Hello, I've got a greenhouse to repair. I've got some old sheets of
horticultural glass but I'll need to cut it to shape. I've never had
much success on the few occasions I've tried cutting glass, so I'd
thought I'd splash out on a new glass cutter. Any suggestions on which
is the best design for a cheapish cutter? Or good tips and tricks for
cutting glass?

TIA

C.

"Chade" wrote in message
...
Hello, I've got a greenhouse to repair. I've got some old sheets of
horticultural glass but I'll need to cut it to shape. I've never had
much success on the few occasions I've tried cutting glass, so I'd
thought I'd splash out on a new glass cutter. Any suggestions on which
is the best design for a cheapish cutter? Or good tips and tricks for
cutting glass?

TIA

Only that if it's old glass (10's of years) expect it to break anywhere.

On 27/01/2011 23:18, Chade wrote:
Hello, I've got a greenhouse to repair. I've got some old sheets of
horticultural glass but I'll need to cut it to shape. I've never had
much success on the few occasions I've tried cutting glass, so I'd
thought I'd splash out on a new glass cutter. Any suggestions on which
is the best design for a cheapish cutter?



Or good tips and tricks for
cutting glass?

Yes. Don't. Especially when its old. Horticultural glass is cheap as
chips in standard 60cm x 60cm sheets which almost all greenhouse designs
are based around.

Any local glazing company will be able to supply standard sheets, cut
them smaller or supply bigger sizes.

It really isn't worth the aggro of DIY IME.


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

In message
,
Chade writes
Hello, I've got a greenhouse to repair. I've got some old sheets of
horticultural glass but I'll need to cut it to shape. I've never had
much success on the few occasions I've tried cutting glass, so I'd
thought I'd splash out on a new glass cutter. Any suggestions on which
is the best design for a cheapish cutter? Or good tips and tricks for
cutting glass?

How old is the glass ?

--
geoff

In message
,
Chade writes
Hello, I've got a greenhouse to repair. I've got some old sheets of
horticultural glass but I'll need to cut it to shape. I've never had
much success on the few occasions I've tried cutting glass,

what's the problem?

so I'd
thought I'd splash out on a new glass cutter. Any suggestions on which
is the best design for a cheapish cutter? Or good tips and tricks for
cutting glass?


I think the cheap glass cutters are probably all much of a much ness.
The one I bought recently when I couldn't find my other one was a few
quid from a local hardware store, metal handle, wheel, cuts fine.

Tips for cutting?

The most important, is to press firmly and steadily on the cutter, and
try to score in one smooth line. Stopping or gaps is where the glass
will fail to break cleanly.

Tap gently along the score line, put over an edge such a length of
timber, bench etc, press gently and should break cleanly.

But you may well have problems with old glass, as it tends to be more
problematical to cut.

If I had problems cutting it and seeing as horti glass is so cheap I'd
probably just go and get some from a glass merchants. Take measurements
and they will cut it to size for you (if not a standard size)
--
Chris French

On Jan 27, 11:57 pm, geoff wrote:
In message
,
Chade writesHello, I've got a greenhouse to repair. I've got some old sheets of
horticultural glass but I'll need to cut it to shape. I've never had
much success on the few occasions I've tried cutting glass, so I'd
thought I'd splash out on a new glass cutter. Any suggestions on which
is the best design for a cheapish cutter? Or good tips and tricks for
cutting glass?

How old is the glass ?


Apparently it's at least thirty years old. I say apparently as that
makes it older than me.

On Jan 28, 12:05 am, chris French
wrote:
In message
,
Chade writes

Hello, I've got a greenhouse to repair. I've got some old sheets of
horticultural glass but I'll need to cut it to shape. I've never had
much success on the few occasions I've tried cutting glass,

what's the problem?


Breaking with a spur rather than a clean break.

so I'd
thought I'd splash out on a new glass cutter. Any suggestions on which
is the best design for a cheapish cutter? Or good tips and tricks for
cutting glass?

I think the cheap glass cutters are probably all much of a much ness.
The one I bought recently when I couldn't find my other one was a few
quid from a local hardware store, metal handle, wheel, cuts fine.


As well as the wheel pencil type cutters I've seen cheap diamond glass
cutters on ebay they seem to have a wedged shaped head rather than a
wheel.

