Double-glazed glass is not just an important feature in modern construction; it’s part of Monumental’s bread and butter.
Our commitment to eco-friendly home construction and the resilience and longevity of our products makes double-glazed glass windows and doors a go-to when we help you update your home. Our panes are known for their ability to improve energy efficiency, reduce noise pollution, and enhance safety.
A double-glazed glass window or door consists of two glass panes separated by a gap, usually filled with air or inert gas, which helps in insulation. This structure makes double-glazed glass a popular choice for both residential and commercial buildings. Understanding how this kind of glass is made, how it works to regulate temperature, and the associated costs are key to appreciating their value when shopping for replacement windows for your home.
How Are Double-Glazed Windows and Doors Made?
The process of creating double-glazed glass involves several crucial steps.
Float That Glass!
The glass panes used in double-glazing are typically made from float glass, which is produced by floating molten glass on a bed of molten tin, creating a smooth and uniform surface. Float glass is the most common type of glass used in windows due to its clarity and strength.
Cutting and Shaping
Once the float glass cools and solidifies, it is cut into the required sizes for windows. The edges of the glass panes are often polished to remove any sharpness, making them safer for us at Monumental to handle and install.
Mind The Gap
A key component in double-glazed windows and doors is the spacer bar, which maintains the gap between the two panes of glass. This spacer is usually made from materials like aluminum or plastic. It’s filled with a drying agent, which absorbs any moisture that might enter the gap to prevent any condensation that could happen when the outside temperature changes.
Seal Me Once, Shame On Me
After the spacer bar is placed between the two glass panes, the edges are sealed using a primary sealant, typically butyl rubber. A second sealant, such as polysulfide or silicone, is then applied to reinforce that seal and provide additional protection against moisture and air infiltration.
Step On The Gas
The gap between the two panes is often filled with an inert gas like argon, krypton, or xenon, which provides better insulation than air. These gasses have lower thermal conductivity than air, meaning they do not transfer heat as easily, helping to keep the interior of a building warm in winter and cool in summer.
Test, Test, Test!
The final step in any glass production involves testing the sealed glass units to ensure they meet industry standards for insulation, durability, and safety. This testing includes checking for leaks, ensuring the gas fill is correct, and verifying that the seal is airtight. At Monumental, all of our products are tested and confirmed to be the highest quality.
Increased Safety With Double-Glazed Glass
Double-glazed windows offer several safety benefits over traditional single-pane windows; one of these benefits is safety.
The use of two glass panes makes double-glazed windows inherently stronger than single-pane windows. When you install double-glazed glass in your home, you’re reducing the likelihood of breakage, whether from accidental impact, severe weather, or attempted break-ins.
In the event that there is damage, our double-glazed windows and doors are treated or laminated to enhance shatter resistance. If broken, laminated glass holds together, and those pesky shards of glass on the floor are much less likely to cause injury. If you live with children in the house, or in a region where desert lightning storms and flash floods are a real concern, this kind of safety feature can offer an added layer of mental comfort.
Finally, we know many of our clients live in a region known for its forest fires. Double-glazed glass can offer better fire resistance compared to single-pane windows. The gap between the panes and the use of special fire-resistant glass can slow the spread of fire, providing additional time for evacuation and reducing the risk of fire damage.
For some scenic desert homes, these safety features become especially important; the environmental beauty that you enjoy around your house may come with the caveat of being farther away from civilization and emergency services. With Monumental’s double-glazed windows and doors, sleep well at night knowing that your home is a little bit safer.
A Win For The Environmentalists
Monumental’s commitment to eco-friendly home design and construction is one of our distinguishing features as a company. We’re proud of consistently working with materials that help your home stand out visually, but work in harmony with the physical environment it’s located in. This means lower environmental impact, and a respect for the realities of your local climate.
Our use of double-glazed glass helps us uphold these values. One of the most significant advantages of double-glazed windows is their ability to regulate temperature within a building. This is done through their thermal insulation – that layer of gas between the panes – which keeps out excess heat and cold and thus maintains a more consistent temperature within the home.
Low-E Coating for Eco-Friendly Installations
All of Monumental’s windows and doors are made with quality low-emissivity (Low-E) coatings. This coating can be applied to one or both panes of glass in a double-glazed product. How does it work? Low-E coating reflects interior heat back into the room while allowing sunlight to enter. This feature is especially beneficial in extreme climates, where warding off the extreme heat or cold outside without driving up with air conditioning or gas bill is key.
Thermo-Plastic Spacers
Monumental uses Thermo Plastic Spacers (TPS®) instead of the typical aluminum or metal in its insulated glass units to enhance energy efficiency. This technology, which involves applying spacers directly onto the glass, minimizes thermal bridging, reducing energy loss. TPS® provides excellent thermal insulation and lowers heating and cooling needs, which supports both energy savings and environmental sustainability. It’s also easier to manufacture than its metal or aluminum counterparts – costs and energy emissions are reduced through single-machine high automatization manufacturing.
Invest Now, Save Later
Thinking about updating the windows and doors in your home, but worried about the upfront costs? While double-glazing may come with higher upfront costs compared to single-pane windows, the money saved on damage, energy bills, and your home’s safety more than makes up for it. The materials that go into the glass and the complexity of the products’ construction may show a higher investment, but will also give you higher safety, efficiency, and quality.
At Monumental Windows and Doors, our fixed, sliding, and sublinear window and door lines are made with top of the line double paned low-e glass. Our commitment to eco-friendly construction and long-lasting home renovation makes us an excellent collaborator if you’re interested in updating the single-pane windows in your home.
Contact us today for more information on our double-glazed windows and doors.