These were among the first towers here to be fitted out with frameless enclosures, and they are now old enough to show what frameless does over time. It is not what people expect: the glass is fine and the fixings are where the ageing shows, because a frameless panel puts all its load through a few points.
Where a frameless enclosure ages
A framed enclosure spreads its weight along a channel. A frameless one puts everything through a handful of brackets and hinges.
So over years those points take all the movement, and the first sign is a panel that has shifted very slightly or a door that no longer lines up with its catch.
That is not a failure and it is the moment to act. Re-setting the fixings and adjusting the hinges while the panel is still sound is straightforward; leaving it until something has moved visibly usually means the fixing hole has enlarged.
Why the door stops lining up
On a frameless door the catch is a small magnetic or mechanical strip on the glass edge, and it only works if the door returns to exactly the same place.
Worn hinges let the door drop a couple of millimetres, which is enough for the catch to miss.
So a door that has stopped holding closed is usually a hinge rather than a catch, and replacing the catch achieves nothing. We check the hinge first, which is the opposite of what most people try, and it is why the problem keeps coming back.
Whether the glass can be kept
In almost all of these the toughened glass is undamaged, and only the hardware has aged.
So the question is whether better hinges will match the existing drilled holes, because toughened glass cannot be re-drilled.
Where the centres match, you get a working enclosure for the price of hardware and labour, which is a fraction of a replacement. Where they do not, we say so rather than fitting something that only nearly lines up and will move again within a year.
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.
