Same-Day Window Repair in Toronto
Cracked panes, failed seals, cranks and balances, fixed in the frame you already have. Send a photo and get a written quote back the same day.
What to do while you wait.
Keep children, pets, and anyone without proper footwear away from the broken glass. Shards can scatter several feet from the break point.
Glass still attached to the frame can fall without warning and cause deep cuts. Leave loose pieces alone until our technician arrives.
If you must walk near the area, wear closed-toe shoes and work gloves. Thin slippers or bare feet are a serious hazard.
Use a heavy tarp, thick cardboard, or plastic sheeting secured with tape to block wind, rain, and debris until we arrive.
Take photos of the damage from both inside and outside. These help our technician prepare the right glass size and type before arriving.
Call 647-803-2730. Our emergency line is staffed 24/7 including nights, weekends, and holidays.
Overview
Old Toronto and East York hold the city's oldest houses and most of its newest towers, and that split decides what kind of glass problem you have. In the Toronto and East York council area, 36.5% of homes were built in 1960 or earlier, yet 53.4% of households live in apartment buildings of five or more storeys (2021 Census). In a Victorian or Edwardian house the usual jobs are cracked single panes, dried-out glazing putty and draughty wood sashes. In a condo it is more often a fogged sealed unit in a window wall or balcony door.
OhMyGlass Window and Door Repairs fixes the glass, not the whole window. In a sound original sash we re-glaze in matching single glass and re-putty rather than replace the sash, which keeps the house's character and keeps the job on the maintenance side of the heritage rules. Where a sealed unit has fogged in a house, an addition or a condo window wall, we replace the unit and keep the frame. A rotted, cracked or warped frame is the exception: that is a window-replacement job rather than a glass repair, and we will tell you if that is where you are.
The rules split the same way as the housing. New glass in an existing sash does not change the opening and is generally treated as repair. Toronto's no-permit rule for a whole same-size window covers only detached, semi-detached and row houses with one dwelling unit, so duplexes, apartment buildings and condos need a building permit for window replacement. Most of the city's heritage conservation districts are in the old city, including five Cabbagetown districts, Rosedale North and South, the East Annex, Harbord Village, Riverdale, Yorkville-Hazelton, Kensington Market and the St. Lawrence Neighbourhood, and there a window visible from the sidewalk needs a heritage permit to replace, though routine maintenance does not. In a condo, report a fogged or broken window to management first, because windows and balcony doors are often common elements under the declaration.
Send a photo of the window and the frame around it, and tell us whether you are in a house, a heritage district or a condo. We will tell you whether a glass-only repair will work and which approvals to line up first, and give you a written quote before any glass is ordered.
What fails in old Toronto and East York
The housing here runs from pre-1900 brick to towers finished last year, and each era fails in its own way.
cracked single panes, putty dried hard enough that the glass rattles, sashes painted shut. Cabbagetown holds a large continuous area of preserved Victorian housing, and the Annex's houses were mostly built between 1880 and the early 1900s.
postwar veterans' housing around Topham Park often carries an original opening, a 1990s replacement and a sealed unit added with a second storey, all on one house.
window wall evolved in the Greater Toronto Area from the 1960s, and early systems often fogged within a few years of service. A fogged unit is replaced in the existing frame once management confirms responsibility.
apartment stock in East York, where balcony door glass and sealed units come up more often than sash work.
in a 25-year field study of more than 2,400 units, 4.9% had failed at 10 years, 7.9% at 15 and 9.2% at 25. One fogged unit can be replaced on its own when the frame is sound.
a single-glazed window loses roughly 10 to 20 times as much heat as the same area of insulated wall, and a storm window or sealed double unit cuts that loss almost in half.
Heritage districts, permits and condo approvals
Which rule applies depends on your building type and whether the change is visible from the street. This is general information rather than legal advice.
does not change the opening, so it is generally treated as repair rather than replacement.
Toronto needs no permit to replace a window in an existing opening of a detached, semi-detached or row house with one dwelling unit, provided size, location and structural support do not change.
duplexes, apartment buildings and condos need a building permit, and so does adding or enlarging any opening.
replacing windows visible from the sidewalk needs a heritage permit; routine maintenance and changes not visible from the street do not, and you are never required to replace existing windows.
Toronto's Heritage Grant Program can help pay for the repair of existing original windows and doors, and its guidance says original windows that are sound or repairable must be retained and restored.
under the Condominium Act's default the corporation repairs common elements and owners maintain their units, but the declaration can change that split. Ask management for the decision in writing before booking.
What to do first when glass breaks
Several downtown neighbourhoods lead the city for break-ins, and the Annex had the highest count in 2025. If a pane goes, the first hour is about safety and securing the opening.
keep children and pets out until the floor has been cleared.
before touching anything, and do not pull loose shards out of the frame by hand.
taping it and carrying on is how a tempered panel lets go all at once.
before you clean up, so you have a record for your insurer or your condo corporation.
our 24/7 emergency line covers board-up, at emergency glass repair.
Where to go next in Toronto
The service page that matches your job, and the nearby city hubs.
Frequently asked questions: Toronto window repair
The questions we get most from old Toronto and East York.
Do I need a permit to replace window glass in Toronto?
Generally not for glass alone. New glass in an existing sash does not change the opening and is generally treated as repair. Even a whole window in the existing opening of a detached, semi or row house with one dwelling unit needs no permit if size, location and structure do not change. Duplexes, apartments and condos need a building permit for window replacement.
Can I repair windows on a house in a heritage conservation district?
Yes. Routine maintenance and changes not visible from the street do not need a heritage permit, and you are never required to replace existing windows. Replacing windows visible from the sidewalk is what needs one. If you only need a broken pane re-glazed in the original sash, ask Heritage Planning whether your job counts as maintenance.
Who pays to fix a foggy window in a Toronto condo?
It depends on your declaration. The Condominium Act's default is that the corporation repairs common elements and owners maintain their units, and windows and balcony doors are often common elements. Report the problem to management before booking a repair and ask for the decision in writing. This is general information, not legal advice.
Why do the windows in my old Toronto house run with condensation in winter?
Single panes get very cold. Classic National Research Council data showed single glazing starts condensing at about 12 to 27% indoor humidity when it is −18 °C outside, against 41 to 49% for double glazing. Storm windows or better glazing raise the glass temperature, and keeping winter humidity near the lower end of Health Canada's 30 to 50% range helps.
My condo is only a few years old. Why has a unit fogged already?
Sun ages a sealed unit faster than cold does. Edge sealants are six to eight times more permeable at 60 °C than at 20 °C, and south-facing sealed units often last under 12 years. The fix is a new sealed unit in the existing frame, not a new window.
Guides for this job
Local guide
Toronto and East York is the city's oldest and most vertical area: 36.5% of dwellings predate 1961 and 53.4% are in apartment buildings of 5+ storeys (2021 Census).
Original wood sashes with single glass are usually best re-glazed, not replaced; the City's heritage grant requires sound or repairable original windows to be kept.
In a heritage conservation district, replacing windows visible from the sidewalk needs a heritage permit; routine maintenance does not.
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Emergency window & door glass repair in Toronto
Full downtown, midtown, east and west end coverage. Our flagship service area with the highest job volume.
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