Browse Forums Windows & Doors 1 Sep 02, 2011 9:41 am What is the next best thing if you can't afford double glazing? I've been reading through the different threads about SmartGlass, tinting and ComfortPlus but everyone keeps coming back to double glazing is the only way to go. I agree it is and looking at all the data out there it does out perform anything else. In an ideal world I would have double glazing but sadly the pennies in my pocket are not enough to afford it. So, if you can't afford double glazing, what is the next best option? Primary concern is heat gain in Summer. There will be retractable awnings on windows facing west. There's a large verandah covering the windows to the east. I will also be having heavy curtains with a sealed pelmet on my windows. Thanks guys! Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 2Sep 02, 2011 10:48 am Not really the answer you are looking for but.... Have you actually priced the difference between single glazing and double glazing? Do you know how much extra it is going to cost to go double glazed vs other options? We recently got quotes for our windows and the difference was not as much as we thought it might be. I think some of the other options would end up costing somewhere in between so you might save some money but how much? My suggestion is to get the window companies to quote in both single and double glazed before you consider the other choices. Good luck. Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 3Sep 02, 2011 3:14 pm Autumn What is the next best thing if you can't afford double glazing? I've been reading through the different threads about SmartGlass, tinting and ComfortPlus but everyone keeps coming back to double glazing is the only way to go. I agree it is and looking at all the data out there it does out perform anything else. In an ideal world I would have double glazing but sadly the pennies in my pocket are not enough to afford it. So, if you can't afford double glazing, what is the next best option? Primary concern is heat gain in Summer. There will be retractable awnings on windows facing west. There's a large verandah covering the windows to the east. I will also be having heavy curtains with a sealed pelmet on my windows. Thanks guys! IMO
Double glazing alone won't help solar heat gain, you need to add Low-E (North & West). Ed "ECOECO" At 'EcoEco', we design windows, we design the best windows, we do it for you, so that when you’re happy we are happy. Tel. 1800 326 326 Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 4Sep 02, 2011 5:21 pm Smaller Windows for west east and South facing windows are better than Double glazing. Our builder reduced the window sizes and provided extra brickwork etc at no cost. A normal wall construction is much better R value than the best double or even triple glazing. It will also reduce the cost if you want to double glaze the smaller windows. The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 6Sep 05, 2011 11:02 am bashworth Smaller Windows for west east and South facing windows are better than Double glazing. Our builder reduced the window sizes and provided extra brickwork etc at no cost. A normal wall construction is much better R value than the best double or even triple glazing. It will also reduce the cost if you want to double glaze the smaller windows. If you can tolerate the change in the aesthetics of your home design, reducing window size is an option, but if you are in a heating climate like Victoria, that's not just on the West East and South, that would be every window. And the scale of reduction would be about 50% of the existing windows and doors to compare directly with the benefit for double glazing. Not always possible as you must have 10% of floor area for natural lighting and 5% for ventilation. And in the end, if you double glazed your 50% scaled windows, you would still get a benefit from double glazing. Ed "ECOECO" At 'EcoEco', we design windows, we design the best windows, we do it for you, so that when you’re happy we are happy. Tel. 1800 326 326 Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 7Sep 05, 2011 5:25 pm ed @ ecoclassic Not always possible as you must have 10% of floor area for natural lighting and 5% for ventilation. And in the end, if you double glazed your 50% scaled windows, you would still get a benefit from double glazing. A lot of new house designs have huge windows, often looking directly at a fence. I reduced the size of South facing windows by around 40%, so got 80% of the heating/cooling benefits of double glazing at no cost, and the window size is still around 25% of the floor area. I also reduced the North facing windows by, on average, around 15%. I would agree that you will get benefit from double glazing the smaller windows but by reducing the size you will reduce the costs. In my example above by double glazing the smaller windows the total effect you get is 110% of the benefit of double glazing the bigger windows. The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 8Sep 05, 2011 7:11 pm bashworth ed @ ecoclassic I reduced the size of South facing windows by around 40%, so got 80% of the heating/cooling benefits of double glazing at no cost, and the window size is still around 25% of the floor area. I also reduced the North facing windows by, on average, around 15%. I would agree that you will get benefit from double glazing the smaller windows but by reducing the size you will reduce the costs. In my example above by double glazing the smaller windows the total effect you get is 110% of the benefit of double glazing the bigger windows. Hi I can't follow your maths...
