Secondary Glazing

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Original Poster:

743 posts

214 months

Saturday 10th October 2015
quotequote all
I live in a Victorian property with timber sash windows with slim profile. They are double glazed but far from efficient.

To improve efficiency and sound deadening, someone has suggested secondary glazing.

The (much more expensive) alternative, is new timber windows with acoustic glass. This will also change the look, due to the thicker profile.

Does anyone have experience of secondary glazing? Will it improve the sound proofing (key focus)? How do modern systems look? I seem to recall older systems looked awful!

V8RX7

26,762 posts

262 months

Saturday 10th October 2015
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IME secondary glazing works superbly.

However it's looks vary from awful to bearable.

DoubleSix

11,691 posts

175 months

Saturday 10th October 2015
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We have it on our 100 year old lead windows... They were designed with the panes interspaced in line with the original outer windows so they can't be seen from outside really. The blinds hide the inside.

Make huge difference to sound and heat.




DoubleSix

11,691 posts

175 months

Saturday 10th October 2015
quotequote all
I recall reading somewhere that sound deadening is directly related to the distance between the inner and outer panes - more air the better.

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Original Poster:

743 posts

214 months

Saturday 10th October 2015
quotequote all
Thanks guys.

Yes, I understand the effectiveness depends on the space. I suppose the compromise is that the look less attractive if further from the window. I am planning on fitting plantation shutters which should reduce the visual impact.

Who did you use for supply? Everest claim to be the market leader but the service reviews are poor. Is this something a good local glazer can do?

kicks

144 posts

186 months

Saturday 10th October 2015
quotequote all
I had secondary glazing in my apartment in Berlin. It was an old apartment in former east Berlin. During the winter it was -22c outside but warm inside. To cool the apartment all I had to do was open the inner windows and that would release a lot of cold air into the apartment. It was so good my parents had it installed in their 100+ year old farmhouse. It transformed the house and especially the noise quality.

To make the secondary glazing look better and easier to clean, you can have it installed like shutters on the inside. That was how it was in my apartment with 1.5ft to the outer window. It looked good and trapped a huge amount of air for insulation.

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Original Poster:

743 posts

214 months

Tuesday 13th October 2015
quotequote all
Thanks all. I have seen the product in more detail and it is not as unattractive as I expected. It can't be seen from the outside and if fitted together with plantation shutters, is barely visible from the inside.

They can be fitted directly on to the window frames, which clearly minimises the gap. Is this likely to have a material difference to the sound insulation vs fitting them on the cill and with larger gap?

ThomasH01

44 posts

109 months

Tuesday 13th October 2015
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May I ask which firm you're looking at using? We have plantation shutters already fitted and I'd love to put secondary glazing in to reduce noise / improve heat retention as we have big triple bay windows in several rooms. Thanks!

marctwo

3,666 posts

259 months

Wednesday 14th October 2015
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ThomasH01 said:
May I ask which firm you're looking at using? We have plantation shutters already fitted and I'd love to put secondary glazing in to reduce noise / improve heat retention as we have big triple bay windows in several rooms. Thanks!
+1

I always thought the shutters would mean secondary glazing was not an option.

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Original Poster:

743 posts

214 months

Wednesday 14th October 2015
quotequote all
From what i'm told, provided your cill is deep enough (and you're willing to accept a smaller gap between the primary and secondary glazing), you can have both.

I will investigate and report back.

ThomasH01

44 posts

109 months

Friday 16th October 2015
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Thanks, will be very interested to hear what they say. May I ask who you're using for the secondary glazing?

HootersGsy

731 posts

135 months

Friday 16th October 2015
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Calculator said:
From what i'm told, provided your cill is deep enough (and you're willing to accept a smaller gap between the primary and secondary glazing), you can have both.

I will investigate and report back.
Or a larger gap... I have the following

Primary glazing
Shutters
Secondary glazing

Works fine when the shutters are shallow enough to swing in the gap... on the larger windows the shutters hit the secondary glazing.

I will caveat and say the previous owners installed it like this (and it's also now falling apart) so I will be replacing in some shape or form!

Calculator

Original Poster:

743 posts

214 months

Saturday 17th October 2015
quotequote all
I got a quote from Everest. c£500 per window. This felt ridiculous to me but I am being overly optimistic?

Plantation shutters start at 30mm deep so they will fit along with secondary in my case, though this will depend on the depth of your cill.

DoubleSix

11,691 posts

175 months

Saturday 17th October 2015
quotequote all
Calculator said:
I got a quote from Everest. c£500 per window. This felt ridiculous to me but I am being overly optimistic?

Plantation shutters start at 30mm deep so they will fit along with secondary in my case, though this will depend on the depth of your cill.
Pretty sure co's like Everest quote a 'mug price' first, just in case. Whereas you should be aiming to knock at least a third off that.


Murph7355

37,646 posts

255 months

Saturday 17th October 2015
quotequote all
Secondary glazing's a bit of a mixed bag, and I'm not sure how well it will work with sash windows with respect to opening and cleaning them etc.

I suspect having the sashes rebuilt would be the best option for both sound and energy insulation. Obviously not for the pocket, but have them done well and you would be unlikely to have to do them again.