Secondary double glazing for my front door

[cambournepete]

Hello all,

Here's a picture of our front door:

I know it's not exciting, but it's what the builders provided with the house 11 years ago. It doesn't fit well. Although it's got the proper draught strip in a recess in the frame there are still big gaps around it that let mini gales blow through so I'm about to fit hairy draught strip around the outside of the frame. The same stuff round the (same style) back door made a big difference.

What can I do about insulating the glass panels in the door?
I need something that is cheap, looks OK and ideally is obscured - the glass we have already ain't very obscured.
Does anyone have recommendations for what we could use?

Ideally we'd replace the door and frame with a proper sealed and insulated double-glazed unit, but until we know what we're going to do in the future I want to improve what we have for as little as sensible.

 

[dedee]

Pete,
there are numerous diy type solution to secondary glazing that either stick or use magnets to hold the panel in place. We used to have some metal framed secondary glazing that was hinged to the wooden frames but I cannot find its like anywhere anymore. I used it all up making a couple small greenhouses some time back. Condensation was always a problem as invariably the seal was never perfect all the way around the window.

If loss light is not to much of an issue a thick heavy curtain might be just as efficient as secondary glazing at keeping the heat in.

regards

Andy

 

[RogerS]

You're a bit tight where the door handle is but I'd go down my local double-glazing outlet and get a double-glazed unit made up to cover the whole window area. That would probably cost about £20 down my way. Then make a captive frame to hold it against the door, use some foam between the dgu and the door and you're done.

 

[Carlow52]

Not what you asked about but is a complete second door on inside of alcove a possible option?

 

[cambournepete]

We already have a curtain for the door - SWMBO says she knows where she's hidden it

An extra door is not an option - no room.

I'd not thought of a dedicated double glazed unit - I might look into it...

Thanks all.

 

[Jonzjob]

What I did with our French doors when we were in Stroud was to put a piece of toughened glass on the inside of the door that covered the whole of the glazed area. I pinned it in place with glazing sprigs and ten sealed it with a good quality silicon sealer. After 24 hours the sprigs were removed.

The result was a totally sealed window. The primary glass was Wilkinsons 'K' glass and it steamed up every time it got cold. After I had fixed the toughened glass it never steamed up again and the only way that glass was to come down is to cut round the sealer.

The result was a much warmer dining room and I would recommend it to anyone!!