Oh Dear...Crack

[Drpepper99uk]

Hello,

This is my first post on this forum, so I think I better explain the situation. Recently our back door has become very hard to close and at first I thought it might have been the hot weather affecting the closing of the door itself(however it's a UPVC door and not wood) at appeared that the top part of the door where there is a 3 bolt dead locking system in place was stuck meaning that if you attempted to pull the door only the bottom part of the door would open.

I left the door for a few days to see if it would sort itself out, and it had not. So I opened up our french doors to get out into our back garden and then I tried from the outside to see if I could open it. Upon pulling on the door it suddenly came open and the glazeing inside it has cracked right across the whole width of the top part of the glass unit(the bottom is just a panel with no glass inside) So I now have a door that does not shut/lock properly, and it's also cracked. What would be my best option to take here?

I was considering just replacing the whole door itself to avoid any future incidents, however some people I have spoken to have said that I could just replace the double glazed glass panel, and get the door locking mechanism looked at. Can the glass unit's be replaced?

Michael.

 

[Richard C]

First of all, hot weather will affect UPVC doors much more so than wood as the thermal expansion is greater. Is the installation under a 10 year installation warranty, if so go back to them; if not & you have a FENSA certificate they may help. The DG glass unit itself should not cost that much but do get several quotes. Are you not covered on you household policy under accidental damage? Although the excess may be more than the cost of the glass. Make sure you get the locking system sorted before you replace the glass!

 

[Glassman]

Grab the Yellow Pages and look for a local glazing company. Most companies don't charge to do a survey. They should be able to adjust the door mechanism and/or toe-and-heel the door accordingly and should also be able to give you a quote for the broken unit.

 

[Drpepper99uk]

Hello,

Thanks for your replies Richard/Glassman. I won't be claiming on my house insurance policy as like you mentioned the excess is probably more that what it will cost me to pay out of my own pocket, not to mention I have only recently started out in the property market and my house insurance is high enough!!!

I'll give a few glazing places a ring to see what they suggest, and if they can have a look at it for me.

Michael.

 

[Deluks]

Yeh, for the record our door becomes near impossible to close after it's been left open on a hot day, it needs a dangerously hard slam to shut it, and that then leaves wear marks on the door frame where the oversized, overheated door has tried to squeeze back into place.