When starting a renovation, the last thing we stop to think about is the type of glass we need to put in our home. But it is much more important than we think. The first thing we have to take into account is if we know the different types that exist, so the decision will be much easier. We must not only think about which one looks best.
Laminated glass? Double glazed glass? Laminated safety glass?
Or… those of us who are interested today in low-emissive glass and solar control glass.
LOW-EMISSIVE GLASS
This type of glass has the ability to reflect solar energy, preventing a large part of it from entering the home. To make it easier to understand, they reduce the amount of heat or cold that is transmitted between the inside and outside of the window.
How are these crystals made?
A chemical treatment is applied to one of the sides of the glass, more specifically it is sprayed to provide it with certain special properties without altering its colorless appearance.
There are two types of low-emissive glass:
1. Those in warm areas, placing the side that is treated towards the outside of the property.
2. Those in cold areas, placing the treated side in the direction of the interior of the room.
Advice! When choosing glass, you should look at the U-value it has. The lower this value, the more insulating it is.
Advantages:
1- It reduces heating and air conditioning costs specifically when combined with PVC windows. 2- Energy saving. 3- It improves our comfort level. 4- It increases the temperature of the lower part of the glass, reduces the cold wall effect and reduces the risk of condensation. 5- It also allows light to enter due to its high transparency.
SOLAR CONTROL GLASS
This glass is designed to minimize unwanted heat gain within buildings and help regulate luminosity. It is highly recommended in areas with high temperatures, where the sun inside the house is high or where the glass surface is large.
It is made with special materials that are placed on one of the sides of the glass and give it double functionality: they allow sunlight to pass through the glass and prevent heat from entering the house, reflecting part of it to the outside.
There are two types:
- Absorbent glass: colored with metal oxides that absorb part of the sun’s energy. It must be installed as close as possible to the outside of the façade, it depends on the colour and thickness of the façade, the effectiveness varies.
- Coated glass: made with layers that reflect incident light. Depending on the environmental and aesthetic conditions, layers of different levels of light transmission, solar factor and color are used.
Proceeds:
- Reduces the entry of direct solar radiation into the home.
- Keeps the temperature at home within comfortable limits.
- You save on air conditioning because you slow down the entry of heat.
- You filter solar radiation, you avoid damaging the furniture.
- You don’t lose natural light.
- You save on heating and cooling costs.
In short, low-emission glass prevents you from losing temperature in the home and helps you not to lose energy in winter with heating. On the other hand, solar control glass prevents some of the solar radiation from the outside that makes the house cooler.
At Kaleidoscope we take care of reviewing the orientations of the house and deciding where it is best to place the glass.
Do not doubt that a good investment in the right glass will help you both in the short and long term. Invest in the right things, it’s the little details that matter most!
