A Beautiful period property transformed with a Slimlite double glazing installation and sash window refurbishment in Uckfield, nr Lewes, Wealdon District, East Sussex.

This beautiful period property was built in the late Victorian times and boasts some beautiful rooms and views over their private gardens.
We were asked to restore and refurbish the windows so that they would meet a modern standard. Making sure that we regain the original beauty that the sash windows and doors exhumed.
These were beautiful triplite windows on the ground floor to the front of the property. Through the rest of the property they had two over two concealed box frame sash windows.

Since Uckfield is in the heart of the Sussex county, we were slightly worried that wood worm may be an issue. This usually happens when there is a vast number of gardens for wildlife to inhabit.
But we were very lucky on this project as the windows and frames were in very good condition.

Keeping The elegance of the property alive but with modern day technology.

The customer wanted to retain the look of the property and keep all the original features. There was one casement window at the back of the property that needed to be changed for a sliding sash. This would make the layout of the property more continuous and fluid.
There were set of beautiful doors at the back of the house that had seen better days. These would also be restored and refurbished with 12mm Slimlite double glazing with a construction of 4x 4x 4.

Installing Slimlite, the windows must be put back in the original position again, this is the same with the doors.
When our company do this procedure, we don’t just fill the gap with Dry-flex or 2 pack filler. This happens when the windows and doors get condensation on the inside of the windows. The water will build up and find a slight gap where the Stile of the window meets the bottom rail.
With water contacting the end grain of the window parts the windows will expand in different directions, horizontally and vertical.

What if there is gaps around the sashes and doors.

When the seasons have changed, they will contract and shrink leaving a gap that decorators will fill. The cycle will start again when water penetrates the stile and the bottom rail. This usually happens when the putties have failed, and the paint is not protecting the glass inside and out.
The only way that you can make a window solid again is when it is in the original position. We make sure that every joint is double doweled so no movement can occur in the future. This is described in detail on our refurbishment page for sash windows and doors in our website.

When Slimlite is installed, the glass will always be square but if the window is not then there could be a problem. Too much pressure would go onto one point of the window causing it to rack more out of square, the glass weighing on this property around 20-35lb in weight for each sash. this will also move the glass out of the original fitted position in the future. This in turn will break the seals of the paint and cause water ingress onto the units themselves.
Water ingress is the only reason why Slimlite units fail. This is down to either, the paint failing due to not being cleaned properly or not being painted properly.

Critical Heights and areas may affect the cost of the Slimlite.

Because the windows are vast in size and very low from the floor level Slimlite glazing must be toughened under Building control rules and Legislation under Document K. This is called a critical area if the glass is under the 800mm level from the floor to the glass.
This is the same on doors, but the measurement finishes at 1500mm from the floor and 300 mm around the side.
The glass itself does not have kite marks but it does have a serial number stamped on the side. This is usually next to the inside sight line of the window to show that it is toughened. This is perfectly fine because this is classed as Heritage Slimlite glazing.
Toughened glass can always be noticed to the trained eye easily. This will have a slight warped effect on the outside of the glass. This is because that toughened glass always goes through a heat treatment again when it is cut to size.

If my windows and doors are out of square can we still install Slimlite double glazing in them.

The doors are always a treat for our company to restore as they are more complicated, and they really test our joiners skills. These doors had the usual faults and had sagged over the years of use in the property.
These doors were split apart so that we could square them up and glue them back together again. Making sure that they were in perfect condition when the Slimlite arrived for installation. The only problem with the doors is that locks always must be installed before the glazing. If this is done afterwards than there is a likelihood of damage occurring or heavens forbid, broken glass. In Victorian times the doors stiles were so thin that a modern-day lock just fits with millimetres to spare.

Changing a casement window into a beautiful period sash window.

The casement window on the back was something that the customer wanted to be changed. When Slimlite is installed then the expense of the installation and decoration can become quite costly. We put it to the customer that in theory the window is constructed in the same way. The difference is that it has a centre Mullion dividing the casements and its hung from the side. This is also quite a test for our joiners constructing a box-frame around something that is already there. Making it work with the correct measurements and depth can always be quite tricky.

This is quite an easy task with a good skilled joiner and creates less damage than ripping out your old window. The window still conforms with building regulations as this is now classed as a refurbishment/ improvement. Building regulations only come into play when you completely remove the frame. Because the window could be put back to exactly how it was before it will not need signing off, since it’s not a new installation and not in the remit of Certass/ Fensa.

This project was a fun project to do and all the staff really enjoyed themselves. Every job is different that we are involved with and tests our workforce abilities to the very limits.
We hope you have enjoyed looking at this project and if you have a property that you would like to update to modern day standards. Especially keeping the original windows that have been there the same time as the property then don’t hesitate to call. For more information please call or fill out the contact page.