Doors and Windows - Failed Aluminum Patio Sun Room Doors
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n1ml
06-03-07, 02:07 PM
We have a 3 season porch that has three sets of 3 panel doors. Each of the 9 panels is 30" wide. Four of the glass patio door sections have failed seals and the between glass is all smoky looking due to the moisture/condensation in the doors. We do not need the thermopane aspect of the doors. Is it possible to remove the doors and remove one half of the glass and convert them to single panel glass doors, that is, single thickness? The room is not heated and has the doors only to prevent rain from entering the space.
Just Bill
06-03-07, 05:25 PM
If the frame is still working well, and you don't need dbl glass since there is no heat, sounds like a workable plan. But besides keeping in heated/conditioned air, insulated Lo-E glass also helps keep out hot sun. Just a thought.
n1ml
06-03-07, 06:12 PM
My main question is just how to do it. Does the glass insert come out relatively easily? Can I then separate the two glass panels and then reinstall just one?
XSleeper
06-03-07, 09:00 PM
Door panels must contain tempered glass, which is a special order item from glass shops. So even if you change to a single pane of glass, there will still be a sizable expense, since it has to be tempered.
The insulating glass unit (IGU) does not come out easily, it's a bit difficult to get them out without the proper tools and the process is a bit difficult to explain without seeing in person. And no, you would probably not want to separate the two unless you want to go to a LOT of work cleaning the butyl rubber off of the perimeter of the glass. If it is smokey looking it probably will not come clean and be reuseable anyway.
To remove the IGU you would need to remove the glazing strips (can't tell you how to do that without seeing it) but there should be either a removable stop or a snap in strip on either the inside or outside perimeter of the glass. With other types of windows (where the glass is surrounded by a black vinyl marine glazing bead) you need to remove the sash and unscrew the corners, disassembling the sash.
To reassemble using a single pane of glass rather than your thick IGU, you would need to silicone a spacer onto the single pane of glass so that the perimeter of the single pane of glass would equal the thickness of the old IGU. Otherwise it won't go back together correctly. This would be kind of a half-baked repair which would probably be spotted by an inspector if you ever wanted to sell the place. And Just Bill makes a good point about the value of IGU's even in warm climates. Your room will be noticably warmer with single pane glass instead of an IGU.
The insulating glass unit (IGU) does not come out easily, it's a bit difficult to get them out without the proper tools and the process is a bit difficult to explain without seeing in person. And no, you would probably not want to separate the two unless you want to go to a LOT of work cleaning the butyl rubber off of the perimeter of the glass. If it is smokey looking it probably will not come clean and be reuseable anyway.
To remove the IGU you would need to remove the glazing strips (can't tell you how to do that without seeing it) but there should be either a removable stop or a snap in strip on either the inside or outside perimeter of the glass. With other types of windows (where the glass is surrounded by a black vinyl marine glazing bead) you need to remove the sash and unscrew the corners, disassembling the sash.
To reassemble using a single pane of glass rather than your thick IGU, you would need to silicone a spacer onto the single pane of glass so that the perimeter of the single pane of glass would equal the thickness of the old IGU. Otherwise it won't go back together correctly. This would be kind of a half-baked repair which would probably be spotted by an inspector if you ever wanted to sell the place. And Just Bill makes a good point about the value of IGU's even in warm climates. Your room will be noticably warmer with single pane glass instead of an IGU.