Window Seal and Gasket Replacement in Wellington
Glass and Window Repair Wellington re rubbers aluminium and uPVC joinery across the city. Over time the glazing wedge that holds the glass and the weather seal that the sash closes against both harden, shrink and take a permanent set. We pull the old rubber out and roll new gasket in, usually without removing the glass.
- Glazing wedge and weather seal replaced in place
- Stops whistling, draughts and driven rain
- Cheapest single improvement on sound aluminium joinery
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Four quick questions. Most quotes come back the same day.
In a Wellington northerly, a window with perished seals whistles. That noise is air moving through a gap, and where air goes, driven rain follows. It is the reason a lot of homes here feel draughty despite having what look like perfectly good windows. Re rubbering is the least expensive thing on this website and often the one that makes the biggest difference to how a room feels.
What really perishes
Two different rubbers do two different jobs. The glazing wedge sits between the glass and the frame and keeps water out of the rebate. The weather seal runs around the sash and gets compressed every time you close the window.
The weather seal fails first because it is worked constantly. Once it has flattened it no longer compresses, so there is a permanent air path around the sash even with the handle locked down.
How to tell it is the rubber
Press the seal with a fingernail. Live rubber springs back. Perished rubber stays indented, feels chalky and often has cracks along the corners. If you can see daylight at the corner of a closed sash, or a piece of paper pulls out easily with the window locked, the seal is gone.
What it fixes and what it does not
Re rubbering stops the whistle, cuts the draught, and in most cases stops water being driven past the sash. It will not fix water coming from a failed head flashing above the window, and it will not fix a window whose drainage slots are blocked.
So we test and not assume. If the leak is not the seal we tell you that instead of selling you rubber that will not solve it.
Knowing which seal has failed
The paper test
Close the window on a strip of paper and pull. If it slides out with no resistance the weather seal is no longer compressing anywhere near that point. Repeat it at the corners and along the middle, because seals flatten unevenly.
That takes thirty seconds and tells you more than looking at the rubber, which can appear fine while having lost all its spring.
Wedge or weather seal
The glazing wedge sits between glass and frame and its failure shows as water in the rebate or a rattling pane. The weather seal runs around the sash and its failure shows as a draught and a whistle.
They are different profiles, different prices and different jobs, so we identify which one before quoting rather than replacing both by default.
Window Seal and Gasket Replacement at a glance
- Glazing wedge
- Replaced in place, glass usually stays in the frame
- Weather seal
- Q lon, bubble and fin seals to suit the suite
- Symptoms fixed
- Whistling, draughts, rattling sashes, driven rain past the sash
- Not fixed by this
- Head flashing failures and blocked drainage slots
- Typical time
- Around fifteen to thirty minutes a window
Window Seal and Gasket Replacement in Wellington: common questions
Why does my window whistle in the wind?
The weather seal has hardened and no longer compresses when the sash closes, so air is passing around the sash. New gasket stops it.
Can seals be replaced without taking the glass out?
In most cases yes, for both the wedge and the weather seal. That keeps the cost and the disruption low.
Will new rubbers stop my window leaking?
Often, but not always. Blocked drainage slots and failed head flashings cause the same symptom. We water test before quoting so you are not paying for the wrong fix.
Recent Wellington jobs
Got three quotes for retrofitting the front of the house. Only ones who measured every opening and explained why the north facing rooms needed different glass. Eleven windows over two days, and the road noise dropped more than I expected.
Landlord here. Had four properties assessed for the Healthy Homes ventilation rule and two needed openable sashes freed up rather than new joinery, which saved me a fortune. Straight answers, written report, no upselling.
Ranch slider had been jamming for years and we assumed it needed replacing. Turned out to be rollers and a bent track. Two hours, a fraction of the price we were braced for.
Fogged unit in the lounge, measured on the Tuesday and in by the following Monday. Fair price and they cleaned up after themselves.
Get a price for window seal and gasket replacement in Wellington
Free measure, fixed written quote, and a straight answer on whether it needs repairing or replacing.
Start your quote
Four questions and you are done.