The Window Cleaner's Sixth Sense: Reading the Small Signs That Your St Clement Glazing Is Growing Old

Your window cleaner has a strange advantage. They turn up every few weeks, work their way around the outside of the house, and look closely at the same bits of glass and frame that most of us glance at from the sofa. They are not inspecting your windows. They are just cleaning them. But repetition makes people notice things. A seal that looked fine in spring can look a little chalky by autumn. A handle that used to move smoothly can start to feel vague. A drainage slot that once did its job quietly can begin to hold onto water.

None of this is a reason to panic. Most of it is ordinary wear, especially on older St Clement homes that have seen a few decades of weather. But those small clues are worth understanding, because they tend to arrive long before a window actually fails. Think of this as a neighbourly translation guide — what the person with the squeegee sees, what it usually means, and how you can check the same spots yourself without climbing a ladder or convincing yourself the whole house is falling down.

The six-weekly inspection you never booked

Window cleaners notice patterns. They see the same pane in different light, at different times of year, with different amounts of dirt on it. They also see the things homeowners stop seeing because they are there every day. A smear of chalky residue near a corner. A faint tide mark on an internal sill. A handle that needs an extra push. A drainage channel with a little green shadow in it.

None of these are dramatic. That is the point. Double glazing rarely fails overnight. It usually gives you a series of small hints first, and those hints are easier — and cheaper — to deal with when they are still small.

Chalky seals: the talcum-powder tell

Run a finger along the rubbery gasket where the glass meets the frame — the flexible strip that keeps draughts and water out. On a healthy window it should feel supple, not slippery or crumbly. As gaskets age, they can dry out and leave a faint white, powdery residue on your fingertip. It looks a bit like talcum powder.

A little chalkiness is normal on a window that has been in place for years. It becomes more interesting if the gasket feels brittle, has visible cracks, or has shrunk away from the corner. That is when draughts and water can start finding a way in. The good news is that gaskets are often replaceable without changing the whole window. It is a maintenance job, not necessarily a replacement job.

Water tracking where it shouldn't

Water is very good at finding the smallest route. If your window cleaner mentions a dark line or a faint stain on the internal reveal — the plastered edge beside the window — it is worth looking at. Water tracking behind the frame can come from a failed bead of sealant, a blocked drainage path, or a gap that has opened up over time.

Not every mark is a leak. Some older homes have minor staining from past condensation or a long-forgotten repair. But if the mark is new, grows after heavy rain, or feels damp to the touch, get it looked at. Water that gets behind a frame rarely improves on its own, and the earlier it is caught, the less chance it has to affect the surrounding plaster or timber.

A handle that needs a second go

The handle is the part of the window you actually touch, so it is often the first thing to feel tired. A handle that has become stiff, loose, or needs a firm push before the window locks properly is usually telling you about the mechanism rather than the glass. Lubrication can help. Sometimes a small internal part has worn. Occasionally the window has dropped slightly on its hinges, which throws the locking points out of line.

This is rarely an emergency, but it is not something to ignore either. A window that does not lock properly is a security question as much as a draught question. If you have to jiggle the handle every time, ask a local glazier to take a look. It is often a quick adjustment.

Clouded corners and the edge seal

Look at the very edge of the glass, where it disappears into the frame. On a sealed unit, that edge is where the spacer bar and the perimeter seal live. When that seal starts to go, moisture can get between the panes. The first sign is often a faint haze or a milky patch at one corner, rather than a full pane of condensation.

Condensation on the inside of the room is normal in certain weather. Condensation between the panes is not. If you can see mist or droplets that will not wipe away because they are inside the glass, the sealed unit has failed. The frame may be perfectly sound. In many cases only the glass unit needs replacing, which is a more contained job than a full window replacement.

The drainage channel that quietly stopped draining

Modern windows have small drainage paths — weep holes and slots — that let water escape instead of sitting in the frame. They are easy to forget about because they work silently. When they block with dirt, pollen, or moss, water can pool in the bottom of the frame. Your window cleaner may notice a green tinge or a line of debris in the channel.

You can check this from inside with a torch and a phone camera, or simply by looking closely at the bottom of the frame on a dry day. Do not poke at the drainage holes with anything sharp. A soft brush or a gentle rinse is usually enough. If water is standing in the frame after rain, or if the channel looks permanently damp, it is worth getting advice.

What's normal, what's worth a closer look

Normal wear includes slightly stiff handles, minor fading of rubber, a little dirt in the drainage slots, and the occasional stubborn smudge that needs a second wipe. Older windows are allowed to look older.

Worth a closer look: water appearing inside the room after rain, mist between the panes that does not clear, a handle that no longer locks, cracked glass, or a frame that feels soft or crumbly when pressed. Those are the clues that move from maintenance to repair.

A ground-level check anyone can do

You do not need a ladder. Stand back from the house and use the zoom on your phone camera to look at the top corners of each window. Check the gaskets you can reach from inside. Open and close each handle. Look at the bottom drainage slots with a torch. After heavy rain, glance at the internal reveals for new damp patches. Keep a small note of anything that changes — it is much easier than trying to remember whether that corner looked like that last winter.

If two or three small clues are adding up, ring a local glazing firm for a look. Not because the sky is falling, but because small glazing problems are usually cheaper and calmer to sort out before they have had a few more seasons to settle in.