Owners of old window structures seek to replace them with new plastic windows, wanting to provide good thermal insulation of the room. In practice, replacing a window is only the first step, which must be followed by the second - in the form of decoration and insulation of the slopes. Positive results directly depend on how to insulate the slopes of the plastic windows inside and outside in such a way that the operation of the new frames brings exclusive benefits to the owners.
Why it is worth doing insulation
First of all, it is worth noting that warming is an essential part of a quality installation of a window system, which subsequently not only lasts longer, but is distinguished by high functionality. The main reasons requiring warming:
- The frame of the window does not fit snugly on the surface of the slopes, leaving appropriate seams that are often filled with foam for sealing. This material shows excellent thermal insulation properties, but often reacts to moisture and temperature changes, undergoing destruction and loss of basic functions.
- Window boxes, devoid of additional decoration, are poorly protected from external factors. If you do not conduct insulation, the joints will be exposed to water, which, under the influence of low temperature, will lead to the destruction of the fasteners and the window.
- After shrinkage of the structure, free spaces are formed between the window frame and the openings, which lead to freezing and cold air inside the room.
- For insulated windows, accumulation of condensate from the inside is not characteristic, leading to the formation of fungus or mold.
In addition to functionality, insulation of window slopes will give the design a stylish appearance that will harmoniously merge with the interior of the room.
How to insulate slopes
Let's consider several options, thanks to which, you can make warm slopes with your own hands. So:
- Styrofoam. The material shows good qualities of insulation and is one of the inexpensive in the segment of thermal insulation. But there is one significant minus: due to the porous structure, the material is able to accumulate moisture inside.
- Penoplex can be used as an analogue of polystyrene, which is not inferior to it in the properties of high-quality insulation for internal slopes and external, but is resistant to moisture.
- Plaster followed by painting. A proven way to insulate slopes on windows made of plastic or wood, assuming excellent hydro and thermal insulation with the right technology.
- Plastering followed by finishing with decorative plaster. Good functionality, which at the end can be successfully combined with the interior of the room.
Also, fiberglass can be used as insulation. The big advantage of the material is its excellent insulation: it does not allow moisture and does not allow air from the street. But it should be borne in mind that warming the slopes of plastic windows with your own hands using fiberglass will be very difficult to do.
You can insulate the slopes on the windows with any of the proposed materials, but it is important to remember that the work should be carried out in relation to both internal and external slopes. If it blows from the windows, outside it is necessary to carefully close up all the empty places of the windows through which drafts penetrate the room. Qualitatively carried out work will not allow windows to freeze inside from low temperatures, forming frost or ice on the frame area. When warming window slopes, do not forget to do the same with the windowsill. It can be foamed or carefully laid with foam all voids.
We insulate the inner side
Having decided what to insulate the slopes, we turn to practice. Sometimes it happens that when a plastic window is installed, despite a good foam treatment, the windows get wet and blow strongly from the slopes. This often acts as a result of a negligent installation, as a result of which, the design will have to be put in order on its own.
Primary Tasks:
- Remove residual foam.
- Primer the surface with an antibacterial effect to prevent mold in the future.
- We plaster the area of the window, achieving a flat surface on which foam can subsequently be glued seamlessly.
- We clean the plastered places well, pass with a primer and begin to lay the insulation.
- In the case of polystyrene, its surface must be scratched with an emery sheet to reduce smoothness. After which the material can be safely glued to the slopes. Cutting out the necessary pieces of polystyrene foam, measure out slightly larger sizes, which can always be cut off instead of gluing the missing pieces.
- Let the structure dry out and putty on the corner.
- After laying the foam, we proceed to the finish coating, chosen to our own taste. This can be gypsum plasterboard or decorative plastering.
Having figured out in practice how to insulate the slopes of plastic windows inside, we move on to external work.
We warm the outside
For owners of apartments in high-rise buildings, it is always better to entrust the insulation of the slopes of plastic windows outside in the absence of a balcony by professional installers to avoid possible risks of falling from a height. If you have a balcony, do not forget about insurance and caution.
So, how to properly insulate the slopes from the outside:
- In the case of a new installation, we first remove the excess foam and process the surface with a primer with protection against fungus and mold.
- Plastering is required if the slopes on the windows are made with irregularities.
- To improve thermal insulation, we choose Penoplex insulation. We cut the material into pieces of the desired size, pass with special glue and glue it to the surface. For strength, Penoplex can be fixed with dowels with self-tapping screws in the shape of a mushroom. Such parts do not break the structure of the material and hold it well on the vertical surface of the plastic window.
- Next is the installation of a special corner.
- We apply glue to the insulated external slopes and place a fiberglass mesh in it, carefully level the surface. Allow to dry a little and apply another layer of glue, then equalize with a spatula.
- After the surface has completely dried, we apply a water-based paint.
The outer side of the foam, the layer of plaster and paint will not allow cold air to enter the room, and the warm slopes from the inside will shift the dew point to the side of the outer walls. After the completion of street and interior work, the installation of warm slopes on the windows can be considered completed. Do not forget: the amount of heat in the room in winter will largely depend on how to insulate the slopes of plastic windows from the street, so do not take the time to perform the technology in accordance with all the rules and avoid rework in the future.
Door slope insulation
In addition to the windows, it will not be superfluous to warm the wooden or metal entrance doors, which are equally responsible for the comfortable temperature in the room.
As a door insulation, you can choose polystyrene boards with a density of 35%. We start the insulation of door slopes:
- We completely clear the surface of traces of paint, plaster or tile.
- We cover the work site with a primer and leave to dry for 2.5 hours.
- We proceed to gluing polystyrene by applying a portion of glue with a spatula to each of the plates. Let the material dry well.
- We fix the insulation additionally on plastic dowels with a perforator.
- We glue the finished areas with a plastic mesh, which will protect the surface from the appearance of small cracks. For the glue to completely dry, it will take from 5 to 12 hours, depending on the room temperature.
- After complete drying over the plastic mesh, apply a layer of putty. If it was not possible to level the surface with the first layer, feel free to apply the next one taking into account the drying of all areas.
- We treat the dried putty with coarse-grained emery sheets and apply a layer of primer.
- We cover the areas with paint.
On this, the insulation of the slopes of the front door can be considered completely finished. Thorough insulation of all window and door openings will contribute to excellent thermal insulation of the room. Do not forget the technology that tells how to make the process right, then the work will bring excellent results.