Double Glazing Slashes
Your Energy Bills In Canberra
Double
glazing of windows and doors is pretty much standard in
many markets. It's particularly valuable in cooler climates, with
Canberra being a classic example.
It's
universally accepted that double glazing dramatically
reduces heat transmission through glass windows and doors.
In
summertime, double glazing prevents most of the
sun's heat from entering your property.
In
wintertime, it keeps the warmth you pay for inside the home, rather
than losing much of it through you windows.
All
year-round, double-glazing ptovides excellent
sound insulation, making your home quieter and more peaceful
"Glazing
has a major impact on the energy efficiency of the building envelope.
Poorly designed windows, skylights and glazed surfaces can make
your home too hot or too cold. If designed correctly, they’ll
help maintain year-round comfort, reducing or eliminating the need
for artificial heating and cooling.
Windows
in a typical insulated home can account for more heat gain or loss
than any other element in the building fabric. In summer heat gain
through an unshaded window can be 100 times greater than through
the same area of insulated wall. One square metre of ordinary glass
can let in as much heat as would be produced by a single bar radiator.
In winter, heat lost through a window can be ten times more than
through the same area of insulated wall."
So
What Exactly Is Double Glazing?
To
quote Wikipedia...
"Insulated
glazing (IG) also known as double glazing are double
or triple glass window panes separated by an air or other gas filled
space to reduce heat transfer across a part of the building envelope."
Having that gap between the panes also reduces noise transmission."
Fitting
Double Glazing To A New Home:
Building
a new home? Now is the time when you're tempted to cut costs on
heating, cooling, hot water, insulation, appliances, lighting and
glazing, to name a few areas.
Unfortunately,
many home-builders cut costs by buying cheaper options now, ones
that will cost them a fortune in energy bills later. A wise course
is to cut out some of the things that aren't necessary, and spend
the money on things that will reduce expenses in the years ahead.
Consider
energy-efficiency investments such as double glazing.
The likelihood is that the savings on your energy bill will more
than pay for the cost of the extra mortgage repayment.
Don't
forget, the cost in the mortgage of an energy-saving product remains
the same over the life of the mortgage, but you pay for it in devalued
dollars. The savings on your energy bills from fitting double-glazed
windows and doors keep climbing every year, as energy prices run
well ahead of inflation!
Retrofitting
Double Glazing To An Existing Home:
Retrofitting
double glazing to your existing home costs more,
but the savings can still be very worthwhile. There are a number
of options available
having
custom double glazed windows and doors manufactured
to replace existing windows
emulating
double glazing by fitting a second, custom-made
glass window inside your existing windows
double
glaze
existing windows and glass by adding a second acryilc system.
This retrofit layer creates an insulating air cavity, and is marketed
by Magnetite.
a
budget option that emulates double glazing is
provided by Clear Comfort in Canberra, a DIY film product applied
to existing windows.
How
Important Is The Frame Material Used In The Double Glazed Windows
& Doors?
In
this table, reproduced from Your Home, the relative performance
of different combinations of single and double glazing, and various
materials is shown The lower the U-value, the better the performance.
uPVC,
or unplasticised PVC, is gining ground as a frame material for double-glazed
windows and doors, that has ecellent thermal properties.
An
alternative to double glazing is to consider applying
an external film such as Enerlogic. This will emulate
the thermal properties and energy-saving advantages of double
glazing, but without the sound insulation benefits.
Here
are some links to help you find out more about the background of
double glazing, and some of the options available, ...
Building
a new home? Now is the time when you're tempted to cut costs on
heating, cooling, hot water, insulation, appliances, lighting and
glazing, to name a few areas. 
