Many Russians associate winter with cheerful holidays, ice skating and skiing, snowball fights and, of course, glass tricks. True, in recent years, thanks to the widespread enthusiasm for installing plastic windows, this phenomenon has become rare. The main advantage of plastic profiles is their ability to retain heat in a room and keep cold out. However, sometimes even if you order new frames from a trusted company, the windows freeze in winter. This nuisance can significantly ruin your life and also cause mold and mildew to appear in your home. Today we will look at why windows freeze, and also give tips on how to get rid of this problem once and for all.
Reasons for freezing windows
So, you have finally decided to replace your boring old frames with a new plastic profile. Most often, owners try to do this in the summer season, when the installation will not cause absolutely any problems to the household. And then everyone at home rejoices at the neat and beautiful double-glazed windows until the onset of cold weather. And here an unpleasant surprise awaits them. You wake up one morning and notice that the window is frozen. Of course, not all owners immediately begin to panic, but if the situation repeats itself regularly, then it is worth looking at it as a real problem and trying to find out its causes. And there may be several of them:
- incorrect installation;
- wide window sill;
- poor ventilation;
- high humidity.
We will talk about each item on the list in more detail in the following sections of the article.
Incorrect installation of double-glazed windows
Most often, windows freeze because the installers did their job poorly. Craftsmen may not seal all seams and joints with polyurethane foam; as a result, cold air from the street will penetrate into the house, and warm air will escape out. This temperature conflict will cause ice to freeze on the window frames.
The problem may also be the lack of a thermal insulation layer. During the work, the installers may have intentionally or completely accidentally failed to lay this layer. As a result, the double-glazed window will not be airtight and the mixing of different temperatures will again cause ice to form.
In some cases, the rubber bands on the window profile come off easily, causing frosty patterns to appear on the glass. This problem is easiest to fix; you just need to adjust the rubber bands, and the situation will be solved.
If the reason for the windows freezing lies in improper installation, then you need to immediately contact the company where the double-glazed windows were ordered. The craftsmen will correct their mistake by replacing the thermal insulation or completely reinstalling the window profiles.
Window sill too wide
Many people dream of a window on which they can sit with a book in the evenings or beautifully arrange potted plants, but few people know that such a design leads to the window freezing with the onset of cold weather. If your window sill is wider than the standard, then heat exchange around the window is disrupted. The heated air does not reach the glass and condensation begins to accumulate on it, and then ice.
To get rid of ice, you need to drill special holes in the window sill or install gratings through which heated air will rise from under the window sill up to the ceiling and heat the double-glazed window.
As soon as you do this, the window will stop freezing and will delight you even in the most severe frost with clean glass.
Poor ventilation in the apartment
In many cases, windows freeze due to poor air circulation. The fact is that in many houses the old and worn-out ventilation system does not cope with its tasks. Over the years of use, it becomes clogged and does not provide free air circulation.
In this case, you can deal with the problem in several ways. The first does not require any additional costs; it involves frequent ventilation of the room. If you do this several times a day for about fifteen minutes, you will notice the frosty patterns disappear. However, not everyone can regularly ventilate their apartment, so they install special ones. Their cost on average ranges around eighty dollars, but fresh air will constantly flow into your home, and you will completely forget about freezing double-glazed windows.
High humidity
This reason is partly related to the previous one. Sometimes the rooms are set in such a way that a lot of moisture accumulates in the room. This may be due to poor ventilation or excessive tightness of the apartment. Sometimes residents don’t even notice before installing double-glazed windows that the room is too humid, because previously everything was pulled out through the window cracks.
You can get rid of this problem using the same methods that we indicated in the previous section of the article.
The window on the balcony is frozen: we are looking for reasons
In recent years, apartments have often combined loggias and balconies with kitchens or rooms. This enlarges the room and gives it a special look. In parallel with the renovation, the owners also change the double-glazed windows, installing new windows in the hope of a comfortable life. Even if you do not decide to combine part of the apartment and the loggia, then, most likely, in any case, during the renovation process, install a new balcony group. But, unfortunately, windows and doors on the balcony often freeze after the onset of cold weather. We will tell you now what is the cause of this problem and how to solve it.
Experts divide all the reasons into two groups. The former are nothing to worry too much about and can be fixed quite easily, but the latter are much more serious.
The first group of reasons includes temperature changes, excessive heating of the balcony, humidity and frequent opening of balcony doors. As you can see, similar situations can arise in every home, which means you need to know how to deal with them. First of all, make sure that there is good ventilation on your balcony; this can be done by installing a supply ventilation system that will ensure good and constant air circulation. Also start heating the glass, but keep in mind that this is quite difficult to do on an already installed balcony group. It is better to think about this in advance and install energy-saving double-glazed windows made using the most modern technologies. Without going into details, we can say that they are capable of accumulating heat and later releasing it.
