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Window Glazing Types: Pick the One Appropriate For Your Home
Windows and doors are the most vital part of a home. These accoutrements keep your home secure, guard it against the rough natural elements, and allow ventilation and sunshine into the house.
Just installing these fixtures is not enough, glazing them is equally important.
There are multiple types of window glazing available, depending on the structure of your windows in your house.
All you need to do is research about them properly and choose the one that suits your home.
Why is window glazing necessary?
Glazing helps to reduce air leakage, loss of heat and lower condensation.
By reducing the transfer of heat, glazing reduces energy consumption tremendously as it makes your home more energy-efficient.
Now that we have understood the significance of window glazing, let us explore the window glazing types in detail.
Single Glass Glazing:
A single glass glazing is made up using only one layer of glass. Its thickness typically ranges from 3/32” to 9/16”.
Single glass glazing was the only available option for a long time.
Both heat and light can easily pass through this glass which means that it has considerable efficiency.
Single glass glazing is cheaper to install but have a very low efficiency which in the long run will increase the energy consumption of your home.
Double Glass Glazing:
As the name suggests, double glass glazing is made of two layers of glass. They help with both insulation and noise reduction.
Double glass glazing allows as much light as single glass glazing but they prevent heat and cold out of the house more efficiently and helps you to save money on energy usage.
Triple Glass Glazing:
Presently, the triple glazing is mostly found in urban structures, made of three layers of glass with the extra layer for greater efficiency.
Highly efficient window glazing option that preserves more heat inside while barricading the flow of cold air simultaneously.
This glazing is a smart choice for houses in colder climates and also help with noise reduction to a large extent.
We have talked about the three main window glazing types, now let’s break these variations down and find out the most suitable one for your property.
Float Glass:
When glass is melted to form large and flat panels of float glass.
During this process, molten glass floats on the molten tin and results in the largest, slickest and one of the slimmest panels of glass.
Before a float glass undergoes cutting, treating, and fitting into a window frame, it remains as a basic glass sheet.
The best part of float glass is that it is colorless, inexpensive, and can be modified or upgraded easily.
Safety Laminated Glass:
This glass remains together even when it is broken. The bond in the glass layers is of high strength and prevents the glass from shattering into jagged pieces of glass. The shattering results in a shape that can be called a spider web crack.
This glass is used in skylight glazing and automobile windshields due to its safety details.
Safety laminated glass is created by merging at least two glass panes using polyvinyl butyral (PVB) as an inner layer.
The inner layer highly helps in noise reduction and blocks around 99% of ultraviolet light.
Annealed Glass:
When floated glass is heated above its transition point and then is left to cool slowly without being smothered, it becomes an annealed glass.
This process is technical but slow and controlled, and is done to increase the strength of the glass.
Even though the glass is strong, is not an optimal choice for windows as it will scatter into sharp glass shards if broken and can cause severe injury.
Many building codes prohibit annealed glass. This glazing is usually seen in bathrooms or fire exits.
Obscured Glass:
The obscured glass allows the entering of light but it not entirely see-through; the glass is either etched, frosted, or coated.
You will not be able to see through it completely but can see vague shadows.
Obscured glass is typically used as bathroom windows, shower, and entry doors.
They do not provide complete privacy but allow natural light indoors.
Tinted Glass:
Any sort of glass that has colouring added to it is known as tinted glass. The colours could be bronze, green, grey, or blue.
It provides privacy, reduces heat from sunlight, offers good protection from harmful ultraviolet rays, and adds value to your designs.
Tempered Glass:
Tempered glass is annealed glass but is approximate 4 to 6 times stronger. This glass is created by quick cooling after being heated to above 1200 degrees.
The manufacturers test the glass using this method to ensure that the glass is stable. When broken, it shatters into small square pieces and not into jagged shards.
Tempered glass is the ideal choice if your concerns are safety, strength, and thermal resistance.
Heat Strengthened Glass:
Heat strengthened glass is your solution if you need a glass tougher than annealed glass. A heat strengthened glass is made by reheating an annealed glass and cooled, but not as quickly as tempered glass.
This glass not very strong but is tougher than the majority of low-quality glasses.
It must be laminated if it used for exterior windows, otherwise, it might shatter into sharp pieces if broken.
Insulated Glass:
Insulated glass is the most advanced glass in terms of energy efficiency. A process called gas fill is used to improve the thermal performance of insulated glass. Inert gases such as argon and krypton are used to fill the space between the glass panels.
These gases are better resistant to heat flow than air and are sealed between the layers of glass to reduce heat loss.
This glass is a suitable choice for exterior windows and helps to reduce the cost of cooling and heating.
Mirrored or Reflective Glass:
The glass panel is coated on one side with metal to create this mirrored effect and then sealed with an additional protective sealant.
It reduces the gain of heat and transmission of visible light, but it is not that effective.
This glass is typically used for decorative purposes. Not many exterior windows use this glass.
Wired Glass:
This glass is resistant to fire, but it is not a security glass. Wired glass is commonly used in schools, hospitals, and commercial buildings.
It is designed to hold the glass on the frame even if the glass cracks due to intense heat.
Wired glass is a perfect fit for commercial use but not effective for residential.
Concludingly,
Now that we have informed you about all the window glazing types and techniques, you can easily pick the one suitable for your home. Before starting the work of window glazing, it is best to find out how much double glazing windows cost from FENSA approved installers in your area.
We are sure that the one you will pick will enhance the beauty and security of your home, and will also be better for the environment.