How to Choose Window Glasses

Are you looking for the perfect glass material for your windows? Say no more, as we’ve lined up for you just what the doctor ordered.

Whenever you’re looking for brand new or even replacement window glasses, it is better to have explored your options with thorough information than not. However, it isn’t necessarily necessary that you become a glass expert, but having basic knowledge can help you save money and cut energy costs in the long run.

After all, taking your time to select the right fit for your home or any other establishment is an extended investment that you’d not want to spend on every now and then. Getting to know about the kinds of window glasses and their basic functionalities will be beneficial in picking what would suit your home’s energy efficiency.

Now let us steadily break down the process of selecting the perfect fit for you. Before you pick out the desired glass material for your windows, a fitting method of window glazing needs to be chosen for your home.

What is Window Glazing

This process involves basically selecting the number of window glass panes that you’d want to have in between for better in-house insulation.

For an insight into why window glazing is a critical step in choosing your desired window glasses, the key points to gather about this method would be the following:

• Insulating Gas Units (IGU) are filled within the gaps of the panes to shield the environments on either side while also performing the functionality of eradicating the possibility of vaporization in spots that one wouldn’t be able to just wipe off.
• The common practice nowadays is to have double-glazed or triple-glazed window glazing, as the single-pane idea has become obsolete and rather inefficient over time.
• The concept of windows over the years has evolved from merely being a source of light to becoming an efficient mode of conserving energy.
•  Not only does the window glazing allow you to have cozy environments, but it can play a significant role in cutting the heating & cooling costs of your home.
• Double-glazed windows are the most used glass panes in households, and as the name suggests, it has two windowpanes spaced and filled in typically with Argon gas as it is more cost-effective. Double glazing is comparatively lower in cost than some high-end technology for heating & cooling efficiency.
• Triple-glazed windows are rather an expensive option, but they can be used in areas with extreme cold, or they can also be a long-term investment into bringing your heating & cooling bills down. Krypton gas is a better IGU for this procedure as this gas takes up less space and allows three glass panes to fit into the desired window frames comfortably.

Costs for Replacement Window Glass

In the case that your window glass pane gets damaged, there’s always the option to replace just the glass rather than getting the whole window replaced. In some cases, if your window frame is intact, the glass replacement can, in fact, cost you 50% less than the whole frame.

While the replacement cost for a traditional single pane window glass only goes as high as $75, the fact that it cannot be as durable as double-glazing or triple glazing decreases its demand since no homeowners want to take the time and risk to replace them often.

Before we deep dive into the individual replacement costs, let us look at the types of window glasses to further scrutinize the ideal selection for your windows.

•  Float Glass: It is named after the process through which it is prepared, which involves melting glass on a melting tin to prepare a sheet of glass. This material, however, is not treated and leaves shards of glass when broken, as it is considered a weak glass form. Nonetheless, it does the job for some cases where it can be hardened and is a low-cost option.
•  Laminated Safety Glass: This type of glass is most common in vehicles due to the fact that if any outside object hits the Laminated Safety Glass, the broken pieces remain outside to avoid potential damage to the passengers inside a car or a window. It is made by applying pressure and heat between two glass panels.
•  Obscured Glass: The basic functionality of the obscured glass is to prevent any clear sight through it. However, it is not a completely private barrier but is common in bathrooms or showers.
•  Tinted Glass: Like the above, tinted glass is meant to reduce visibility by adding color to the glass. The most common use is in vehicles to ensure privacy.
• Tempered Glass: Tempered Glass can be taken as an upgraded version of the strongest form of Float Glass; however, it is four times stronger. It is processed by extreme heating and then instantly cooling down, which gives it the ability to be strong enough but not entirely unbreakable.
•  Insulated Glass: The double-glazing and the triple-glazing procedure is the same as being Insulated Glass.
• Mirrored Glass: The purpose of Mirrored Glass is what the name suggests, as a material is applied on one side of the glass to seal its visibility from one side. It is famously used in buildings to provide room for light and privacy instantaneously.
•  Low-E Glass: Low Emissivity (Low-E) Glass uses a particular coating that enables it to reflect thermal rays meaning that your indoors will reflect away the heat in summer while also trapping the heat inside in winter.
•  Wired Glass: It uses a frame of wires to hold the glass panel in place in case of breaking. To be specific, Wired Glass is opted for by schools, hospitals, and other public establishments to avoid glass shards in case of a fire emergency while also being fireproof.

Now coming towards the actual cost of replacing each type of window, we’ll take a sample of a 6 Square Feet window glass panel:

Tempered/Wired Glass: $80

Insulated Glass: $60-$180

Laminated Safety Glass: $75

Tinted/Obscured/Flat/Mirrored Glass: $150-$600

Low-E Glass: $600-$850

Factors to Consider When Purchasing Window Glasses

A key takeaway in choosing the best fit for your window glass is to keep in consideration while purchasing that the design, size, and placement of the window frame can vary the feature of the glass quality, and it is best to consult with a professional before installing the panels.

Plus, you can be as selective as to what kind of natural light you’d want to let in while also being dependent on your window glass’s durability. At the end of the day, you wouldn’t want to end up with a window glass that leaves your home freezing in the winter and lets scorching heat inside in the summer.

Similarly, your location/residence entirely determines the cost of each type of window glass panel. Furthermore, the labor costs can also drastically vary depending on the area of installation. Any irregularities in the architecture of your building and the shape of your windows affect the costs as well.