How To: Fix A |work| Cracked House Window

For three weeks, I lived with the crack. I told myself it was "character." I told myself it added "thermal complexity." In reality, I was avoiding the four horsemen of home repair anxiety: Is this fixable? Do I need a new window? How much will this cost? Can I really do this myself?

Now go fix that crack before winter.

Shine your UV light on the crack for 2 minutes. If you're using the sun, cover the rest of the window with cardboard and leave the crack exposed for 10 minutes. how to fix a cracked house window

My crack? After the resin cured, it was 90% invisible. You could only see it if the low winter sun hit it at exactly 4:00 PM. For two years, it held. On the third year, a new crack branched off from the old one, like a tributary from a river. For three weeks, I lived with the crack

So clean the glass. Inject the resin. Cure it in the sun. And then, when you finally stop seeing the repair, you’ll remember that the purpose of a window is not to be flawless—it is to let the light in. How much will this cost

Take a new razor blade. Hold it at a 45-degree angle. Scrape off the hardened resin overfill. If you did it right, you will feel a slight bump where the crack was. If you did it wrong, you will see a milky white line that looks like a dried tear. The Philosophical Aftermath Here is what they don't tell you: The crack is still there.

If the crack is long, you will watch the resin move. It is mesmerizing. It is also unforgiving. If you see an air bubble, tap the glass gently to coax it out.