Architectural glass reseal is the middle option between a small repair and a full replacement. When the seals on an insulated glass skylight start to fail, resealing or replacing the affected glass units can bring the skylight back without rebuilding the whole thing. It is the honest first question to ask before quoting a replacement.
What “reseal” actually means
An insulated glass unit is two panes of glass with a sealed, often gas-filled space between them. The seal around the edge keeps moisture out and the insulating value in. Over years, especially on a skylight that takes full sun, that seal can break down. When it does, you get condensation between the panes and a drop in performance.
On many architectural skylights, the fix is to replace the failed insulated glass units, the sealed glass panels themselves, rather than the entire skylight structure. The frame and the architecture stay. The glass that lost its seal gets swapped for new.
A scope note: This works on custom architectural skylights that can be field-disassembled, pyramids, ridgelites, octagons, and similar units. Factory-sealed skylights, VELUX units and acrylic dome skylights, come sealed into their frames at the factory and cannot be reglazed this way. Those need a full unit replacement instead.
Reseal, replace the glass, or replace the unit?
There is a ladder here, and we always start at the cheapest rung that actually solves the problem:
- Reseal / replace the failed glass units when the frame is sound and only the glass seals have gone. Least expensive.
- Replace the glass with an upgrade if you also want better low-E or laminated glass while it is open.
- Full unit replacement only when the frame or structure itself is failing.
A typical job: A double-pitch skylight with glazed ends where three of the panels had fogged over from seal failure. The aluminum frame was perfectly sound. We replaced the failed insulated units and left everything else, clear glass again at a fraction of a rebuild.
What it typically costs
This is priced per project, based on how many panels have failed, the glass spec, and access. We will not guess at a number until we have actually looked at your skylight.
How it goes
Call, we come look and confirm whether it is the seals or the structure. If the frame is sound, we measure the failed units, order matching insulated glass, and replace them when it arrives.