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Double Glazing on narrow boats


Fly Navy

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How common is it for glazing on 'modern' NB's (post 2000?) to be double glazed?

 

Secondly, if the chosen NB does not have double glazing, how easy would it be to retro fit DG?

(In a house, it is obviously very easy provided there was enough meat on the cills and frames).

[I don't much fancy the idea of secondary glazing!].

 

There must be significant heat loss on boats with single glazing?

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5 minutes ago, Fly Navy said:

How common is it for glazing on 'modern' NB's (post 2000?) to be double glazed?

 

Secondly, if the chosen NB does not have double glazing, how easy would it be to retro fit DG?

(In a house, it is obviously very easy provided there was enough meat on the cills and frames).

[I don't much fancy the idea of secondary glazing!].

 

There must be significant heat loss on boats with single glazing?

My boat is double glazed from new. You could buy single glazed units from the same company to replace them if you so wished so I would think the other way is doable as long as the hole is correct in the cabin side. DG is very expensive. Is it worth the extra? Not in my opinion, non of my sg boats have been cold. Other opinions from people who have had both are valid. DG does make things slightly quieter. Bye the way are you a WAFU?

Edited by mrsmelly
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Boat double glazing has a few drawbacks: The frames are not as good insulators as house ones, or the glazed unit so frame condensation can be a problem.  Juzt like on SG windows though.

The units have to be quite thick to be effective and this can give difficulties with appearance and internal fitting.

They are much more expensive, and given that most of us have more than enough heat going into the boat at minimum heater settings, may not ha ve as much benefit as in the house set-up.

N

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6 minutes ago, Markinaboat said:

Quite e few people have fitted quality perspex panels with magnetic tape surround.

I priced it up for our boat, but haven't as yet gone ahead. Using magnetic strip from ebay and a local firm to cut and supply the Acrylic/polycarbonate sheet for our boat (10 windows) was less than 200 quid iirc

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Double glazing is great, worth having for the soundproofing alone. Also stronger, potentially minimising damage from objects thrown, stones from mowing/strimming and casual attempts to break in. Insulation is definitely improved. 

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I think the main problem with windows for us in the winter is condensation. Double glazing will certainly eliminate condensation on the window but will it get rid of it on the frame if the frame is metal? Heard someone with a brand new boat lamenting that he was having bad condensation from the frame on a double glazed window causing staining to the wood beneath.

The temperature problem is not so much an issue with us if you turn the stove up ......with a decent fan of course. We have just done the back two windows with 3M's film and its made the condensation 95% better where we sleep. No good if you need to open the windows and looks naff but Mrs Bob doesnt get dripped on any more.?

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Condensation on the inside of the glass isn't much of a problem in my book since, if left, it only trickles down the glass and into the frame drain to the outside.  Its the condensation on the frame itself that does the damage as the only place for that to trickle down to is the joinery.  Double glazing without a good thermal break in the frame may give you clear glass, but won't solve the bigger problem.  

 

I think the FAA's "Pusser's Rum" has gone now so contact HMS Nelson and take "Emma", "Andrew" or "Shy Talk" out for a week in the cooler months and get some relatively cheap real world experience of the issue before making your boat purchase.  The ideal narrowboat is already quite a compromise,  so you're likely to discover that finding "the" boat for you is hard enough without making specific windows a red line. 

 

Welcome to the forum Fly Navy - there's a few ex-matelots here, though I'm not aware of any that are still serving. Too bloomin' busy I guess ('cept for the Woos, obviously)!  :)

 

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3 hours ago, Dr Bob said:

I think the main problem with windows for us in the winter is condensation. Double glazing will certainly eliminate condensation on the window but will it get rid of it on the frame if the frame is metal? Heard someone with a brand new boat lamenting that he was having bad condensation from the frame on a double glazed window causing staining to the wood beneath.

The temperature problem is not so much an issue with us if you turn the stove up ......with a decent fan of course. We have just done the back two windows with 3M's film and its made the condensation 95% better where we sleep. No good if you need to open the windows and looks naff but Mrs Bob doesnt get dripped on any more.?

I have used this for several years now on the 5 front "bus" windows and condensation has been completely eliminated on these. Adequate ventilation is still provided by the porthole windows at the back, along with opening galley and bathroom windows; even in summer when I have left it on. It's hardly noticeable on mine with a neat tight fit.

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19 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

I think you really need to have single glazing as it helps to cool the boat (heat sink) - if you had double glazing then you'd have the windows open all the time and get a draft.

 

Boats get too hot, not too cold.

