mixed
Secondary Glazing for Flats & Apartments
Flats & Apartments stock across South Yorkshire dates from the mixed — single-glazed sashes or 1990s PVCu that were never designed for modern noise or thermal targets. Flats have the toughest acoustic problem in the market — you can't fix the shared party walls, but you can absolutely fix the windows.
Local reference points
- Era
- mixed
- Typical window
- single-glazed sashes or 1990s PVCu
- Top problem
- neighbour noise and shared-airshaft sound leakage
- Recommended service
- Soundproofing
- Recommended product
- horizontal sliders
- Performance
- 45–54 dB reduction with a 100–150 mm cavity
Why flats & apartments owners choose secondary glazing
Every unit is designed to lift or slide clear so window-cleaner access on communal contracts is unaffected.
Freeholder consent is usually straightforward because the install is entirely inside your flat and fully reversible.
For city-centre flats we spec 6.8 mm acoustic laminated as the default — the largest single acoustic gain per pound spent.
Recommended: Soundproofing
cut outside noise by up to 80%
45–54 dB reduction with a 100–150 mm cavity
The acoustic gain comes from air-gap decoupling — a 100 mm cavity between the existing pane and the secondary pane detunes the resonant frequencies that carry traffic noise into a room.
Recent installs nearby
Broomhill student HMO acoustic upgrade
12 bedrooms retrofitted between academic years with 6.4 mm laminated horizontal sliders.
S2 HMO portfolio rollout
22 ground-floor bedrooms across a five-property portfolio fitted with key-locked hinged units to insurer specification.
Nether Edge Grade II sash retrofit
Six original box sashes fitted with balanced vertical secondary sliders — full listed-building consent secured in six weeks.
Common questions
Will secondary glazing stop conversation-level noise from a neighbour?
Yes — mid-frequency speech is exactly what a laminated secondary pane damps hardest. We'd typically spec 6.8 mm on the secondary and keep the primary as-is.
Do you install in flats and communal buildings?
Yes — the install is entirely inside your flat, so freeholder consent is usually straightforward and window-cleaner access to the primary window is unaffected.
Does it help with train and tram rumble?
It's very effective — the low-frequency energy is absorbed by the air-gap decoupling. A mismatched pane thickness widens the acoustic dip that train rumble usually punches through.
Do you supply the acoustic performance data insurers ask for?
Yes — every acoustic-specified install ships with a performance report you can hand directly to an insurer or building-control officer.
Is there a warranty?
Yes — 10 years on the manufacture and installation, and a manufacturer's warranty on the glass units.
Prefer to talk it through?
Give us five minutes on the phone and we'll steer you to the right specification.
Next step for flats & apartments owners
Send us photos of one or two windows and we'll come back with a written quote and a spec sheet you can compare against replacement double glazing.