Fitting secondary glazing
Last updated Wednesday 30 April 2008
More panes, more gain
Secondary glazing adds a second sheet of glass or plastic to a window frame, improving thermal and sound insulation. Similar in principle to double glazing, it's generally cheaper but less effective. Even so, done well, it could still knock up to £65 a year off your heating bill.
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Saves about 500kg of CO2 a year per household
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CO2 reduction 
Cheapness
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Cost £1,200 - £2,000
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How will it make a difference?
Pub Fact
- The average household could save around two tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) a year by making their home energy efficient
- A fifth of your home's heat is lost through the windows, and a single-glazed window can lose 14 times as much heat as the same area of well-insulated wall
- Professionally installed secondary glazing could save you as much as £65 a year in heating bills, and cut your CO2 emissions by up to half a tonne - not as impressive as the 740kg a year double glazing could save, but exactly one hundred times more CO2 than avoiding plastic bags for a year
- Make sure the gap between the secondary glazing and the original window pane is at least 100mm and you can screen out noisy neighbours too
- It can reduce condensation
How do I do it?
There are two approaches to secondary glazing, both of them DIY-friendly, however to get the highest savings, professionally installed secondary glazing might be the best option. The more expensive and effective version involves fitting an aluminium frame around the window recess to hold glass panes that can be slid or tilted to open.
The cheaper option is a plastic film fixed with double-sided tape and shrunk to fit with a hairdryer. These are only intended for a single season's insulation.
For even better results, close your curtains at dusk to stop heat escaping through the windows and, if you don't have them already, consider installing cavity wall insulation, loft insulation and draught proofing, all of which save more heat than secondary glazing.
What's stopping me?
"How do I get the window open?"
It rather depends on what sort of secondary glazing you fit, but it is important you can still get at the original window - whether it's for ventilation in summer or, in an emergency, as an exit. If you're fitting glass or plastic that doesn't allow you easy access it might be worth leaving one or two windows untreated as possible fire escapes.
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I have a listed building in a conservation area, so secondary glazing was my only option. I contacted Granada Secondary Glazing via their website.
Really straight forward. I got the company who supplied it (Omegabuild) to cut the panels to size for me. So all I had to do was to cut the magnetic strips and put in place. It's really effective and very unobstrusive.
I live in a grade 11 listed building. I used a company called Access Plastics in West yorkshire. They supplied the perspex panels cut to size and in kit form- very easy to fit. Glass clear and extremely effective - and best of all not expensive - no where near the cost of double glazing even if the planning would have allowed it!