scraping off and resealing, so an extra cost - can be touched up and again not a lot of cost.
So all in all £1,000s less than replacing.

Can't argue with that either, everything's repairable and you have to weigh up whether it's cost effective. If money is tight then the cheaper option short term is to repair what you have

 

[Notch7]

My windows are 30 years old and the frames are in decent condition. The glass planes just have air in the gaps rather than argon

So the windows are pre 2002 so they wont have low emissivity glass and the spacer bar will be aluminium

uncoated double glazing has a u vale of about 2.7
soft coat low e glass with warm edge spacer bar and argon gas fill has a u value of around 1.2

note that you really need 24mm overall dg unit thickness to achieve above above values, anything below 22mm you arent going to get much gain

by the way, argon makes little difference on u value

that is a very significant improvement

So yes if the windows are still ok its well worth doing, the thermal improvement will be significant -but bear in mind Cranks points

I can tell you from experience that basic plain uncoated clear double glazing will get condensation in say a bedroom, but soft coat low e glass wont even in an unheated room -which shows how much warmer the inner pane temp will be

from an economic perspective, yes its worth doing, your problem will be getting decent prices for double glazing -the difference between trade and retail is considerable.

 

[dr_bogenbroom]

So the windows are pre 2002 so they wont have low emissivity glass and the spacer bar will be aluminium

uncoated double glazing has a u vale of about 2.7
soft coat low e glass with warm edge spacer bar and argon gas fill has a u value of around 1.2

note that you really need 24mm overall dg unit thickness to achieve above above values, anything below 22mm you arent going to get much gain

by the way, argon makes little difference on u value

that is a very significant improvement

So yes if the windows are still ok its well worth doing, the thermal improvement will be significant -but bear in mind Cranks points

I can tell you from experience that basic plain uncoated clear double glazing will get condensation in say a bedroom, but soft coat low e glass wont even in an unheated room -which shows how much warmer the inner pane temp will be

from an economic perspective, yes its worth doing, your problem will be getting decent prices for double glazing -the difference between trade and retail is considerable.

Great advice thanks - I’m not sure how thick my existing panes are but I reckon 22mm… won’t know until I take one out and measure.

Regarding cost I have seen this with what I was charged to have a couple of panes replaced with acoustic glass, I don’t think it would have been cheaper to buy and fit myself than to have a tradie supply and fit for me. I’ll need to do a bit more research.

At a minimum I’m replacing most handles as these are very worn, and gaskets. I took a sample gasket off today, I’m assuming by how flat it is that this is at end-of-life?