Say single glazed = Uw 7 Say double glazed = Uw 3.5 Then if each of your walls had about the same area of windows, your overall benefit using your reduced window sizes compared to 100% double glazed would be roughly you would have 24% of the performance of double glazing with your reduced sizes. Ed "ECOECO" At 'EcoEco', we design windows, we design the best windows, we do it for you, so that when you’re happy we are happy. Tel. 1800 326 326 Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 9Sep 05, 2011 8:51 pm Sorry Ed looking back I wasn't very clear Here are the calcs for South Facing Windows only Say originally there were 10m of windows on South Face Heat loss single glazing =10 x 'U' single glazing = 10 x 7 = 70w/degreeC Heat loss double glazing =10 x 'U' double glazing = 10 x 3.5 = 35w/degree C U wall =1/R =1/2.6 =0.38 Heat loss reduced window size =6 x 'U' single glazing + 4 x 'U' Wall = 6 x 7 + 4 x 0.38 = 43+2 = 45 Heat loss reduced window size =6 x 'U' double glazing + 4 x 'U' Wall =6 x 3.5 + 4 x 3.8 = 21 + 2 = 23 The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 10Sep 06, 2011 5:09 pm bashworth Sorry Ed looking back I wasn't very clear Here are the calcs for South Facing Windows only Say originally there were 10m of windows on South Face Heat loss single glazing =10 x 'U' single glazing = 10 x 7 = 70w/degreeC Heat loss double glazing =10 x 'U' double glazing = 10 x 3.5 = 35w/degree C U wall =1/R =1/2.6 =0.38 Heat loss reduced window size =6 x 'U' single glazing + 4 x 'U' Wall = 6 x 7 + 4 x 0.38 = 43+2 = 45 Heat loss reduced window size =6 x 'U' double glazing + 4 x 'U' Wall =6 x 3.5 + 4 x 3.8 = 21 + 2 = 23 Your calculation only shows the difference between single glazed and double glazed for the same area of windows. The calculation to show the difference if you changed the area as you said (-40%) would be: -
Heat loss reduced window size =3.6 x 'U' single glazing + 6.4 x 'U' Wall =3.6 x 7 + 6.4 x .38 = 25.2 + 2.4 = 27.6 Which equates with a 39% reduction in heat loss. Ed "ECOECO" At 'EcoEco', we design windows, we design the best windows, we do it for you, so that when you’re happy we are happy. Tel. 1800 326 326 Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 11Sep 06, 2011 6:42 pm Hi Ed you seem to be missing something Looking at my original calculations 1. For the original 10m of windows the heat loss is 70w/degree C 2. If I double glazed those windows the heat loss is 35w/degree C a reduction of 35w 3. If I reduced the window size by 40% (to 6m) the heat loss is now 45w/degree C a reduction of 25w (that means the window reduction has resulted in an improvement that is 70% of the benefit of double glazing but at no cost) 4. If I reduced the window size by 40% and then double glazed the heat loss would be 23w/degree a reduction of 47w ( that means the the window reduction plus double glazing has reduced the heat loss by about 30% more than double glazing alone) Your last line where you suggest a window size of 3.6 is a further reduction of 40% of the window area which had already been reduced. The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: I know double glazing is 'gold standard' but.... 12Sep 06, 2011 8:25 pm bashworth Hi Ed you seem to be missing something Looking at my original calculations 1. For the original 10m of windows the heat loss is 70w/degree C 2. If I double glazed those windows the heat loss is 35w/degree C a reduction of 35w 3. If I reduced the window size by 40% (to 6m) the heat loss is now 45w/degree C a reduction of 25w (that means the window reduction has resulted in an improvement that is 70% of the benefit of double glazing but at no cost) 4. If I reduced the window size by 40% and then double glazed the heat loss would be 23w/degree a reduction of 47w ( that means the the window reduction plus double glazing has reduced the heat loss by about 30% more than double glazing alone) Your last line where you suggest a window size of 3.6 is a further reduction of 40% of the window area which had already been reduced. Yes, got you now... Thanks Ed "ECOECO" At 'EcoEco', we design windows, we design the best windows, we do it for you, so that when you’re happy we are happy. Tel. 1800 326 326 This is one of the reasons I decided to go overseas for my double glazed windows. As the builder indicated, he's worked on many upmarket builds, these were the most well… 13 19264 For your reference Performance Labels: Window assemblies in housing, except timber windows, must be labelled so the label can be seen when it is in situ. For timber… 6 7738 Joe, it depends on your certifier but we are noticing the ones we deal with are really cracking down. So i would recommend you follow your approved landscaping plans to… 4 10986 |