uPVC window interior seals and gaps

[desertrose]

Hi all,

Interested in thoughts on what's going on with my uPVC windows (70's house, windows are about 17 - 20 years old from memory of the paperwork the came with the house).

As per the photo below, all of the windows first appear to have moved away from the wall, suggested by the broken sealant on the wall and trim on top of the window board. The frames seem to be pretty firmly fixed, though - there may be some slight movement, but certainly not enough to close the gap. This has mainly happened at the bottoms of the windows, with some tops, but never in the middle.

Is this just a combination of the window expanding and contracting and the sealant ageing (and possibly failing from the movement over time)?

Thanks in advance!

 

[blup]

Yes

Blup

 

[desertrose]

Great! Thanks. Any recommendations for sealants that are best suited to this job? I have some brown Everbuild 450 that I've used for some external resealing that seemed to be recommended.

Would backer rod to fill the (currently small) gaps behind the sealant help with heat retention etc.?

 

[blup]

I have used the Everbuild 450, it seems to be a good general purpose sealant. Not sure it can be overpainted though.

It will enable the movement to be kept under review.

Blup