Secondary glazing

[El Greyo]

Hello

There have been quite a few discussions about secondary glazing with acrylic sheets held in place with magnetic strips. I've done a search and found a link to the magnetic strips (http://www.magnetic.co.uk/ecom-prodshow/magnetic-diy-secondary-glazing-kit.html) but I haven't found recommendations of where to get the acrylic sheets from. Are they widely available and are there types of sheet that are more suitable (durable, scratch resistent) for the purpose? Can anyone recommend a particular source?

Sorry if this has been covered before but it didn't turn up in my search.

Thanks

 

[Feltwell]

El Greyo,

Some information on these old threads:-

http://periodproperty.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=11602&start=15&hilit=film+glazing

I used this supplier mail order last time, however I've just realised that they are within easy distance of my workplace, so I'll collect next time. They packed the sheets up very well though.

http://www.theplasticman.co.uk/

I'd strongly recommend getting cut-to-size, it's horrible stuff to cut well yourself. There are quite a few suppliers around if you do a Google search

3mm extruded acrylic was what I used. Cast acrylic is supposed to be optically better but is more expensive - I've had some before and couldn't tell the difference between cast and extruded. Don't bother with "glass look" acrylic, it has an odd green tint to it and doesn't look very good.

Some people like Polycarbonate, but it's not as clear optically as acrylic and is more expensive. So far I've found the acrylic is OK. Polycarbonate is supposed to more prone to "yellowing" with time than acrylic.

I use exactly the magnetic strip kit that you've shown, I found it worked well. A tip would be if the frames are painted and you can do it, fix some thin timber strips to the frame then stick the steel tape to that - it provides a much flatter surface and the tape sticks better to it, I've ended up re-doing the very first window I did because the tape was coming away. Failing that make sure you carefully rub down the painted surface to take off any high spots and give the tape a good key to stick to, I'd also wipe some spirit round on a rag (electrical contact cleaner, car brake cleaner, carburettor cleaner or similar) just to make sure there is no grease on the surface.

Hope that helps.

 

[El Greyo]

Excellent, Feltwell, that helps a lot. I think between your response and the link you sent (I didn't find that thread in my search) they pretty much answers all the questions I have.

Thanks

 

[wobs]

I followed Feltwell's advise for one of our windows this year, and can recommend both links. I plan to do another one when I've done a sash window reovation.

Note: Be careful that you measure it properly, as has been said, you wouldn't want to cut it yourself. I measured width (top & bottom), and height (left and right), and checked how out of square it was (corners to corners).

Be careful when removing backing paper on the magnetic strip, it can stick to the foam.

Edit: The acrylic has an excellent transparency, although I'm sure it will become scratched in time.

Tip: If you're getting it delivered, don't get them to deliver it at your work if you can't get it in your car [cough].

 

[Feltwell]

I had one window where I had no choice but to cut it myself, the window was so far out of square. I ordered it cut oversize, then trimmed it back. I bought a special plastic-cutting circular saw blade and it was hopeless - in the end I cut it roughly to size with a very fine tenon saw, then to get a decent finish I used a router with a brand new bit in to finish the job off, get a nice straight line with a clean edge.

The sheet was just under 8' x 4' so I was praying that it worked! It's the central window of the bay in my link above. The router worked fine, but if you do this make sure you wear goggles and a dust mask and preferably do the cutting outside, the plastic swarf goes everywhere and is nasty stuff.

Plastic Man I've since found will cut it out-of-square to special order.

 

[wobs]

Would an electric plane work? I've used it on a bath panel before, and worked a treat.

 

[El Greyo]

Thanks all for the top tips. We have a variety of types and shapes of window. I'll start with the easy ones but even if I just do those, it should make a difference.

 

[Feltwell]

Would an electric plane work? I've used it on a bath panel before, and worked a treat.

Don't see why not, but it would be easier to get a good straight edge using a router running along a straight edge clamped across the Perspex I think. That's what I did.