Door glass · Kingston
New glass for a door, sidelight or transom, without a new door
A cracked front-door insert, a cloudy sidelight or a broken transom pane doesn't mean the door is done. Usually the glass comes out and a new piece, made to size, goes in while the door stays. We connect homeowners in Kingston, Ontario with an independent local glass professional who does door glass, and they confirm what your door will take. For other door trouble, start at patio and glass doors.
- Keep the door, replace the glass
- Safety glass where the code calls for it
- Care with heritage entrances
What we can match
Door glass we can match you for
Front door inserts
The glazed panel in a steel or fibreglass door, held by a frame screwed through from inside.
Sidelights
The tall panes beside a front door, replaced in their frame, often without touching the door.
Transoms
The window above the door, often a single pane in wood that can be reglazed.
Storm and interior doors
Glazed interior doors, and storm door panes; see storm door glass and closers.
The rules
Safety glazing rules for doors and sidelights
Ontario's Building Code calls for safety glass, tempered or laminated, in storm doors and sliding doors, in sidelights that could be mistaken for a doorway, and in larger panes that reach low in an entrance door. The safety glazing section we've read is from the edition before the 2024 code, so the glass pro orders to the current rules.
Tempered glass can't be cut once it's made, so each piece is made to exact size, with a wait between measuring and fitting.
Stone entrances
Transoms and entrances on older and heritage homes
After downtown burned in 1840, much of it was rebuilt in limestone and brick, and many older entrances keep a transom and sidelights. Their glass is often bedded in putty in wood, and a cracked pane can usually be reglazed without disturbing the frame.
On a designated property, or in the Barriefield, Market Square or Old Sydenham conservation districts, altering windows or trim can need a heritage permit, while maintenance is exempt. Ring Heritage Planning before ordering glass that looks different from what's there.
Our limestone and heritage homes guide explains how to check your house's status.
Glass styles
Clear, textured, privacy and decorative inserts
Clear
The most light, and a view of who's on the step.
Textured or frosted
Reeded or satin-etched glass blurs the view in and still lets light through.
Decorative
Bevelled and leaded-look inserts. On a heritage house, match the pattern already there.
Glass or door?
Swap the insert or replace the door?
Replace the glass when the door is sound: it closes and seals, and the slab and frame are solid.
Consider a new door when the glass is one of several problems, such as a warped slab or rotted frame; entry doors covers that choice. If a pane is broken now, broken window glass has the steps for making it safe until new glass arrives.
What affects the quote
What makes door glass cost more or less
Door glass is custom work, so the quote follows the piece:
- Size and shape, including arched transoms
- Tempered or laminated glass, and whether it's a sealed unit
- Clear, textured or decorative glass
- How it's held: a screw-on insert frame, wood stops or old putty
- Matching an original pattern on an older entrance
Photograph the door from both sides, the damage up close, and one corner showing how the glass is held. The pro takes the final measurements on site.
Questions
Door glass questions
Explore your options
Related door and glass pages
Local glass pros replace door glass across Kingston, including older entrances in downtown Kingston, Sydenham Ward, Williamsville and Barriefield.
Photograph the door from both sides
Add a close-up of the damage. We pass it to a local glass professional who replaces door glass, and they come back with options and a quote.