Tips for cutting?

The most important, is to press firmly and steadily on the cutter, and
try to score in one smooth line. Stopping or gaps is where the glass
will fail to break cleanly.

Tap gently along the score line, put over an edge such a length of
timber, bench etc, press gently and should break cleanly.

But you may well have problems with old glass, as it tends to be more
problematical to cut.

If I had problems cutting it and seeing as horti glass is so cheap I'd
probably just go and get some from a glass merchants. Take measurements
and they will cut it to size for you (if not a standard size)

As well as oblong shapes I need a large irregular trapizoid shape more
than a meter across. I was going to make a pattern from selotaped
sheets of newspaper and then draw around it on the sheet with a glass
marker pencil and try to cut to the lines. Do you think a glass shop
would work from such a pattern? I suppose I could try to measure the
lengths of the sides and the angles at the corners instead if a glass
shop would work to that?

HI Chade

First off - 'old' glass can be an absolute pain to cut -
and horticultural glass is very cheap to buy....
so that's probably the easiest way to go....

On 28/01/2011 02:05, Chade wrote:
On Jan 28, 12:05 am, chris
wrote:
In message
,
writes

Hello, I've got a greenhouse to repair. I've got some old sheets of
horticultural glass but I'll need to cut it to shape. I've never had
much success on the few occasions I've tried cutting glass,

what's the problem?


Breaking with a spur rather than a clean break.

Likely caused by an imperfect 'score' (the line that you've scratched in
the surface with the glass cutter).
Maybe from not keeping the pressure constant along the whole line, maybe
from hitting some dust or dirt and actually skipping a section of score.
Maybe a flaw in the glass.... (less likely - but possible).
Clean along the score line before you use the glass cutter. Soap&water
is fine, or a light oil / meths / whatever


so I'd
thought I'd splash out on a new glass cutter. Any suggestions on which
is the best design for a cheapish cutter? Or good tips and tricks for
cutting glass?

I think the cheap glass cutters are probably all much of a much ness.
The one I bought recently when I couldn't find my other one was a few
quid from a local hardware store, metal handle, wheel, cuts fine.

It's probably less to do with the cutter and more to do with technique /
experience. Cutting glass is one of those things that gets easier the
more often you do it. The cutters I use in stained glass are all in the
UKP 20 - 30 price-range - but they'll happily produce rotten results in
inexperienced hands g



As well as the wheel pencil type cutters I've seen cheap diamond glass
cutters on ebay they seem to have a wedged shaped head rather than a
wheel.

Not seen those - except for tiles & acrylic.
The one with the wheel is the way to go..


Tips for cutting?

The most important, is to press firmly and steadily on the cutter, and
try to score in one smooth line. Stopping or gaps is where the glass
will fail to break cleanly.

Right. Make sure you have the glass well-supported on a table / bench
that's at least as large as the glass. Use a couple of layers of
newspaper of even a carpet offcut under the glass.
Sacrifice one piece of glass to practice on - listen for the 'scritch'
sound as you score - that indicates that you have the pressure corret.
Too light a score and the glass will be very hard to break, too hard
(glass chips on top of the score) and the break will be uncontrollable.

If you make a mess of a score don't try and go back over it - it won;t
help and it will wreck the glass cutter. Instead, turn the sheet of
glass over and score the other side...


Tap gently along the score line, put over an edge such a length of
timber, bench etc, press gently and should break cleanly.

Best to avoid tapping on straight cuts, can be more trouble than it's
worth.
After you've scored the glass, either break the sheet by hand (hold the
sheet as if you were breaking a bar of chocolate, index fingers together
under the score and gently apply pressure with the thumbs to 'pull' the
sheet apart.
Alternatively, find a thin lath (timber ruler thickness) and position it
under the score line. Apply pressure with both palms to the glass either
side of the ruler, and the sheet should break along the score.
Wear eye protection!

Another way is to rest the sheet so that the score line is along the
(sharp) edge of a bench / piece of ply, and simply lean on the 'free' side.

Think what's going to happen when the glass breaks - how are you going
to catch it ? The freshly cut edge will be very sharp!


But you may well have problems with old glass, as it tends to be more
problematical to cut.

Yes - any common glass more than about 10 - 15 years old is probably
going to be more trouble than it's worth.


