A window of opportunity for energy efficiency

According to a Which? survey, “For many households, installing double glazing will mean smaller energy bills and a warmer home. In fact, 44% of people we surveyed who have double glazing said that they bought it to make their home warmer. And 40% to reduce their energy bills.” With a new build development, double-glazing will come as standard.

What is double-glazing?

Double glazing is two layers of glass that trap an additional layer of air or gas in-between the panes. Our double-glazed windows are filled with argon gas to significantly reduce heat loss and external noise. Whilst a low-emissive coating invites the sun’s heat into your home. Double-glazing was first commercially available in the 1950s but it wasn’t until the 1980s that it was the go-to form of window fitting.

Two panes are better than one

Can double glazing reduce heat loss? The benefit of double-glazing over single glazing can be evidenced in its performance at keeping the cold air out and retaining heat inside your home, which can lead to a reduced need to heat up your home in the first place, or at least, present the opportunity to have the heating on for a shorter period. Furthermore, the double-glazing we use on David Wilson Homes comes with a low-emissive coating which invites the sun’s heat into your home.

Does double glazing reduce noise?

Double-glazing will filter out more external noise than single glazing. It will not eliminate sound completely. If you think about how sound waves travel, they have a knock-on effect on the particles in which they come into contact. Sound waves hitting a single pane of glass will cause vibrations which pass-through from the outside to the inside.

With double glazing and the added benefit of a layer of argon gas, the chance for sound waves to pass through are significantly reduced as the two panes of glass are not in contact with each other and Argon gas has different properties to air when it comes to how it behaves with sound waves.  

Why not use triple-glazing?

The beneficial jump in energy efficiency from double-glazing to triple-glazing is not as effective as the jump from single to double and therefore the additional cost involved in manufacturing triple-glazing is not going to deliver a cost-benefit return for a domestic property.

It is more suited to specialist window needs, such as an airport departure lounge or other commercial and industrial uses.

When should I replace double-glazing units?

With regular upkeep and cleaning of uPVC or wooden-framed double-glazing units, you should expect to get decades of use and benefit from your double-glazing windows.

And don’t forget, your 2-year warranty covers windows and their locks.