A Guide To Insulated Windows
New windows can do more than look nice. They can also increase the comfort and energy savings in your home.
Benefits of Insulated Windows
The benefits of insulated windows affect your comfort and your pocketbook. Uninsulated windows do not provide enough of a barrier between you and the outside conditions. When it is cold outside, that cold air will transfer into your home through the window glass. A similar situation will happen when it is hot. The result? You will feel a chill near windows in winter, and in summer it will seem impossible to cool your home to a comfortable temperature.
This problem affects more than comfort, though. Temperature transfer increases winter heating bills as well as summer cooling bills. It's also hard on your HVAC system because it has to work harder to heat or cool your home, which can lead to more maintenance expenses for it.
Insulation Options
Insulated and energy-efficient replacement windows are the perfect solution. Insulated windows feature multiple layers of glass. Between each layer, an insulating gas is sealed in place. The gas is invisible, so you still have optimum visibility. Generally, the more layers of the glass, the better the insulation quality of the window.
Multi-layer glass options can be combined with glass coatings to create an even better-insulated window. Low-emissive, or low-e, coatings reduce the amount of heat transfer through the window glass. This traps heat outside of the window in summer and traps it inside in winter. Although coatings can be applied to existing windows, the most effective ones are installed during the glass manufacturing process, so it makes sense to choose replacement windows that are already coated.
Frame Considerations
Replacement windows come as a unit that includes both glass and frame. The frame choice can also affect how well the windows insulate your home. Wood and composite frames (which are wood frames covered in vinyl) are naturally insulating because of the density of the wood. Of course, there are drawbacks, such as the need to paint wood frames regularly.
Vinyl and aluminum frames require less maintenance, but they may not insulate well if you go with a base model. You can enjoy low maintenance and high insulative qualities by upgrading to insulated vinyl or aluminum frames. Instead of a hollow cavity inside the frame, it is instead filled with foam insulation that will help reduce air loss around the window itself.
Contact a window replacement service if you are ready to go through with window replacement and upgrade to new windows.
