Broken glass · Winnipeg
Broken or cracked window glass, replaced without replacing the window
A stone off the mower, a ball, or a crack that crept in from the corner during a cold snap. Most of the time the frame is fine and only the glass needs replacing: a single pane, or a sealed unit built for the window you already have. We connect you with an independent local glass pro who replaces house window glass and can often quote from photos. Hail has its own page on storm-damaged windows.
- New glass in the frame you already have
- Sealed units made to size, double or triple
- Board-up first when it can't wait
Crack or break
Can cracked glass be repaired, or does it need replacing?
A crack in house glass can't be filled the way a windshield chip sometimes can. The glass is thinner and usually part of a sealed unit, so the fix is new glass. (For your car, you want an auto glass shop; this page is about house window glass.) The real question is how soon.
A crack that's still tight
A clean line with no gap you can feel. It will likely run with the next hard freeze or a slammed sash, so plan the replacement, but it isn't an emergency.
A star in one pane of a sealed unit
The outer pane can crack while the inner one holds. The room stays warm, but the seal is broken and the unit will fog, so the whole sealed unit is replaced.
Broken through, or loose pieces
Glass open to the weather or likely to fall needs covering today. Our emergency glass and board-up page has the safe first steps.
Sealed units
Sealed unit replacement: new glass in your existing frame
Most Winnipeg windows from the last few decades hold a sealed unit: two or three panes with a spacer between them, sealed around the edge. When a pane cracks or the seal lets go, sealed unit replacement swaps that glass package and leaves the window alone.
The pro measures the glass, not the window, and notes double or triple pane, overall thickness and any low-E coating. The unit is made to order. On the second visit, the old unit comes out, the new one goes in on setting blocks, and the stops or glazing tape go back on. Frame, trim and hardware stay as they were.
It's a worthy job even on one small window. You keep a frame that already fits a house that has settled, and in many frames a double-pane unit can move up to triple pane if the sash can carry the weight. Haze between the panes with no crack is a seal failure; see foggy sealed units.
Winter breaks
Broke in January? Keeping the cold out until the new glass arrives
A sealed unit is made to order, so there's a gap between the break and the fix. At −30, that gap matters. The usual order when a rock comes through the front window:
Make it safe
Keep people and pets out, wear shoes and gloves, and pick up the large pieces before vacuuming. If the inner pane is still whole, leave it; it's holding the heat.
Take photos
The whole window, the break and whatever came through it, before cleanup if you can. If you plan to claim it, your insurer will likely ask for them.
Cover the opening
Plywood over the outside trim, heavy plastic inside, or a cut sheet of plexiglass. A board-up pro can do it if you can't.
Measure for the new unit
The pro measures, orders the sealed unit and books the install. Ask about the wait so the board doesn't stay up all winter.
Glass types
Single panes, tempered and laminated glass: what goes where
The pro matches what's there now, and what the building code expects in that spot.
Single pane
Storm windows, older wood sash, basement hoppers, garages. Cut to size and set with putty or stops.
Sealed units
Double or triple pane, in most casements, sliders and picture windows. Built to the size and thickness of the unit coming out.
Tempered
Breaks into small pieces instead of shards. Codes call for safety glass in places like sliding doors, storm doors and tub enclosures. Always ordered to size.
Laminated
Two layers bonded to a clear interlayer, so broken glass stays in the frame. Chosen for security, noise and some storefronts.
Frame check
When the frame, not the glass, is the problem
New glass only helps if the frame can hold it. A pro looks for soft wood at the sill, a vinyl frame cracked at the corners, a sash that no longer closes square, or water sitting in the frame and wearing seals from below. Any of those sends new glass back to failure.
Then a new window is the honest answer; retrofit or full-frame replacement explains the two ways it's done. It's also the only route to a rebate. Efficiency Manitoba excludes glass inserts without a full frame, so a sealed unit alone won't qualify, while a complete ENERGY STAR triple-pane window might.
What affects the quote
What affects the quote for new window glass
Glass is built for your opening, so the quote depends on the window. These move it most:
- Size and shape, including tall picture units and arched tops
- Single pane, or a double or triple-pane sealed unit
- Tempered, laminated, low-E or tinted glass
- How the glass is held: stops, tape, putty, or a sash that has to come out
- Access and storey, such as a second floor or a unit behind a storm
- Whether a board-up is needed first
A photo of the whole window, a close-up of the break, and a rough width and height let a pro price it before visiting.
Businesses
Shops and storefronts
Commercial glass is a different job: bigger lites, tempered or laminated glass, aluminum frames, and a business that wants its door open tomorrow. The first steps are the same, safe and covered. For the replacement, see storefront glass repair and replacement.
Questions
Broken glass questions
Explore your options
Related window glass problems
Local pros replace broken glass and sealed units across the city and in nearby towns, including Garden City, North Kildonan, Transcona, St. Boniface and Selkirk.
Snap a photo of the broken pane
Send it with a rough width and height. We'll pass it to a local glass pro who replaces panes and sealed units, and they'll quote from there. If the frame's sound, only the glass changes.