Sash windows, repair don't replace!

[LHW]

Ventrolla did the windows here before I was the owner. Very poor job IMO. They used plastic parting beads bodged in place with mastic which naturally became covered in black mould and plastic just looks wrong. The parting beads they use are too narrow for Scottish profile cases (not a problem for you) so they planed down the meeting rails to make it work. They machined a brush carrier into the bottom of all the bottom sashes which just draws water up into the bottom rail by capillary action. Every single bottom sash they touched has had to be repaired or replaced since. Some were little more than a skin of paint over thin air....

They also wholesale replaced a couple of cases which whilst not the worst weren't particularly high quality either. Also not made to the correct Scottish dimensions so needed an extra packer on the outside of one of them (doesn't look right -- I say that a lot...). The pulleys they used were cheap and nasty with radiussed ends, a modern design that takes less time to fit and they used MDF for the outside facing on the curved top sash which as you would expect looked pretty second hand by the time I took over. One of them was also ready for a new cill and pulley stile repairs after a service life of maybe only 30 years but previous owners weren't exactly keeping on top of the painting schedule so that has to take some of the blame.

They are a franchise as I understand it so that means whoever does the work has to make a living for themselves and pay for the license to use the brand. Guess who ends up paying for both, and that fancy website? If you aren't going to do the work yourself then find a local independent one or two man outfit who specialises in this sort of thing. Most larger cities with a good stock of period buildings will have a few of them cutting about, not so sure about your location. There's absolutely nothing unique or special about what was done to my windows or that I can see on their website. Franchises work best when the product is highly standardised. Think McDonalds. Historic windows couldn't be further from this.

Funnily enough the independent I got in to sort out some of my windows used to work for Ventrolla and had not a kind word to say about them, especially the bottom rail problem. Sample of one so not exactly science... I now do any work needed myself. Its really quite straightforward and if yours are currently in good condition and all you need is the draft proofing then it should be *very* straightforward. Just be aware that you'll need to redecorate after the work is done as getting the sashes out is a bit disruptive.

Can't help on your cavity question. Seems odd that the weight pockets would be open to the cavity. That would lead to an awful lot of extra ventilation but its not a form of construction I have experience of. Maybe worth kicking off a new thread for that question so that you get more focused responses.

Wow. There are so many good reviews for them online. Very interesting to hear specifics - thank you. Good idea about new thread too.

 

[LHW]

There are twelve fully operational sash windows here all original from 1879, all serviced in 1997/8 (new cords, check and lubricate pulleys etc.) after we moved in. My father had shown me how to tackle them at our previous home, and it was all pretty straightforward to do. Look out for previous mistakes like getting the weights round the wrong way and existing cord lengths being wrong though. The sashes should be weighted with a bias to stay shut and cords need to be the right length to allow full movement - needed for painting if nothing else.

I'm distrustful of anything that makes painting more difficult, and the sort of things Ventrola do to sash windows is in that category. I use Stormguard 'V' self-adhesive draught seal up the sides and across the tops. Massively reduces rattles and draughts, is cheap and completely reversible. For two windows (one a steamy shower room) we secondary glazed with the old Polycell hinged aluminium frame system - cheap and very effective for narrower windows and still, as far as I know, still available.

Thanks for the tips and the Stormguard recommendation - will definitely consider.