Windows, doors and glazing
Nothing on the visit sampled float glass, opened a missing draught bead or tested a rattle the survey heard and did not price. What has to stay undecided?
What the float glass is, what the missing draught bead lets past, and what the rattle means all stay undecided. Nothing sampled the glass, opened the missing bead's rebate, or tested the rattle the survey heard and did not price. Float glass is flat modern glass, if that is what the pane is. A draught bead is the seal or bead that closes a gap. The survey has not costed the rattle, has not found its cause, and has not decided the pane must be replaced.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
Float glass is flat modern glass, unlike older curved glass. A survey may say a pane looks like float. It does not sample the edge. A missing draught bead leaves a gap, but the rebate was not opened to see why the bead has gone. A rattle is a noise. Hearing it is not measuring it, and the report does not put a price on it. The three notes need not share one cause.
Tell the solicitor the rattle was heard and not priced, and that the glass and the bead were not investigated. A joiner can find the rattle and the missing bead without this survey putting a figure on the work. The lender has no cost and no glass sample. Do not invent a price from the fact the survey withheld one. The cause of the noise stays open, and so does the question of what the pane actually is.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Was the float glass left unsampled?
- Did you leave the missing draught bead unopened?
- Was the rattle heard and deliberately not priced?
What are the typical next steps?
- Leave the glass, the bead and the rattle undecided.
- Ask a joiner to find the noise without expecting a price in the survey.
- Tell the solicitor the rattle was not costed.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
Does a rattle mean the glass is loose in the putty?
Not proved. A rattle can be a loose bead, a sash in its frame, or glass that is not clipped. The survey heard the noise and did not open the rebate. It did not decide the pane is loose. The missing draught bead is a separate note, not a completed diagnosis of the sound.
If the pane looks flat, is it certainly float glass?
No. Flatness is why someone might call it float glass. The visit did not sample the edge or read a mark that settles the make. Older glass can look fairly flat in one pane. The survey has not certified the type. That stays undecided with the bead and the rattle.