Windows are a great source of heat loss in a house, especially since most of the homes built before 1985 were constructed with single-glazed window panes. Many windows have already been replaced, but many more are still due for replacement.
For a green home, a minimum replacement window is one that is wood framed and double glazed. A better window in terms of energy efficiency is one where the void between the panes is filled with an inert gas such as krypton or argon, which are better insulators than air.
In addition, the window will be better if its glazing has a low-emissivity (low-e) coating. Depending on the climate, the low-e coating can be used either to reflect the heat back into the house during the cold winter months or to reflect the sun’s rays away during the summertime.
Vinyl frame windows are considered “green windows” as well, but in fact vinyl manufacturing and incineration create dioxin, a highly carcinogen chemical. Fiberglass frames are energy-efficient, but are more expensive than vinyl. Regardless of the type of windows you choose, they should have the Energy Star label.
Energy efficient windows, commonly referred to as green windows, are the most effective way for saving energy and lowering your electricity bills. Consequently, an increasing number of people are now choosing to replace their existing frames with new Energy Star windows.
One of the main advantages of using green windows is their capacity to trap natural energy for cooling and heating purposes. Green living will help save the renewable and non-renewable resources of energy for the future generations, and it also has a great effect on lowering energy bills.
Green Windows – Capability and Functionality
There are four ways through which green windows improve your comfort and reduce energy usage, transferring heat from one space to another to restore a pleasant temperature inside the room.
- Conduction – the panes can conduct heat from the outside temperature and transfer it in the house via matter
- Convection – they exchange heat through moving air currents and pass it on to the other surface
- Radiation – trapping direct radiation of heat from the sun’s rays through a transparent radiating surface like glass
- Air Flow – when air is heated up and begins to circulate within the surface, the heat moves with it as well.
Although most people find it hard to believe, a very similar process is used both for heating and for cooling a room. With green resources, the Energy Star French windows or Sliding/Casement windows keep the house heated up during the winter and cool in the summer, without the use of air conditioners or other electrical equipment. They work as a strong energy barrier for the heat exchanging process, from the warm side of the glass to the cold side.
During the winter months, when the outside temperature is low, energy star products trap the radiation of the sun and allow it into the room, heating it up. The glass barrier does not allow the inside heat to radiate out. In opposition, during the summer the glass barrier keeps the outside heat from radiating in.