Warndon grandmother bemused by drill holes in window

Carole Roberts said her home in Crickley Drive, Warndon is so cold that one time the buttons on her Sky remote froze and she had to put it under a warm pillow to 'thaw out'.

It started when she had a problem with condensation in her living room.

Her lounge window got so so steamed up she could not see out of it - and the situation got even worse when she was cooking.

However, she could not clear the condensation because the moisture was between the two layers of glass.

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The 67-year-old contacted Platform Housing and was grateful for the help when contractors arrived.

However, she was left bemused when the workmen drilled holes in one layer of glass in her double-glazed lounge windows.

HOLE: One of 10 drilled holes in the glass at Crickley Drive, Warndon (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

In total 10 holes were drilled and they were resealed using a liquid gel, successfully clearing the condensation.

But now most of the plugs have fallen out which is causing heat to leak out.

The holes are all in the outer layer of double glazing which means she is not completely exposed to the elements.

Recalling the work, she told workmen: "I've never seen this before. He said it was a new thing. But who drills holes in windows? It's crazy. I told my local councillor - Jill - what happened and she looked at me like I'd fallen off another planet."

The matter was reported to Platform on her behalf by Warndon councillor Jill Desayrah a month ago via email.

One neighbour even told Mrs Roberts: "Do you know you've got holes in your window?"

She said: "The living room is like a fridge. I would like some new windows. I don't want the holes plugged because the plugs are going to come back out again.

"It is a waste of energy. I have the heating on all the time," said Mrs Roberts who worked at the Warndon Fryer on Cranham Drive for 25 years. 

The great-grandmother suffers from rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, had two hip replacements and two knee replacements and has COPD.

Cllr Desayrah, who said the windows must have been substandard in the first place, added: "We need a proper sealed double-glazed unit - without any holes. It's not too much to ask for."

Marion Duffy, chief operations officer at Platform Housing Group, said: "We are sorry to hear of our customer's concerns regarding her windows; we will be sending a surveyor out to her home in order to assess the required repairs."