On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 23:42:43 GMT, "Patrick"
wrote:

My house was built in 1984. I have windows which consist of 6 indivdual
small glass windows about 8" x 5" each on the bottom window and the same on
top in a window frame. Each window is filled, or at least was filled, with
argon gas or the like when the house was new. Some of them now have leaked
and are a white haze color. I don't want to get totally new windows. What
I want to do is repair the ones that have leaked. I've been looking on the
net and on tv about how to glaze windows, etc. Each time I see it involves
glazing. I look at the exterior of each window and it looks like each of my
windows has a small wooden frame around each one window..kind of like a
picture frame. Is this possible? They have several coats of paint on them,
so I can't see if there are any nails or recesses for nails. I haven't torn
into one yet, but I wanted to see if anyone knew whether windows where made
like this. I may end up having to buy an electric miter saw, because if
they are each framed with wood, I know I can't get them off w/o breaking
them. Thanks in advance.


Pat

I'm not so sure what you're describing, but it sounds like you have
wooden sash (window frames) with individual thermopane lites (window
panes).
This would be pretty unusual but not unheard of. I have never seen
thermopanes installed with glazing compound and I'd guess you do have
lites installed with wooden stops as you described. I'd suggest
scraping the paint back from one to see what you're dealing with and
maybe trying to pry the stops up gently to see how hard it is.
You might also call some glass shops to price the replacement panes.
If you have a lot of failed thermopanes it might cost more than it's
worth to replace just the lites. Windows could be cheaper especially
if you consider the labor involved. Call more than one glass shop,
as prices can vary a lot.

I have replaced thermopanes successfully but always in metal sashes.
One thing I've learned is to find out from the supplier what sealants
are compatable with the new thermopane windows. It can vary from
manufacturer to manufacturer and the wrong sealant can cause the
thermopane to fail again.