Foggy Windows
I’ve received many inquiries to my office from homeowners who are concerned with foggy windows. What they are noticing is their windows are foggy because the sealed glass unit (dual pane glass) has been compromised, which has allowed water vapour to get inside of the window pane, showing up as moisture or condensation on the inside of the sealed glass unit.
During my 50+ years in the home improvement industry, I’ve seen my fair share of products come on the market that do not work as advertised. You may have heard or seen advertising for window ‘restoration’ services that in some cases offer a 10 year warranty or longer. This service is promoted as a less-expensive and less disruptive way to solve the problem of foggy windows when compared to insulated glass or total window replacement.
Typically these companies will drill small holes in the corners of the window glass, through these holes they push compressed air through the window for a period of time to remove the existing moisture. Then they install valves in the holes they’ve drilled to allow any moisture that may get inside of the window glass to escape.
Folks, let me explain to you why this process is fundamentally flawed. A glass window sealed unit is exactly that, a sealed unit. No air or moisture is supposed to get in between the panes of glass. If you noticed moisture on the inside of your sealed unit has failed then it is time to replace the widow sealed unit or entire window including the frame. By design a window sealed unit is meant to keep all air and moisture outside of the window glass. When sealed units are made, they are manufactured in a controlled factory environment to ensure the sealed unit is air sealed. It is important to note the quality of a factory sealed glass unit cannot be replicated outside of a controlled factory environment. If the sealed unit is allowed to ‘breath’ or vent, it cannot effectively do what job it’s meant to do.
The only way to properly solve the problem of foggy windows is to have new window glass installed (I always recommend going with energy efficient window glass, such as Low E Squared with Argon Gas) or have a new window installed, including the window glass and frame, such as an energy efficient vinyl frame window. Replacing your sealed glass units can cost a little more than the window restoration process, but it is the proper way to go about addressing the issue.
When purchasing new window glass sealed units or new windows including the widow frame, be sure to inquire what the warranty covers with respect to both labour and material. We’ve received feedback from customers who had the window defogging process performed on their windows only to notice moisture once again on the inside of the windows glass. Some of these customers attempted to have the window glass restoration process redone and been unsuccessful in their attempt to have their warranties honoured.
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