If I had problems cutting it and seeing as horti glass is so cheap I'd
probably just go and get some from a glass merchants. Take measurements
and they will cut it to size for you (if not a standard size)

Amen !


As well as oblong shapes I need a large irregular trapizoid shape more
than a meter across. I was going to make a pattern from selotaped
sheets of newspaper and then draw around it on the sheet with a glass
marker pencil and try to cut to the lines. Do you think a glass shop
would work from such a pattern? I suppose I could try to measure the
lengths of the sides and the angles at the corners instead if a glass
shop would work to that?


Template / pattern's the best bet.
Scrounge some large cardboard boxes and open then out flat.
You may be able to get a friend to hold the card in position (maybe
outside the greenhouse) while you mark it with a fat felt-tip.
Then work out how much larger the glass has to be to fit into the recess
in the frame. Watch out for any obstructions like bolt-heads, rivets etc
that protrude from the frame.

Cut the cardboard to size (stanley knife), allowing a few mm all round -
and then make sure by 'fitting' the cardboard template into the frame.

Then take the cardboard pattern to your friendly local glass supplier
and say 'make me one like that!'

If there's a choice of suppliers in your area, ring round and find the
best combination of co-operation and price!
Make sure that you tell them it's horticultural glass - it's cheaper
than standard 'glazing' glass..

Be aware that some folks get very 'health & safety' about the use of
glass in greenhouses - falling into / through greenhouse glass can be
fatal....

Hope this helps
Adrian

On Jan 28, 2:05*am, Chade wrote:
On Jan 28, 12:05 am, chris French
wrote:

In message
,
Chade writes

Hello, I've got a greenhouse to repair. I've got some old sheets of
horticultural glass but I'll need to cut it to shape. I've never had
much success on the few occasions I've tried cutting glass,

what's the problem?

Breaking with a spur rather than a clean break.

so I'd
thought I'd splash out on a new glass cutter. Any suggestions on which
is the best design for a cheapish cutter? Or good tips and tricks for
cutting glass?

I think the cheap glass cutters are probably all much of *a much ness..
The one I bought recently when I couldn't find my other one was a few
quid from a local hardware store, metal handle, wheel, cuts fine.

As well as the wheel pencil type cutters I've seen cheap diamond glass
cutters on ebay they seem to have a wedged shaped head rather than a
wheel.

Tips for cutting?

The most important, is to press firmly and steadily on the cutter, and
try to score in one smooth line. Stopping or gaps is where the glass
will fail to break cleanly.

Tap gently along the score line, put over an edge such a length of
timber, bench etc, press gently and should break cleanly.

But you may well have problems with old glass, as it tends to be more
problematical to cut.

If I had problems cutting it and seeing as horti glass is so cheap I'd
probably just go and get some from a glass merchants. Take measurements
and they will cut it to size for you (if not a standard size)

As well as oblong shapes I need a large irregular trapizoid shape more
than a meter across. I was going to make a pattern from selotaped
sheets of newspaper and then draw around it on the sheet with a glass
marker pencil and try to cut to the lines. Do you think a glass shop
would work from such a pattern? I suppose I could try to measure the
lengths of the sides and the angles at the corners instead if a glass
shop would work to that?

To measure a trapezoid, measure each side and one diagonal. This fixes
the shape as you have in effect two triangles.

On Jan 28, 11:31 am, Andy Webber wrote:


Is this a typical aluminium extrusion framed greenhouse?


It's a wooden greenhouse. My parents had it before I was born and it
was secondhand then. It's just starting to get a touch of rot. I
painted it with wood treatment then Wilko greenhouse paint last year
but it soon washed off.

Standard sheets are 24" square, 24x18, 24x12 (600/400/300 in metric
equivalent).

"Long" sections are made by slightly overlapping joints using "overlap
clips"/"z clips"/"lap clips" (readily available from greenhouse spares
suppliers). Generally use as few large sections as possible, then make
up the difference with one small one. Your large trapezoid (is this on
the end wall?) becomes much more of a triangle. If you are buying the
glass from a local glazer then they'll cut those "triangles" for you to
your dimensions.

On occasion, panels will just not quite fit and you will want a panel
that is slightly shorter because it won't quite fit in the z-clip (you
can try rotating the "square" ones as they may be slightly oblong).
Don't panic about trying to trim 5mm of a pane (it won't work). For this
you can get soft aluminium z-clips that you can fold exactly where you
need them to take up the slack.

