The window guys were back this week replacing 1 of the lounge's draughty aluminium patio doors - that we'd never been inclined to open & nor had the previous owners - with a normal window. Very pleased - since I took this picture, the front's been plaster boarded & Husband has taken a pair of scissors to the revolting curtains!
We were less happy with the replacement of the 2nd draughty aluminium patio door - the one connecting to the conservatory. Doors themselves are fine (uninspiring but functional uPVC) & it's OK on the inside, but there's a 5cm gap on the outside full of foam. Husband followed up this with a long conversation with a building control colleague about FENSA and an equally long phone call to the glazing company. The gap is all to do with a bodge when the original doors were put in - they were not on the plinth of the house but on a separate bit of wood. Bodged at the top as well - there's an RSJ right along the top edge of the doors. This also meant that the doors were bridging - which goes some way to explaining the arctic conditions in the living room.
This meant that when the new doors were placed on the plinth, they fitted snugly withe the RSJ bit of wall but were lower than the outside edge - hence the gap.
The glazing guys are coming back to cover the gap with some trim (there was a communication issue about these) and the building control colleague has ressured us that we are unlikely to get any issues with thermal efficiency. And they will look fine!
Hoping that there'll be a good solution for recycling uPVC developed by the time the windows reach the end of their life...
