What You Should Know About Energy-efficient glass

Oct 28, 2021

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Glass is an increasingly popular item for building construction. Glass lets in natural light (and so can reduce the use of artificial light which is glaring), and it makes buildings look modern. It’s no wonder that residential and commercial designers are favouring more glass.
But glass has a problem: it is extremely energy-inefficient. Ordinary glass can transmit 80% of outdoor heat inside, making your interiors really uncomfortable and putting a large amount of stress on cooling and heating devices (while increasing your energy bills). With nearly 40% of annual global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions coming from buildings, there needs to be another option.

Enter energy-efficient glass

Energy-efficient glass is specifically manufactured to address these problems. The glass panes are coated with a variety of metal oxides that reduce how much heat the glass absorbs, and also provides better insulation. This ultimately reduces our over-reliance on air conditioners and heaters and makes the interior infinitely more comfortable for people. The glass helps in reducing a building’s carbon footprint, making it more sustainable. This type of glass is also super durable.

Types of Energy-efficient glass

Solar Control Glass

Solar control glass is a unique glass coated with oxide, specifically made to limit the transfer of solar heat and solar glare from the outside to the interior. It allows almost all-natural light to pass through, while the natural light that passes does not affect your skin. It helps reduce our dependence on artificial light.

In essence, it protects your interiors from infrared (IR) rays.

Solar control glass is best used in places that mostly operate during the day and are in the path of natural light. It can be added to designs for schools, office buildings, conservatories, and even malls.

Low E Glass

Low E Glass (short for low emissivity glass), is popular because of its great thermal insulation. A microscopic coating on the glass reflects away infrared rays but allows light to pass through it. This enhances your comfort in all kinds of weather. During hot periods, your air-conditioner keeps things nice and cool. In the cold months, the low e-glass reflects the warmer air that’s inside.

This optimizes your heating and cooling bills, allowing you to spend on only what is absolutely necessary.

Low E-glass panes are suited for any place where controlling the temperature can be expensive, particularly hotels and skyscrapers – but it can be ideal for an Okanagan home that receives direct sunlight for many hours per day.

Solar Control-Low E Glass

This is an optimized combination of the two above! This glass provides thermal insulation and reduces solar glare. The world-famous Burj Khalifa in Dubai uses solar control-low E glass panes to protect from the glare and reduce air-conditioning costs.

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We’re The Glass Professionals

At Trademark Glassworks, we love to talk glass! Come in to our showroom to learn more about the many types of glass available. We sell and install residential and commercial doors and windows, shower enclosures, and bathroom glass – and we also fix windshields.