Windows, doors and glazing
A sash will not stay open because the cords are broken, and the timber frame is sound. Why is that a repair to the sash gear and not a window replacement by default?
Broken cords are a repair to the sash gear, not a window replacement by default, because the timber frame is sound and the sash will not stay open. The failure is in the cords, the pulleys or the weights that hold the sash. The survey has not condemned the glass or the box frame. It has not said the window must be replaced. Mending the gear that keeps the sash up is a different job from changing the whole window, and the sound frame is why replacement is not the starting point.
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?
A sash window hangs on cords that run over pulleys to weights hidden in the box. When a cord breaks, the sash drops or will not stay where you leave it. That is a mechanical failure. A sound frame means the timber of the window was not the thing the survey called decayed or distorted. Replacing the window would discard a frame the inspection has not rejected. The proportionate reading is to repair the gear, then see what else, if anything, the joiner finds once the pocket is open.
A sash specialist can renew cords, check the pulleys and reset the weights without a new window. Get that described in writing before anyone prices a replacement unit. Tell the solicitor the survey distinguishes gear from frame, so a seller who offers new windows is offering more than the finding. You do not have to refuse that offer. You should not treat it as what the report demanded.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Did you call the cords failed and the timber frame sound?
- Were the pulleys and weights seen, or only the broken cords inferred?
- Have you stopped short of recommending a new window?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat the broken cords as sash-gear repair.
- Do not default to replacing a frame the survey called sound.
- Ask a sash joiner to price the gear before a new window.
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
If the cords are renewed, do the pulleys still deserve a look?
Yes. A new cord runs over the pulley and down to the weight. A seized pulley or a wrong weight will spoil the repair. The survey has not stripped the box to see those parts. The joiner who opens the pocket should check them, which is more than this report has done.
Does a sound frame mean the glass is thermally efficient?
No. Sound timber is a condition comment on the frame. It says nothing about how the glass performs, whether it is a single pane, or whether you wish to change it. The survey has not turned a sound frame into an energy verdict.