Foggy Double Pane Windows in Houston

Touring glass manufacturing plants across Europe and Asia taught me exactly how perimeter seals are engineered, and exactly how they fail. In Houston, we push those seals to their absolute limit. The intense daily cycle of heat and humidity breaks down materials faster here than almost anywhere else in the country.

Why is there a milky haze trapped inside your window glass?

An insulated unit consists of two lites of glass separated by a spacer. A desiccant inside the spacer absorbs trace moisture, and a perimeter sealant keeps it airtight. Houston forces that cavity to expand in the 95-degree afternoon sun and contract in the air-conditioned evening. Eventually, the seal breathes. The desiccant saturates, and the next cool evening leaves liquid water inside the glass.

Will drilling a hole in the glass actually fix the problem?

You will see local services offering to drill the glass, vent the cavity, and defog it. I am telling you not to buy this service. It is a cosmetic trick. It removes the visible moisture, but it does not restore the sealed cavity, it does not replace the insulating gas fill, and it does not fix the etched Low-E coating. You are paying for a patch. Save your money and either replace the glass unit properly or leave it alone.

When should you re-glaze instead of replacing the entire window?

A fogged unit is not an emergency. The window still keeps the rain out. Take your time. Re-glazing just the glass is the right answer when the frame and hardware are completely sound. Replacing the entire window is necessary when the frame is a highly conductive 1980s aluminum system, or when the flashing has failed and water is leaking into your walls.

We manufacture replacement units and install them. Check the three tier comparison and read about repair versus replacement before making a decision.