Britain’s double glazing industry has been given a boost after it was confirmed the Energy Bill would be passed in this country.
The Energy Bill was first mentioned in the spring, and when it’s introduced homes around the UK will be forced to make ‘green’ changes.
And double glazing is one of the most environmentally friendly ways to insulate your home and reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
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In between the two panes in a double glazed unit is normally an inert gas, which provides insulation. This stops heat escaping your home, keeping down both your energy bills and carbon footprint.
Air is actually a good insulator in itself, so filling the spacer with a low conductivity gas will enhance the energy efficiency of the unit further.
Argon tends to be the most popular as it reduces conductive and convective heat transfers. The reason for this is because air density is not as great as argon.
Krypton is another popular choice and both gases are odourless, non-flammable, colourless and non-reactive.
When installed, the air gap is filled around 90% with one of these motionless gases, but over time some will seep out of the unit. It?s generally accepted that the double glazed unit will lose 1% of its gas every year.
Argon?s inexpensive costs give it the edge over krypton, which is 200 times more expensive per unit volume.
As Krypton works best in more confined spaces it will be used more frequently in triple glazing, where the spaces are smaller.
There are a few other gases on the market which can be used to plug the air gap. Sulfur hexafluoride and carbon dioxide are particularly useful in reducing sound emissions but they?re not known for their thermal qualities.
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It?s probably not the first thing that springs to your mind when you?re considering a double glazing investment.
But double glazing does help the environment and gives your home greater energy efficiency.
So how does this all work? A double glazed unit is made up of two panes of glass, separated by a spacer or ?air gap?.
This gap can be anything from as small as 6mm or as large as 28mm. It?s all down to personal preference and how much money you are willing to part with.
The gap is filled with a motionless gas – xenon, krypton and argon being the most popular.
What the double panes and gas achieve, is reduced heat loss through your windows. Firstly, this has the obvious benefit of cutting down your annual energy bills, as you?ll need less heat to warm your home.
But it also aids the environment, as less carbon dioxide emissions will be created when you don?t need to use the central heating system all the time.
It?s these carbon emissions that contribute to global warming, so by reducing them in your home, you?re effectively saving the planet. This gives you a smaller carbon footprint.
It?s not just in the winter that you?ll benefit from this. In the summer also, you won?t need to run an air conditioning unit as often, as heat won?t be able to penetrate the double glazing unit.
So really, you?re saving the environment all year round with double glazing.
The PVC Aware campaign was launched in order to promote the green credentials of using PVC for window frames and general double glazing products.
Endorsed by the Glass and Glazing Federation (GGF), PVC as a workable window framing material is surprisingly environmentally friendly. Often besmirched by an ill-formed preconception generated by the media, PVC is unexpectedly low in its use of resources. Add this to moderate manufacturing costs, low maintenance requirements and remarkable durability and you have an all round winning product.
As if all that wasn?t enough, PVC as a framing material is 100% recyclable! As quoted from the PVC Aware campaign website ?PVC, especially when used in such products as window and door frames, may be continuously recycled in a closed loop with the recycled material being used again and again in new window frames and other building products.?
Finally, and just to add to the list of surprising facts you never knew about PVC window frames, they received an A+ rating in the BRE Green Guide www.thegreenguide.org.uk
It seems double glazing is just as important to people renting properties as it is to home owners and this all boils down to energy efficiency and ultimately the rising cost of fuel bills.
Good quality double glazed windows and doors, equals less heat escaping and therefore less money spent on costly gas and electricity. Good news for the bill payer and equally good news for the environment.
No doubt as the government intended, energy efficient homes are becoming a priority for homeowners, landlords and tenants alike.
Location will naturally always be the first priority for potential renters, but after that it?s estimated that 98.5% look for central heating and 83.5% take into account whether or not a property is double glazed.
Other statistical clues as to the importance of energy efficiency in the rental market include, 72.5% of renters rating gas, electricity or oil economy highly, alongside 68.6% looking for good insulation and 68.3% taking general warmth into consideration.
