In today’s market there are almost as many types of windows, as styles of houses. They are differentiated by their dimensions, the size of the leaves, the materials with which they are manufactured, the type of opening, the glass or even the shape. But according to professionals in the industry for residential window services Layton UT residents often inquire about the main differences between these different types of windows and their energy efficiency.

Understanding Ratings Of Windows

There is a specific energy rating label for different types of windows, and manufacturers provide a label, divided into three parts for better understanding.

The first part includes the type of window, the manufacturer’s data and the classification of the window. The classification includes a letter and one or more stars, this is because it distinguishes a winter classification and a summer classification.

The second part indicates in more detail the winter classification and the summer classification. The winter classification has seven levels of efficiency, ranging from green and the letter A for the most efficient windows, to the red color and the letter G for the least efficient.

The summer classification has three levels of efficiency ranging from three stars for the most efficient windows to one star for the least efficient. This is because depending on the characteristics of different types of windows, and especially glass, it can have a good energy behavior at one time of the year and not so good at another.

The third part is the technical file of the window, this includes the following:

⦁ Thermal Transmittance of the window set
⦁ Air permeability of the window
⦁ Thermal Transmittance of the frame
⦁ Thermal Transmittance of the glazing
⦁ Solar factor of the glazing

These labels can be quite useful because homeowners tend to rely on visual aspects when replacing windows, but as you can see, technical data can play a major role.

Good Insulation

Good windows will save you a lot of money on heating bills, both in summer and winter. So if lowering your energy bills are a factor in your decision, you should pay attention to this:

Glazing: it is essential that it has double glazing

Profile material: it can be aluminum (including aluminum with RPT thermal break), wood or PVC

So Which Material Is Better?

That depends. The climatic conditions of your environment have a lot to say. Wood materials suffer greatly in very humid places, and if it is coastal, salt can be especially hard. It does not mean that you cannot install wooden frames if you live by the sea, but you should take superior care with them, using protective varnishes and renewing them periodically. Also, If you buy wood ready to install, they will have already received a treatment against moisture and insects.

PVC is very versatile, it can be manufactured in a multitude of shapes and colors and does not require maintenance. Another advantage is that you can always coat it with other finishes, imitating even the wood with a lot of credibility, with layers of decorated aluminum that give it extra strength.

The aluminum RPT (thermal break), which is currently used and represents an obvious improvement over traditional aluminum profiles, has a price similar to that of PVC. This variety of aluminum RPT provides us with high values ​​of insulation.

As you can see, there are many factors when considering replacement windows, but it all comes down to which works best in your location.