Hi I was wondering if anyone has experience with west facing house plans? Our upstairs master, minor bedroom and balcony are facing west. Will large windows. We don’t really have an option to move them due to en-suite ect. We are thinking double glass with a UV foil tint to reflect the sun rays. Would this suffice? I’m a little worried about Perth’s hot summers. Any feedback would be amazing
Thank you
West facing house, what’s the best way to reduce heat.
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A reflective film by itself makes a huge difference.
A reflective film by itself makes a huge difference.
Oh great thank you! We will def be doing that then
The main cause of heat gain with west facing windows is radiant heat.
Double glazing is great to insulate different air temperature but will likely not be enough against radiant heat.
However, you can combine double-glazing with low-e glass. What you want is windows with the lowest SHGC (Solar Heat Gain Coefficient). Another non-negligible factor is the type of window frame; standard aluminum frames are the worst performers. Prefer uPVC, timber or thermally-broken aluminum frames.
Another option that would likely make a significant difference is to have external vertical awnings / roller shutters.
I personally have undesired heat gain from my east and west facing windows and consider adding roller shutters in the future. I also have aluminum frames and they are ridiculously hot to the touch in summer.
Double glazing is great to insulate different air temperature but will likely not be enough against radiant heat.
However, you can combine double-glazing with low-e glass. What you want is windows with the lowest SHGC (Solar Heat Gain Coefficient). Another non-negligible factor is the type of window frame; standard aluminum frames are the worst performers. Prefer uPVC, timber or thermally-broken aluminum frames.
Another option that would likely make a significant difference is to have external vertical awnings / roller shutters.
I personally have undesired heat gain from my east and west facing windows and consider adding roller shutters in the future. I also have aluminum frames and they are ridiculously hot to the touch in summer.
reduce the window size or shade them externally. Deciduous trees are also good
The main cause of heat gain with west facing windows is radiant heat.
Double glazing is great to insulate different air temperature but will likely not be enough against radiant heat.
However, you can combine double-glazing with low-e glass. What you want is windows with the lowest SHGC (Solar Heat Gain Coefficient). Another non-negligible factor is the type of window frame; standard aluminum frames are the worst performers. Prefer uPVC, timber or thermally-broken aluminum frames.
Another option that would likely make a significant difference is to have external vertical awnings / roller shutters.
I personally have undesired heat gain from my east and west facing windows and consider adding roller shutters in the future. I also have aluminum frames and they are ridiculously hot to the touch in summer.
Double glazing is great to insulate different air temperature but will likely not be enough against radiant heat.
However, you can combine double-glazing with low-e glass. What you want is windows with the lowest SHGC (Solar Heat Gain Coefficient). Another non-negligible factor is the type of window frame; standard aluminum frames are the worst performers. Prefer uPVC, timber or thermally-broken aluminum frames.
Another option that would likely make a significant difference is to have external vertical awnings / roller shutters.
I personally have undesired heat gain from my east and west facing windows and consider adding roller shutters in the future. I also have aluminum frames and they are ridiculously hot to the touch in summer.
I agree with this.
I am also in the process of designing our house these days and our block faces west.
What I have discussed with my builder is to use low-e coated or solar performance glass ( this is offered by Viridian , check their web site and give them a call for more info ). You would probably also need to talk to the window supplier company ( get their details from the builder ) and ask what are the glazing options.
The idea is to have a low SHGC glass without compromising much on the visible 'light' otherwise it would appear as a sun glass which is the main problem with tinted films. These types of glasses may be little expensive than the standard but will pay back in the long term in comfort and cooling energy savings in my opinion.
Double glazing does not necessarily help with this particular problem of radiant heat.
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It might be a bit darker in the mornings but the light is still light, so you should be getting it. Similar to what you see from your western windows
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Using a rivet sounds like a good idea thanks