The second group of reasons can be given in the form of the following list:
- poor quality windows;
- wide double-glazed windows;
- incorrectly selected window frames.
These reasons can only be eliminated with the involvement of professionals.
Solving the problem of frozen balconies
Experts advise installing three-chamber profiles on balconies. They are filled with vacuum and perfectly insulate from noise and cold. If you don’t skimp and choose a similar profile for yourself, you will protect your windows from freezing, since the temperature of the glass will change very slowly.
In cases where you have installed the correct double-glazed windows, but still notice frosty patterns on the glass, perhaps the craftsmen installed obviously defective windows. Such cases are quite rare, but still occur in practice.
Excessively wide double-glazed windows can also freeze. In this case, installing a high-quality split system or regular ventilation will help you.
Also, experts always advise to insulate the balcony well and be sure to lay heated floors. This will equalize the temperature indoors and on the balcony, which means it will reduce the likelihood of frost patterns appearing.
Freezing of windows from the inside
Fortunately, windows freeze from the inside quite rarely, because this problem is fraught with the appearance of fungus and mold in the house. Bacteria and microorganisms will spread very quickly throughout the apartment, and it will be very difficult to get rid of them. Therefore, as soon as you notice condensation inside the window, immediately begin to solve the problem.
According to experts, it is caused by only three reasons:
- single-chamber profile;
- incorrect installation;
- window design.
If you live in areas with cold winters and frequent winds, then choose at least a two-chamber profile without an aluminum frame. The latter becomes a place where condensation collects, and then freezing begins.
We have already written about improper installation of windows, so we will not repeat it.
Our houses were built according to different projects, so window designs are often very different. Craftsmen usually cover slopes with decorative panels to create the appearance of integrity, but in fact, it is under these panels that condensation accumulates, which is a fertile environment for mold and bacteria.
Why do car windows freeze?
A good overview while driving is a guarantee of the safety of all road users. But what to do if the car window is frozen and the trip cannot be cancelled? First of all, it is necessary to find out the reasons for the appearance of unpleasant ice on the glass.
Experts say that the main cause of freezing is high humidity inside the car. Initially, the windows fog up, and a little later they freeze, turning the car into a potentially dangerous means of transportation. Therefore, try to reduce the humidity in the cabin in every possible way:
- use textile mats instead of rubber ones in winter;
- do not bring snow from the street into the cabin on your shoes;
- Allow the car to warm up before driving;
- Be sure to ventilate the air in the cabin.
A man walked with his wings slandered.
I do it, I die.
And into this world from the other side the wind drove the cries of the soul.
I don't understand you.
In the sky hiding from me.
There is distance, distance, distance...
And froze in the windows,
People were melting without breathing.
What news,
My new world stopped the crazy running of sleepy faces.
I stopped myself.
And it became not so easy for me to understand: where to take a step?
Turn the pages.
Gray snow fell and melted in my hands. My stars
In the sky hiding from me.
I found out that somewhere inside me
There is a distance.
And froze in the windows,
People were melting without breathing.
What news,
Finally my soul has come to me!
Translation
The man was walking, oklevetat their wings.
Do, die.
And in this world on the other hand chased the wind cries the soul.
I don't understand you.
In the sky hiding from me.
There is dal, dal, dal...
And frozen in boxes,
People melted out of breath.
What kind of news
Finally I came to a soul!
My new world had stopped running mad sleepy.
I stopped myself.
And I have not so easy to understand where to do the step?
To turn the pages.
Was gray the snow was melting in my hands. The stars my
In the sky hiding from me.
I learned that somewhere inside me
Is remoteness.
And frozen in boxes,
People melted out of breath.
What kind of news
Finally I came to a soul!
A man walked with his wings slandered.
I do it, I die.
And into this world from the other side the wind drove the cries of the soul.
I don't understand you.
In the sky hiding from me.
There is distance, distance, distance...
What news, finally my soul has come to me!
My new world stopped the crazy running of sleepy faces.
I stopped myself.
And it became not so easy for me to understand: where to take a step?
Turn the pages.
Gray snow fell and melted in my hands. My stars
In the sky hiding from me.
I found out that somewhere inside me
There is a distance.
And they froze in the windows, People melted without breathing.
What news, finally my soul has come to me! There was a man who slandered their wings.
I do die.
And in this world, on the other hand drove the wind cries of the soul.
I don't understand.
In the sky, hiding from me.
Any distance, distance, distance...
What the news finally came to me the soul!
My new world stopped running mad sleepy individuals.
I stopped myself.
And I was not so easy to understand: where to take a step?
Scroll the page.
It was gray snow melted in his hands. My Stars
In the sky, hiding from me.
I knew that somewhere inside me
There is distance.
And stood in the windows, people melted not breathing.
What the news finally came to me the soul!