Five Tips to Take Care of Victorian Sash Windows | Glaze & Save

The character and period charm of a property can often hinge on the appearance of its windows, and this is no more true that in the case of period properties with Victorian sash windows. While the temptation to replace original windows can be overwhelming, the resulting decrease in the aesthetic and historical significance of your property can render replacement a false economy, as well as having implications for the environment, the structure of the building, and even the property value.

With that in mind, here are our five top tips for taking care of Victorian sash windows; ensuring your original windows are in tip top shape and bringing you joy and comfort for years to come.

1. Find out if you need planning permission.

Repairing your windows will ordinarily not require planning permission as long as they are being repaired on a like for like basis and more than 50% of the original wood of your windows is preserved. Replacement windows, however, will often require planning permission, particularly in listed or conservation buildings. However, if there are any local conservation areas situated near your property, the likelihood is that they will recommend keeping your original windows. If you live in a listed building, it's worth checking whether you need planning permission for any works which might remove some of the original features.

2. Retrofit your windows with draught proofing

One of the main problems that people experience with Victorian sash windows is draughtiness and rattling windows. While period sash windows would have been fairly draught-free in their heyday, a century or two of sliding the slashes can leave gaps. Traditional draught proofing techniques often involve routering out channels of wood in the frame in order to fit brushes. This invasive and damaging process and lead to lasting damage to the frame. We offer a completely non-invasive liquid draught proofing product InvisiSeal which involves no damage to the frame, and has a ten year guarantee.

3. Find a reputable window restorer

With resource efficiency coming to the forefront of consumer minds, window restoration has grown in popularity over the last ten years, as homeowners slowly come to realise that replacement windows offer up as many problems as the solve. Unfortunately, as window restoration grows as an industry, so too do less reputable firms offering substandard restorations. Always look for a firm or tradesman who is a member of a qualifying organisation such as the Guild of Master Craftsmenor the Which? Trusted Trader Scheme.

4. Use long lasting paint

Coming in at the end of the restoration process is the painting process. Not just cosmetic, a good paint job can help preserve your windows for years to come, avoiding future problems such as dirt, mould and water ingress. Use a long lasting guaranteed paint such as Jotun paints, which are guaranteed to last for 25 years.

5. Increase the energy efficiency

One of the biggest drawbacks of period Victorian sash windows is that they are single-glazed. In our energy conscious and resource efficient age, single glazed windows present a massive loss of energy; costing us money, wasting fuel and keeping us cold!

InvisiThermis Glaze & Save’s unique bespoke polycarbonate secondary glazing system, which discretely and elegantly blends into your current window frames for a near-invisible look. Taking the U-Value of a single-glazed sash and case window from 5.5 to 1.7, InvisiTherm will give your Victorian sash windows all of the energy performance of double glazing while retaining your original windows.