Double Glazing Unit Condensation / Blown DIY Repair.

#doubleglazing #doubleglazingrepair #diydoubleglazingrepair

Double Glazing Unit Condensation / Blown DIY Repair.

In this video I repair a failed Double Glazing unit that is suffering from severe internal condensation and damp. The unit was misted in the lower portion due to the water ingress. The glazing was taken apart thoroughly cleaned and resealed this took some time (circa 4 Hours).

Thanks for watching why not Subscribe to learn of more repair possibilities do work safely, video for illustration purposes.

Timestamps :-

00:01 Removal of the failed Double Glazing Unit.
02:45 Full extent of the moisture problem and deconstruction of the double glazing unit.
04:23 Removing the excess sealant from the internal aluminium frame.
04:50 Deconstruction of the internal aluminium framework and desiccant extraction and drying out.
06:00 Cleaning the Glazing panes to the best of my ability.
07:17 Refilling the internal aluminium framework with the dried desiccant.
08:10 Cleaning the framework and reassembly tips n tricks.
09:32 Sealing the Double Glazing unit back together.
10:48 Refitting the glazing.

[davesmith]

Its really depressing how many comments say "just go and buy a new one", *totally* missing the point. Repairing things is a great thing to do on many levels (eco, ethics quite aside from saving money) if you have the skill and inclination & no one is forcing anyone to do this against their will. Great repair well done!. I wonder if these people wash their clothes, dishes etc or just buy new ones.

[jimp]

It's good to see someone actually repairing something rather than just throwing it away and buying a new replacement.

[AbsolemLapis]

I used to make these many years ago so a couple of tips, when cleaning the sealant off use start with a new stanley knife blade to remove the bulk then brillo pads to lift the remaining old adhesive, when reassembling put the 2 panes in place with the spacer bar between and hold them in place with lots of large bulldog clips, drill a hole in a piece of wood and fit it to the end of the sealent nozzle so it fills the gap and smoothes the sealant at the same time moving the buldog clips as you go being careful not to push the spacer in with the sealant. The packers also function to hold the plastic frame square so they are usually on the hinge side at the bottom and the outside top. The dessicant doesn't just absorb water it bonds with it, you need to get it very very hot to drive the water off if its even possible, try the crystal cat litter thats in sealed poly bags and fresh. Adhesive aluminium tape will hold up to water better than duct tape and protect the sealed edges better

[normanboyes]

Well done, fascinating to watch and I learned enough to know now - that I would not tackle this. As an engineer and accomplished DIY (and tight arse) I think that knowing what not to tackle is also valuable knowledge. Thank you.😉👍

[twotone]

I don't understand why people go to the bother of watching a video on something they then spend time on telling you is not worth doing. He did it, he took the time to show others what's involved, someone can make there own mind up whether they want to do it. If there is additional information that can be added by commenting then this is valued, but just slagging it off as a waste of time or easier to buy a new one is completely missing the point of the video.
Having said that, any interaction on YT is power to the algorithm, but just demoralising for the creator.

[udlixql]

Last year I replaced all of my blown sealed units with new ones (about £100 each) but recently a few more have failed. I still have some of the blown units at the back of the garage kept for another project but as they are the same dimensions I intend to have a go at repairing them as I have nothing to lose but my time and sealant and good practice. If I can repair them by following all of the helpful tips, and allow me to reuse rather than recycle glass. More importantly, I now have several failed sealed units with toughened class in my conservatory and they are not as cheap (about £250 each) so I feel they are worth trying to repair. I have read additional advice from others but generally, this is a brilliant blog and with the additional tips from @AbsolemLapis and others I am feeling very positive. Again many thanks.

[MultiKat]

Some people enjoy “having a go” at mending stuff and get more pleasure than giving in and going for the easier option. Good on you for giving stuff a go.
We are too quick to send stuff to landfill etc so seems much more enviro friendly.
We live in such a throw away society.

Can see its Not an easy job, tedious and longwinded but great when you get that feeling of achievement at the end.
Well done 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[AnonAnonAnon]

One bit of advice for any budding DIY'ers. When you remove the beading from around the glass, before removing the glass unit, measure it. I replace sealed units for a living. Many a time I get called out to blown units to replace with a new unit, and on trying to remove the old unit, if its stuck in fast (usually because the original fitter used tonnes of silicone, putty or even tacks to secure the unit on wooden frames) the unit can and does crack/shatter. This renders a DIY job useless and you'll end up purchasing a new unit. If this does happen, leave the old one in place, the outer pane may not have cracked until you get a new one to fit. Its reverse fitting, easy to do, make sure there are no retaining bolts sticking out of the uPVC window frame that can catch on the new unit.