You may find that you need some W clips to hold the glass in too. Also
available from greenhouse spares companies (and probably local garden
centres).

If you have a section to fill that is more than 24x24 then it is not
your average greenhouse.

As the wooden frame provides a groove that is only one pane of glass
wide I can't overlap using clips. I note the green house has a H
shaped joiner so I was going to use something similar to replace the
bottom half of a large pane.

http://tinyurl.com/6y4zwc7

On 28/01/2011 23:58, Chade wrote:
On Jan 28, 11:31 am, Andy wrote:


Is this a typical aluminium extrusion framed greenhouse?


It's a wooden greenhouse. My parents had it before I was born and it
was secondhand then. It's just starting to get a touch of rot. I
painted it with wood treatment then Wilko greenhouse paint last year
but it soon washed off.

Standard sheets are 24" square, 24x18, 24x12 (600/400/300 in metric
equivalent).

"Long" sections are made by slightly overlapping joints using "overlap
clips"/"z clips"/"lap clips" (readily available from greenhouse spares
suppliers). Generally use as few large sections as possible, then make
up the difference with one small one. Your large trapezoid (is this on
the end wall?) becomes much more of a triangle. If you are buying the
glass from a local glazer then they'll cut those "triangles" for you to
your dimensions.

On occasion, panels will just not quite fit and you will want a panel
that is slightly shorter because it won't quite fit in the z-clip (you
can try rotating the "square" ones as they may be slightly oblong).
Don't panic about trying to trim 5mm of a pane (it won't work). For this
you can get soft aluminium z-clips that you can fold exactly where you
need them to take up the slack.

You may find that you need some W clips to hold the glass in too. Also
available from greenhouse spares companies (and probably local garden
centres).

If you have a section to fill that is more than 24x24 then it is not
your average greenhouse.

As the wooden frame provides a groove that is only one pane of glass
wide I can't overlap using clips.

You don't overlap on width, only length.

I note the green house has a H
shaped joiner so I was going to use something similar to replace the
bottom half of a large pane.

H section would possibly work, but green house rely on overlaps.



--
Dave - The Medway Handyman www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

On Jan 29, 12:20 am, The Medway Handyman
wrote:
On 28/01/2011 23:58, Chade wrote:


As the wooden frame provides a groove that is only one pane of glass
wide I can't overlap using clips.

You don't overlap on width, only length.


The narrow groove in the wooden frame that holds each 'window' on
three sides isn't spacious enough to accommodate the double thickness
of an overlap of two sheets of glass. So I don't see how any kind of
overlap is possible.

I note the green house has a H

shaped joiner so I was going to use something similar to replace the
bottom half of a large pane.

H section would possibly work, but green house rely on overlaps.


I suppose I could seal it if I thought there was a draft. It is an
unheated greenhouse.

In message
,
Chade writes
On Jan 29, 12:20 am, The Medway Handyman
wrote:
On 28/01/2011 23:58, Chade wrote:


As the wooden frame provides a groove that is only one pane of glass
wide I can't overlap using clips.

You don't overlap on width, only length.


The narrow groove in the wooden frame that holds each 'window' on
three sides isn't spacious enough to accommodate the double thickness
of an overlap of two sheets of glass. So I don't see how any kind of
overlap is possible.

I note the green house has a H

shaped joiner so I was going to use something similar to replace the
bottom half of a large pane.

H section would possibly work, but green house rely on overlaps.


I suppose I could seal it if I thought there was a draft. It is an
unheated greenhouse.


Older wooden greenhouses often have but joints like you describe in the
glass, as opposed to the overlapping jpints typical of an aluminium
greenhouse. We had an old Victorian conservatory that had butt joints
in the glass on the end of it.

The glass fits pretty tightly together, you may not find there is any
problem with it being drafty. Unless you are heating it, a little draft
isn't really a problem anyway. We put some of that clear repair tape
over a couple of the joints that leaked a little (in a GH it wouldn't
really matter)
--
Chris French

In article , newspost-c-
says...
. Unless you are heating it, a little draft
isn't really a problem anyway.


Positively benficial - stops it getting too damp and mouldy.

--
Skipweasel - never knowingly understood.