Having an energy-efficient home offers a myriad benefits, not least of which is the significant savings in your utility and heating bills. Here in the Northeast, where we have a significant heating season, we must be aware that windows and doors are a major cause of our home’s heat loss, causing us discomfort, condensation problems, and of course having our money literally “flying out the window”!
However, good news is at hand! Recently, windows have undergone a major technological revolution, offering lower heat loss, less air leakage, and warmer window surfaces that improve our home’s comfort dramatically. Properly installed energy-efficient windows and doors deliver better protection against cold, heat, drafts, moisture, pollution, and noise. An energy-efficient home ensures consistent temperatures between rooms, improved air quality, and overall a better, healthier environment for you and your loved ones. And, an energy efficient home helps save money all year long – to the tune of hundreds of dollars a year.
What makes a window energy efficient?
Quality Frame Materials: A variety of durable, insulated and low-maintenance framing materials reduce heat transfer and help insulate better.
Multiple Panes: Two panes of glass, with an air or gas-filled space in the middle, insulate much better than a single pane of glass. Some ENERGY STAR-qualified windows include three panes for even greater energy-efficiency, increased impact resistance, and sound insulation.
Low-E Glass: Special Coatings reflect infrared light, keeping heat inside in winter and outside in summer.They also reflect damaging ultraviolet light, which helps protect interior furnishings from fading and the more a window product can reject or absorb the UV energy the longer the life of the furnishings being protected.Franzoso Contracting, Inc. can offer insulated glass packages with as high an R-value as R-10 and double or triple pane glass with multilayered gas coatings.
Gas Fills: Some energy-efficient windows have argon, krypton, or other gases between the panes. These odorless, colorless, non-toxic gases insulate better than regular air.
Warm Edge Spacers: A spacer keeps a window’s glass panes the correct distance apart. Nonmetallic and metal/non-metal hybrid spacers also insulate pane edges, reducing heat transfer through the window.
What Makes a Door Energy Efficient?
Multiple Glass Panes: Double or triple-paned insulating glass is used to reduce heat flow.
Tighter Fit and Improved Weather Stripping: New frames may include a magnetic strip to create a tighter seal that reduces air leakage around the edges which is similar to the way your refrigerator closes and seals itself.