The Language of Windows: What Each Part Does

As a homeowner, one of your long-term goals should always be improving energy efficiency in your home. How can you accomplish this goal? In addition to replacing your electrical appliances with products that have better energy ratings, investing in energy-efficient windows can make a big impact.

In this post, we’ll decipher the language of windows, explaining what each part does and how it affects energy efficiency.

Frame Material

You have a number of choices for frame material, including wood, vinyl and aluminum as well as more premium materials like fiberglass.

At Renewal by Andersen® of Central PA, all our windows—from sliding windows to casement styles—are built with Fibrex® window frames. This exclusive composite material gives our windows the stability of wood paired with the low-maintenance properties of vinyl. The result is a long-lasting window that is more durable, energy efficient and attractive than alternatives.

Glazing and Low-Emissivity

Glazing is a fancy term professionals use to refer to glass. For energy-efficient windows, more layers of glazing don’t necessarily translate to better energy efficiency, although it does help. The thing you should always look for is the low-emissivity of the glass. This is the ability of the glass to reflect rather than absorb heat from the sun, a desired quality.

As Renewal by Andersen®’s full-service replacement division, all of our replacement windows come with Low-E glass. Our High-Performance™ Low-E4® Glass is ideal for seasonal climates as it’s 56% more energy-efficient in summer and 47% more energy-efficient in winter than regular glass.

Gas Fills and Spacers

Gas fill typically consists of argon or krypton sandwiched between airtight panes of glass and held fast by stainless steel spacers. This creates a near-vacuum where argon, which is denser than normal air, acts as a buffer to resist heat transfer. A dual-pane system held by a spacer and filled with our custom argon blend boosts insulation to levels unmatched by other products.

Call us today at (717) 591-4900 to learn more about our windows. We install replacement windows throughout Lancaster, PA.