[keep_digging]

I was always lead to believe they were vacuum sealed units, amazing thanks

[rm]

That was a fascinating and informative video. I had no idea whatever how D/G units were put together nor the fact that they could be repaired. I certainly could not tackle a job like that. I recently had a D/G unit replaced, it was about 1m x 0.75m and cost me £90.00 all in. He came and looked at the job, measured up and returned a few days later with the replacement unit and fitted it. I thought that was not a bad price. I suspect you spent quite a few hours on that job plus materials. However, as you and others have said, it's not just about money.

[anthonymurphy]

All my years looking at DIY videos on you tube this is the best by a mile, thank you very much👍

[winstonsvictorygin]

Thanks for this video. Until I saw this I didn't realise they were repairable. Our old windows all started to blow at about the same time, they were in the house when we moved in, and I think they were about 15 years old. I replaced the whole units as they had all aged really badly, however our new windows are really nice, I think if these start to blow, I'll definitely have a go at a DIY repair, I know people say that you can just replace the blown units, but I like the idea of repairing them myself. Mind you I'm an older guy these days and come from the 'Make Do And Mend' way of life 🙂

[namski]

Very cool. Us DIYers will always find a way. Who cares if it costs more....the satisfaction is in knowing you did it yourself

[katopeeps]

Similar idea to Edward Doyle's below. I had the very same problem a few years ago. I'm a lazy person so I spent some time trying to figure out an easy way to solve it without removing the glazing unit from the window. And I did. With the side window open I removed the upper and lower locking plates in the edge of the window frame. This allowed me to see the black sealer edge of the glazing unit at the top and at the bottom. VERY carefully I drilled a hole (about 5mm) through the black sealer until the drill bit was visible between the 2 panes. I did this for the top and bottom. Then I got my vacuum cleaner and placed the hose against the top hole and let it suck away. This started removing the moist air from between the panes as dry air was sucked in through the bottom hole. After 10 minutes the water vapour was gone forever. Then I sealed the 2 holes with a sealer, and replaced the locking plates. As it happened, I did this on a sunny day when the sun was shining on the window, so that helped. Total time to do the repair was about 30 minutes.
I hope this might help someone!

[terryknowles]

As a retired Glazier with over 35 years experience, I can honestly say I would be surprised if that repair lasted a year using silicone to seal it and reusing dried desicant. To be honest you were lucky not braking at least 1 of the panes getting it apart.

[daglen]

Thank for your videos. Gave it a go and happy with the result. Just make sure you really clean the glass that will be inside the seal. Rinse several times to get all the cleaning chemicals off the glass or they may appear a couple of days after the unit is in the frame. This happened to me after the wife cleaned the glass and insisted the small streaks are not cleaning chemicals and that the glass is damaged. I will now repeat the repair on the same unit and clean the glass myself to see if the glass expert is right😂 I will let you the outcome when I get it done.
The time v buy new isn’t the issue for me. I really enjoy the satisfaction of doing things myself and learning new skills. Once again thanks for the video one of the best on YouTube on this subject.

[smudger]

Excellent video i admire your patience and skill. It's always the so called experts who put down anyone that has a go!

[Iam-not-as-grumpy-as-Isound]

I have six to do. all about the same size as yours. I am also tight as they come, I also have lots of time on my hands. Because I am so tight I have been able to retire early, Thanks for the tips.

[TimHollingworth]

As a life time repairer I appreciate the effort that went into this fix. I recently had all my hardwood windows replaced with upvc. On attempting to liberate the glass from the frames without breakage, it was near 99% failiure. They used putty to fix the dg into the frames, which turned into concrete! I also attempted to seperate the individual panes, so i know how difficult the job would be to complete without damage. Also the aluminium seperators were extremely delicate. So, you did a great job, and I hope you get 10 more years out of your repair. A follow up video would be interesting. Good luck, you got my sub...

[taurusthebulloutdoors]

How many people saying it’s beyond my capabilities jeez it’s not that hard ! Informative video good work 👍😊