Ultimately, a home serves one underlying purpose: to provide shelter. If that were all we wanted homes to do — protect us from the elements — we would all live underground or in concrete bunkers. However, our insistence on “luxuries” like sunlight, fresh air and easy access to the outdoors complicates home design, necessitating more creative barriers like windows and doors. Their function makes them the weak points in the battle to stay warm and dry.
These days, simply staying out of the wind and rain isn’t enough. We expect to do so without also getting soaked by the utility company. Combine rising oil prices with a growing awareness of the consequences of indiscriminate energy consumption, and all of a sudden the term “green building” appears in every contractor’s brochure. The goal of an energy efficient window is to minimize its inherent insulation weaknesses and in some cases transform them into strengths that can actually improve your home’s energy efficiency, which is why you should take exceptional care when choosing the next set.
Coloradans ask a lot of our windows. Let in light, but not the ultraviolet rays. Open easily, but keep the warm air inside and the wind at bay. Furthermore, do it all with materials that will last for decades despite exposure to a uniquely harsh environment. “Our state’s climate is challenging for windows,” says Brett Ortengren, General Manager for Renewal by Anderson’s Denver and Colorado Springs locations. “While other states might have 20 or 25 degree swings, here in Colorado we see surfaces that warm or cool as much as 50 degrees inside of 24 hours, usually accompanied by a huge amount of UV radiation.” Those warm spring mornings that melt away the evening snowfall are invigorating for people, but they are brutal on traditional building materials like metal, vinyl and wood.
This is why Renewal by Anderson uses a composite thermal plastic blended with wood fibers for its window frames and sashes. The Fibrex material resists the expansion and contraction of vinyl, doesn’t need a waterproof layer of paint like wood, and doesn’t conduct heat like aluminum. But green building should also mean working with renewable products, right? How does thermal plastic fit that requirement? It doesn’t, but the company has streamlined its manufacturing process to the point that it recycles nearly all of its scraps back into raw material. Less waste at the plant means lower costs for the company and ultimately, the homeowner as well.
Synthetic materials are improving more than just the frames. While you won’t find anything replacing old-fashioned glass anytime soon, companies have found ways of enhancing it. Accent Windows, a 26 year-old Westminster company, offers “Heat Mirror” technology in its windows. The company coats a clear film with a microscopic ceramic layer and places it between dual panes of glass. Dividing the air chamber improves the window’s insulating properties without the weight and cost of a third pane. Combine the Heat Mirror with argon gas that fills the spaces between the panes and the window’s R-value, a measure of its insulating capability, skyrockets.
Yet even the best-designed window won’t help keep your house warm if it isn’t installed properly. Professional installation ensures that edges seal tight, sashes move smoothly and, depending on the season, the warm air and the cold air stay wherever you would prefer. One technique does not fit all: the installation process will depend on your home’s wall material. Nearly all high-end window companies include installation in the purchase price.
Despite the overwhelming buzz, green building and green remodeling aren’t just the latest trends, they are an investment in your home and in your community. Styles may change, but a house that holds heat in the winter and stays cool in the summer is always in demand. The more gas and electricity costs increase, the faster you’ll recover whatever additional expense you incurred by going green in the first place. And even if you could afford to run the heat or air conditioner full blast, would you want to?
Erik Maulbetsch is a Boulder-based freelance writer.
