 Many houses have double pane windows, which usually were installed when the house was built. Nowadays with winters getting colder and colder, many homeowners in New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania thinking how to find better ways in making their houses more energy efficient. Thats when triple pane glass windows come up as the worthy energy saving option. When we google triple pane vs double pane replacement windows we can see that a lot of confusion comes into play. Some people say that double pane replacement windows should be enough most of the time, other people claim that both double and triple pane windows do not make any big difference. So let us put all that hoola boola aside and look first at the numbers, what's the energy performance window sticker says.
So let's see what we got number-wise. Triple pane Replacement Window has got much better U-factor, it means that the heating system of the house is gonna be under less pressure in cold winter times, as the heat is gonna be kept better in the house with triple pane windows than with double pane. So we got savings here.
When we look at Solar Heat Gain Coefficient, the triple pane replacement window has got it lower, than double pane window, which means in winter time sun rays penetrate better into the house with double pane glass windows than with triple pane, but in summer time we are gonna enjoy better energy savings with triple pane, as less sun heat is gonna get into the house. Triple pane windows block approximately 80% of solar heat gain. Visible Transmittance is lower in triple pane glass windows, we are gonna see a bit less clear through the triple pane glass window, the younger we are the more we can notice the difference, otherwise it is almost unnoticeable. If you live next to a noisy street, the triple pain glass windows reduce noise. Some people say that there is no difference in noise reduction between double pane and triple pane, but it doesn't make sense. If to think logically then the sound waves are gonna penetrate less easily through the three layers of glass then two. Triple pane glass windows make your house more secure. The third glass is an extra obstacle for a robber to get in to the house. After all being said, now is the question: does the triple pane glass windows have any weaknesses? Well, like anything else in the world it does. The main weakness is that kind of a window can be much more expensive than double pane. But if you live in New Jersey or Eastern PA we have good news for you, we can offer you triple pane glass double-hun windows with Low-E, Argon Gas at slightly higher price than double pane glass windows. If you are interested please call or email us.
13 Comments
 Each window manufacturer company has to test their windows in order to be eligible for Energy Star. Each replacement window comes with the sticker, which looks like the one on the left side of this page. On the sticker it is said an important information about the energy efficiency of the replacement window.  First comes U-Factor, which is usually between 0.15 and 1.20. You want that number to be the lower the better. U-Factor shows how well the replacement window is gonna be keeping the heat inside the house, especially during the cold winter months.  Next one comes Solar Heat Gain Coefficient, which tells how much heat of the Sun is reflected from the glass of the replacement window. It is measured on the scale from 0 to 1, the lower the number the more heat is blocked by a window glass. This indicator is a little bit tricky, because it depends in what climate you live. If your house is located in mostly warm climate, then you want that number to be as low as possible closer to 0, if it is mostly freezing temperatures then you want to see that indicator closer to 1.
In our situation we are located in Central New Jersey, Mercer County, so we have both extremes of high and low temperatures, so if that indicator around 0.5, we should be ok with our replacement window. Visible Transmittance indicator shows how much light comes through the replacement window glass, is measured from 0 to 1. The higher the number the more light is gonna penetrate the glass and get into the house. The Air Leakage Indicator is measured from 0.10 to 0.30, the lower the number the better. That's an optional indicator, the replacement window manufacturers are not obliged to post it, so some residential windows come without that indicator, which does not mean that the window is not gonna be energy efficient. It means the replacement window has an air leakage at least below 0.30 and is made according to industry standards, but the manufacturer chose not to post that indicator. |
At Siding & Windows Wizards LLC we like to take care about people's houses and like to share ideas about vinyl siding, replacement windows, fiber cement siding, roofing, or anything else that can make people's life easier. Categories
All
Archives
June 2018
|
RSS Feed