Glass
Window and Glass Replacement
In short: A leaking RV window is usually a failed seal between the frame and the sidewall rather than failed glass, so replacing the glass fixes nothing and the frame has to come out to fix it properly.
- Typical range
- $400 to $6,500+
- Labor hours
- 2 to 30 hours
- Updated
Windows are the second most common water entry point on a recreational vehicle after the roof, and they are the one most often repaired incorrectly.
Why the seal fails
An RV window frame is bedded into the sidewall opening on butyl tape and clamped from inside. The butyl is the seal. It has a service life, it hardens with UV and heat, and it shrinks away from the surfaces it was bedded against.
Once that happens, water enters between the frame flange and the sidewall. It does not appear at the window. It runs down inside the wall cavity, and the first thing anyone notices is a stain, a soft spot or delamination somewhere below.
The tempting repair is to run a bead of sealant around the outside of the frame. That is worse than doing nothing, because water already inside the wall now cannot get out, and the visible symptom disappears while the damage continues.
The correct repair is to remove the frame, remove every trace of old butyl from both surfaces, inspect and repair the opening, and reseat on fresh material.
What we do
Reseal. Frame out, opening inspected, fresh butyl, frame back, clamped correctly. The most common job.
Glass replacement in an existing frame. For breakage, or for failed dual pane units where the frame is sound.
Full window replacement. Where the frame is corroded, distorted or beyond repair.
Opening repair. Where water has already damaged the structure around the window, which it frequently has by the time anyone investigates.
Discontinued sourcing and fabrication. Window makers such as Hehr, Kinro and A&E supplied many coach builders, so windows are often available by size and profile even when the coach manufacturer is gone. Where nothing matches, we adapt a current window to the opening or fabricate a frame.
Emergency exit windows. Which have specific requirements and latch mechanisms that must function.
Commercial and fleet glass. Truck, van and bus glass including laminated and tempered units and glass with heating or antenna elements.
Dual pane fogging
Insulated glass units in coaches fail the same way they do in houses: the perimeter seal gives up, moisture enters the cavity, and it fogs permanently.
There is no repair. The glass unit is replaced, and the frame is nearly always reusable.
On a coach with many dual pane windows this becomes a rolling maintenance item as units reach the end of their life. Replacing them individually as they fail is usually the sensible approach rather than doing all of them at once.
What we find behind windows
Removing a window frame is one of the more revealing operations on a coach, and what is commonly behind one that has been leaking:
- Rotted framing around the opening
- Delaminated substrate in the surrounding sidewall
- Corroded fasteners that will not hold a frame properly once refitted
- Previous repair attempts, usually layers of sealant applied over the outside
- Water tracking that extends well below the window
Any of those has to be dealt with before a window goes back, because bedding a frame into a soft opening produces a window that leaks again quickly. That is where this job crosses into water damage restoration.
What it costs
| Job | Typical range | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Window reseal | $400 to $1,200 | 2 to 6 |
| Glass replacement in existing frame | $600 to $2,000 | 3 to 9 |
| Dual pane unit replacement | $700 to $2,200 | 3 to 9 |
| Full window replacement | $900 to $3,500 | 4 to 15 |
| With opening structural repair | $2,500 to $6,500 | 12 to 30 |
Body labor is $210 per hour. Parts over $100 carry 35 percent markup and special order glass requires a non-refundable deposit because it cannot be returned. See the pricing page.
Inspection
Windows are worth checking twice a year alongside the roof. From outside, look at the sealant line where the frame meets the wall for cracking, shrinkage or gaps. From inside, remove or lift the interior trim where you can and look for staining at the bottom corners, which is where water collects first.
Press the wall below each window. Softness there is the classic early sign, and finding it at that stage keeps the repair to a reseal rather than a rebuild.
Estimates are $150 and credited back against an authorized repair.
Egress windows
Every coach with sleeping accommodation has at least one designated emergency exit window, marked with a red latch or a label. It has to open fully, from inside, without tools, by someone who has just woken up in the dark.
They fail quietly. Latches corrode and stiffen, hinges seize, and paint or sealant applied over the frame during a previous repair bonds the window shut. Owners discover this during an annual check if they perform one, and otherwise they do not discover it.
We check egress operation on every coach that comes through for glass work regardless of what it came in for, and we do not seal over an egress latch or hinge. If yours has not been opened in the last year, open it. It takes a minute and the failure mode of finding out at the wrong moment is not recoverable.