Speak for yourself. Our boat definitely gets too cold at this time of year if we leave the (Refleks) stove on its lowest setting and just one or two (single-glazed) windows cracked for ventilation; typically that will maintain the temperature at about 12C in the saloon (lower towards the back of the boat). Medium setting, high teens. Highest setting, maybe high twenties (we haven't tried it for long). To get the boat 'too hot' we'd have to make a conscious decision to burn twice as much fuel as necessary. I can only assume you're used to stoves that can't be persuaded not to burn more fuel than is actually needed to maintain a comfortable temperature?

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7 minutes ago, magictime said:

Speak for yourself. Our boat definitely gets too cold at this time of year if we leave the (Refleks) stove on its lowest setting and just one or two (single-glazed) windows cracked for ventilation; typically that will maintain the temperature at about 12C in the saloon (lower towards the back of the boat).

Same here.Leaving the morso on overnight, the saloon will remain at 10 degrees c, but ice does form on the windows. Letting the stove go out on a cold night as last night was (-4) will result in the saloon falling to 0 degrees.

 

Burning the fuel at a higher  rate overnight would result in a saloon that was too hot, and also too hot in bed.

 

Our boat isn't particularly well insulated (rockwool).

 

Anything forecast below 0 degrees, I light the other morso in the bedroom, and leave it on low overnight.

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20 hours ago, Fly Navy said:

That's interesting feedback - thank you.

 

(and yes I am a WAFU!).

Ahh thought so, forum name was a big clue obviously. I wonder how many forum members on here have had to google to see what I meant when I asked!! :cheers:

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SeaDog - have plenty of experience sailing yachts and owning and driving cabin cruisers but when I was thinking of what to do during retirement, it needed to encapsulate a series of interests.

 

Mr Smelly(?) - Does your handle point to you being a submariner then ??

We were/are only called wafu's by sailors because deep down they are jealous of our lifestyle!!

I 'normally' restore and enjoy classic cars, love engines etc. I have also built my own house from scratch. I love messing on the water and enjoy mixing with other people. Narrow Boats seems the answer. My plan is to 'mess' about with NB's, not necessarily living in them but refurbishing one if needed and pottering about locally. My 'base' will be Chirk and so I have the added advantage of experiencing a World Heritage Site too!  (Not forgetting the Poncysyllte Aquaduct!).

So NB's suits my majority needs - what it doesn't do (being an ex aviator) is provide me with the need for speed!  But I have that in bucketfulls with my car!

I'm looking at a mid 2000 onwards 50+ foot cruiser.

 

Back to double glazing - ooops, I seem to have opened a can of worms here!  Good points indeed from both camps.  Mmmmm?

Edited by Fly Navy
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9 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

I did. I thought it stood for West African Football Union.

Wafu School of Ikebana, a school of Japanese flower arranging, that was founded in 1912 by Wafu Teshigahara. Gudo Wafu Nishijima. The West African Football Union uses the acronym WAFU. Wafū dressing, a Japanese salad dressing. ?

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14 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

Anything forecast below 0 degrees, I light the other morso in the bedroom, and leave it on low overnight.

Two stoves? Get you!

 

Yeah, I sometimes wonder about a back boiler to feed hot water from the Refleks to the radiators, or running the Mikuni morning and evening, because the bedroom especially does get chilly. But we don't actually find we're cold in bed under the duvet, so it feels like a bit of a waste really.

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Markinaboat: WAFU is the term used by "real" sailors onboard ships that have aircraft. It is used for members of the Fleet Air Arm when they are embarked on carriers or frigates etc.

Wet and ***king Useless, I believe the term is!  I was a pilot for 17 years on Carriers and Frigates.  Never called a WAFU .........to my face of course!

At the end of the day we had a job to do - and all of us did it well.

 

 

I believe I may have found a name for my boat now?

Edited by Fly Navy
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1 minute ago, magictime said:

Two stoves? Get you!

 

Yeah, I sometimes wonder about a back boiler to feed hot water from the Refleks to the radiators, or running the Mikuni morning and evening, because the bedroom especially does get chilly. But we don't actually find we're cold in bed under the duvet, so it feels like a bit of a waste really.

We suffered 17 winters with only one,and although warm in the bed, the woodwork was beginning to suffer. The morso at the pointy end has a back boiler, but unless it is roaring, the rad in the bedroom doesn't get that hot. I spose a pump may have improved things, but chose the other option.

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52 minutes ago, Fly Navy said:

Markinaboat: WAFU is the term used by "real" sailors onboard ships that have aircraft. It is used for members of the Fleet Air Arm when they are embarked on carriers or frigates etc.

Wet and ***king Useless, I believe the term is!  I was a pilot for 17 years on Carriers and Frigates.  Never called a WAFU .........to my face of course!

At the end of the day we had a job to do - and all of us did it well.

 

 

I believe I may have found a name for my boat now?

I knew it was a naval air term but a tongue in cheek one ?

 

I spent a week on HMS Eagle as a sea cadet. We got into all sorts of trouble!

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