Repairs here are mostly to things that get used constantly: a counter top that has cracked, a display case hinge, a shop door, a mirror, a glass shelf that has been overloaded. The buildings are old and the fittings are older, and almost everything is repaired in place rather than taken away.
Why a counter top cracks where it does
A glass counter top almost always cracks from the edge or a corner, not from the middle, and usually where it is unsupported.
A top resting on a frame that has dropped slightly sits on three points instead of four, and all the load goes through one corner.
So before replacing the glass we check the frame is flat. Putting a new top onto the same unlevel frame breaks it again, often within months. Packing the frame level first costs nothing and is the actual repair.
Glass shelves and what they will really carry
Shelves in these shops carry far more than shelves are designed for, and they fail suddenly rather than gradually.
The span matters more than the thickness. A shelf twice as long bends far more than twice as much, so adding a centre support does more than doubling the glass.
So when a shelf has broken we ask what was on it and how long the span was, then either shorten the span or thicken the glass. Replacing like for like puts the same weight back on the same span.
Repairing in place in an old building
Taking a fitting out of a shop here often means it will not go back in - the building has moved around it over the years, and the opening is no longer the size it was.
So we repair in place wherever we can: re-glaze a frame rather than replace it, re-hang a door rather than fit a new one.
Where something genuinely must come out, we measure the opening before removal rather than assuming the new one matches the old. In buildings of this age those two numbers are often different.
How the job works
- Tell us about the jobSend a few photos, rough sizes and what you need. Use WhatsApp or the form. For a repair, a short video of the door moving helps a lot.
- We call you back in about 2 minutesWe confirm what you need and a time to visit. Where we can, we give you a rough price on the call.
- We come and measureWe measure the opening and check the walls, floor and ceiling around it. Anything made to size is made to these measurements, so they must be right.
- You get a written priceIt lists each item, with GST as its own line. If anything about the job changes, we tell you before we go ahead.
- We fit itYou approve the price and pay the advance. Our own team fits the work, checks that every door and window opens and closes properly, and clears up. Most jobs are done in 3 to 4 days.
