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Hello. 3 years ago we had 2 new upvc bay windows fitted by an established company in the London area. The ground floor window has sealant between the sill and the brickwork, the first floor window does not. We have damp on the first floor interior wall below the window but not on the ground floor wall below its bay window. There are large gaps between the first floor bay window sill and brickwork and 2 packing strips can be seen from street level on both sides of the bay window. (cant get photos to upload to site). I have several questions and will appreciate any thoughts. 1. Am I correct in thinking that this is how water is getting in? 2. Is it normal to seal gaps under a ground floor window sill but not a first floor sill? 3. Should I ask the installers to come back and seal the gaps? Regards DaveAF

I desperately need to reduce the heat gain in my two south-facing dormer windows. Ideally I would like to replace the windows with inward-folding bifolds and external shutters. As you can see, there is not space for standard hinged shutters, but I think Bahama shutters, sliding panels or roller shutters could be fitted. The other possibility is to attach a brise soleil. The problem is to find a supplier... so far I have only had snotty responses from places like Shutter Boutique (even though they sell Bahama shutters) and the usual UPVC manufacturers. Has anyone here any suggestions?

Hi all. I'm in the process of having some new windows and sills fitted by some local fitters after deciding it was too much to take on myself. Most of the windows are in now but quite a few of them have gaps between the top of the sill and the underside of the window frame. This isn't the drainage gap...this area is fine. Most guides I've seen suggest that the sill should be sealed to the underside of the windows especially at the ends to prevent water finding a path to the wall. The fitters haven't used any sealant between them, but they say this is fine and normal in the trade. The hasn't been attached to the frame by screwing it up from underneath, but by screwing down through the frame into the top of the sill, which clearly hasn't worked very well. They're proposing to put longer screws in to catch the bottom of the sill too and pull it tighter. This doesn't sound right. FENSA seems to suggest that the window and sill should be well sealed together, as does the Eurocell (manufacturer) fitting guide. These guys are CERTASS registered, which I assume have similar standards? What do you all suggest? Is this normal? Or good enough? Will water be able to get to my house? Can they rectify without taking the windows out? The images are from a 1.8m wide window, but there are similar gaps on some 2.4m wide ones and also narrower ones. There are also some windows with 15mm is gaps underneath them which are foam packed, which they intend to back-fill with mortar. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

So I have come across this handle as you can see in the picture that needs replacement. Which is fine I have replaced many of them in the couple of years but I have never come across one like this. The base plate can't be turned to assess the screws because it was installed against the window beading. So my question is did anyone has ever replaced a handle in the same situation and how did you do it? Thank you

Evening All. Its along story ...so i will condense. Basically Window company was supplying some bi-folds to go with our chartwell green UPVC theirs was aluminium ...and they asked is for a RAL ....we told then couldnt they just match it and that said they worked off RAL etc etc anyway the net result of all this is that RAL 6021 looks NOTHING like chartwell green ...far far darker So we decided to have them sprayed ...as the "blame game" was going on forever .... A company came out and try as they might they did not have a tape that would stick to the internal rubber seal to mask it ... no problem they said ....we will pull it out ....its a wedge gasket 5 minutes later they handed me a bunch of varying lengths of rubber and said "keep them clean and pop them in once its all dry and unmasked! I had to hand it to them their paint colour was SPOT ON ...but ..... when i went to put the gaskets in 2 days later ...no way would they go...tried using thin tools ..plastic tools euro wedges everything ... any more pressure and the glass would break for sure. Now along came the joiner and he noticed that around the aluminium doors was a detachable profile ...and after a bit of a wiggle and waggle it came loose BINGO ! ...so off i went with silicone spray and a plastic scraper and squeezed it into the profile ...as i THOUGHT it should go ....but it doesn't LOOK right and when i try to clip the profile back on its like there is TOO MUCH rubber on the other side or something ..it must be in wrong So i am hoping someone can tell me how to proceed ..I have some pics of the detachable profile and a rough image of the gasket cross section PS as you look at the pic...the LONG corner of the profile is the bit that sits deep in and effectively under the glass edge...and the tall flattest section is the one that faces into the sun-room. I know the bead MUST go into that rectangle notch some way ...but how is the question What a palava !

Well that tops off a really crap week! Just had the fitters come and fit the last doors ....INCLUDING the specially made aluminium bifold Of course like everything else outside the house ...it is in "chartwell green" ...UPVC doors, Windows, Rafter Feet, Fascia Board ....EVERYTHING Off i went to make them tea and butties and when i came back BOOM...WTF ...I hope thats plastic film i asked! >No my friend ....its the colour I said ...it is NOTHING like chartwell green >I agree my friend So why have i got it > We dont make these doors is aluminium you need to talk boss...is special made to order Yes i remember >and we gave your wife a colour swatch and a form to fill in why, just make them the same as the PVC ones you supplied >because they only do the RAL colour ..so you have to choose close match well she never picked this >ok , you call office, i am only fitter so after an hour.... i got a scan of the order and sure enough she wrote down swatch RAL 6021 which according to the internet is the closest RAL colour to chartwell bloody green but she SWEARS the swatch was nowhere near as dark as this So ...i am sure she cant live with it ....see picture .. They will not refund our £2k as we chose the colour So i guess we have to change the colour ourselves.... Anyone have any ideas? ...only the outside PS ANYONE ELSE WANTING TO FALL INTO THE CHARTWELL GREEN CLUB. REMEMBER THIS ....I HAS SPOKE TO A LOT OF PEOPLE AND CHARTWELL GREEN IS N-O-T A RECOGNISED COLOUR IT DOES N-O-T HAVE AN RGB OR CMYK VALUE ... WHAT THIS MEANS IS THAT ANY COMPANY DOING A SIMILAR GREENY SHADE CAN CALL IT "CHARTWELL GREEN" SO BE AWARE ...IF YOU DONT GET A FINISHED PAINTED/COATED SAMPLE OF WHAT YOU WANT ...DO N-O-T BUY IT

Had most of my Windows fitted last week and this week they came to fit the sliding patio doors. I wanted bifold but because of cost compromised with sliders. It was suggested that I have 3 panels with 2 sliders to maximise the opening by a different company. The quote came through with 2 fixed panels which was counter productive in having a wider opening. I phoned up and explained what I wanted and that I that the single panel should be on the opposite side to that given on the quote and received an email confirming both instructions. The door came with 2 fixed panels and one slider. They were getting it in to position when I luckily went to look and saw it wasn't right and told them. It is a father and son company and the son is my contact. The father went ballistic saying they'd told me I couldn't have 2 sliders. Slammed everything down, threw everything back in the van and drove off with tires squealing. I got an email the next day from the son apologising for his dad's behaviour but reiterating that they had told me I couldn't have 2 sliders. I know that they can be made with 2 or even all 3 sliding. I was offered them by another company and have seen them online. However I am now wondering what to do. I am definitely not having the doors that have been made. They are just wrong. but Do I get them to make me some standard 2 piece doors? Do I source 3 way sliders from somewhere else? And if so do I go for UPVC, which I know will be bulky, or aluminium Or Do I pay the extra and get bifolds Another setback as of course whichever option I choose there is a lead time putting back me being watertight Thoughts please

Following on from January's Cost of triple glazing thread, is anyone willing to share the approx cost of their double glazing? I will be receiving my quote for the Little Brown Bungalow replacement DG this week, and would welcome some comparisons. In theory I should be in a good place, because my DG man measures up and has it made half a mile down the road, and I can't see how that can be improved. Cheers Ferdinand