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Has anyone successfully repaired a blown double glazing unit?
It looks like it entirely plausible to take it apart, clean, replace/dry out desiccant and then reassemble with a marine silicone.
My first thoughts are that the air trapped between the panes will contain moisture, perhaps that's only a small amount and the job for the desiccant?
Also, high likelihood of it going wrong and I need a new unit anyway at that point!
It's supposed to be a vacuum in the gap; do you have a plan for that?
Before to long, a replacement unit is a much better, easier path
It should either be a vacuum or occasionaly IIRC a thin atmosphere of rare gases between the panes. Air there at atmospheric pressure then the unit will be less effective
A ha... That makes sense that there should be a vacuum between the panels.
I'll just buy a new unit.
A new unit made with plain 4mm glass is surprisingly cheap; I bought one last year for about £20
Safety glass, coatings, size, etc obviously increase that
Most glazing units are quite easy to remove - simply pry out the plastic retainer bead on the inside. Get the measurements for the unit, or get a local glazer to give you a quote to supply and fit.
Also don't think silicon is an airtight seal so you'll get moisture in it again once the desiccant is used up.
We replaced all our units in wooden windows. Even with labour and a scaffold tower for the day, four large windows needing 16 new glazing units was £1k.
We've had a few failed units repaired over the years, using the existing frames. It's not that expensive.
I have just had a full length pane replaced.
Took the tradesman 1hr, and with 2 new handles it came to £160.
Where does one find someone to do a single pane replacement? Everyone wants to sell me 10 new windows.
Where does one find someone to do a single pane replacement?
Plastic or wood?
Plastic are soooo easy to do yourself...
Edit: ask at the place that makes/ sells single units. E.g. we've a place called Stirling glass who sells, funnily enough, all things glass... They have a list of tradespeople.
Where does one find someone to do a single pane replacement?
Google "window repair".
The guy I used was recommended by the community Whatsapp group - but he shows up on Google too.
Google either "double glazing manufacturer" or "glazier". You'll find both fairly locally
It’s supposed to be a vacuum in the gap; do you have a plan for that?
You sure?
They're normally just filled with air and there is desiccant in the aluminum frame holder to absorb any moisture. If you look closely you'll see the inside of the aluminum spacer has 100s of tiny holes...
The outer edge is sealed with gunk to stop any fresh air getting in as the panes expand and contract ever so slightly every day, as otherwise, fresh air and moisture getting in will eventually saturate the desiccant at which point you start to see condensation inside it.
They can be repaired, you drill two holes through the aluminum spacer, blow hot dry air in to dry out all the desiccant and then seal the holes.
All the dg units i have are either vacuum or rarified argon. If it was air at atmospheric pressure you would get convection and conduction heat loss
not reaally because they do not replace the argon or vacuum between the panes