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Window Treatment Ideas to Keep Your Home Comfortable in Summer

Window Treatment Ideas

Window Treatment Ideas to Keep Your Home Comfortable in Summer

Posted on in Blog
Inevitably, long hot summer days can significantly affect the overall comfort of your house, and whether your home is new or old, you are at the mercy of the elements if it isn’t properly protected.

Hot weather in the last few days is a testament to that – leaving many houses feeling like furnaces. So how can you keep yourself and your house cool, reduce energy bill shock and help be kind to the earth all at the same time? This is where choosing the right insulation treatment for your home comes in handy.Weather proofing homes is often thought of as an expensive and laborious task, but it doesn’t have to be. Treatment of windows and doors can be a surprisingly effective solution to increase the comfort of those inside the house on those hot Australian summer days.

Here are the top solutions from our double glazing Sydney service team to consider:

Magnetite Double Glazing

For many homes, double glazing is the ultimate solution to beat the heat. Double glazing refers to windows with two layers of glazing separated by an air cavity. This is also referred to as an Insulated Glass Unit or IGU. The gap between the panes is normally filled with still air, which acts as the buffer against noise and temperature extremes, keeping your home comfortable all year round.

If replacing the window is not an option, you can opt for retrofit double glazing. It is a process of adding another layer to the existing window to create a double glazing system. This is often more effective than replacement windows as the air cavity can be increased for better performance. Our flagship product, Magnetite® can be retrofitted to any existing window or door to make your home more comfortable. Magnetite® uses an optical grade acrylic glazing that is up to 6 X more thermally efficient and up to 18 X stronger than glass. The magnetic seal allows the lowest air infiltration rate of any operational window, providing maximum insulation.

Solar Control Film

In addition, or as an alternative to double glazing, solar control films can be applied to your window glazing to reduce the radiant heat. Solar control films prevent your home from overheating, while also eliminating glare. To further reduce the heat in summer, Magnetite offers Solartite window films in conjunction with Magnetite® retrofit double glazing. Solartite is available in three ranges of window films to suit your windows – there is a solar control film to fit every home décor & aesthetic. Designed to reduce radiant heat, Solartite can effectively reduce energy bills and keeps the home cool.


Left without solartite vs Right with Solartite

Shade and seal

When it comes to staying at home during summer, the top priority is to keep the heat outside. Shade the north and west facing windows using window covers such as blinds, roller shutter or awning can efficiently preserve the temperatures inside despite rising or prolonged heat outside the house.

Insufficient insulation leaves many homes ill-prepared for summer and residents are forced to sweat it out inside. Draught seals on leaky windows and doors can prevent warm air from getting into the house. It will keep your home cooler in summer and warmer in winter.

It is true that double glazed windows and other window treatment can add up, but considering all the benefits of double glazing it is a good investment for your home and your comfort.

Magnetite specialises in double glazing solution for existing windows and doors. We have showrooms & warehouses in Sydney and other major cities around Australia. For more information on double glazing for existing window, solar control films, draught seals and other secondary window solutions, get in touch with the team at Magnetite.

 

  1. Conduction
    Heat moving through an object (i.e. heat will travel through an aluminium, or steel frame more easily than through a timber or PVC frame).
  2. Radiant heat
    Heat from the direct sun. It can pass through space until reflected or absorbed.
  3. Convection
    Heat flow resulting from air movement e.g. either 'natural' convection - warm air rises, or 'forced' convection - a breeze by a window, both can result in a draught by a window.
  4. Infiltration
    Air leaks around the frame, around the window sash and through the gaps in the movable window parts.

When evaluating your options to improve the thermal performance of your windows, the following double glazing key performance criteria should be considered:

  • U-Value (Uw) represents heat transfer through a window, irrespective of direct sunlight. The lower a window’s U-Value, the better the insulation performance.
  • Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) measures the solar energy that passes through glazing. The lower the SHGC, the less solar heat is transmitted through a window.
  • Air Infiltration or leakage measures the rate at which air passes through gaps in window joins and seals. The lower the air infiltration, the better a window’s energy performance.

The Window Energy Rating Scheme (WERS) Thermal Performance

Aluminium Frame Windows

Glazing Type Cooling Stars Heating Stars Cool% Heat% Uw SHGC
Single glazed 3mm clear glass* half blue star red starhalf red star 7.4 0.77
Single glazed 3mm clear glass &
4.5mm Magnetite		 blue starblue starhalf blue star red starred starred starred starred starhalf red star 35% 59% 2.9 0.67

Timber Frame Windows

Glazing Type Cooling Stars Heating Stars Cool% Heat% Uw SHGC
Single glazed 3mm clear glass* blue starhalf blue star red starred starred starhalf red star 20% 28% 5.5 0.69
Single glazed 3mm clear glass &
4.5mm Magnetite		 blue starblue starhalf blue star red starred starred starred starred starred star 37% 61% 2.6 0.66
Single glazed 3mm clear glass with
Solartite** and 4.5mm Magnetite		 blue starblue starblue starblue starblue starblue starhalf blue star red starred starred starred starhalf red star 76% 45% 1.8 0.20

 

*WERS standard typical industry window
**Solartite is a range of high performance window film. The window tested above has Solartite’s low-e film.

Magnetite vs Traditional Double Glazing – What the experts says

Winter - the ideal situation is to let in as much of the sun's heat and then trap it inside to maintain a comfortable environment in your home or office. This will also significantly reduce heating costs and saves you money. The ideal window for winter will have a high SHGC to let the sun's heat in and a low U-Value to prevent the heat from escaping. Clear windows without shading films are better suited for winter climates.

Compared with traditional double-glazing, Magnetite’s double-glazing solution can provide better results during winter or for cold climate areas such as Canberra, the Adelaide Hills and Blue Mountains.

Magnetite's clear acrylic window panels allow the direct heat from the sun's rays to enter the building and once inside, Magnetite's superior magnetic seals retain the heat, giving Magnetite an advantage over conventional operating windows.

Glazing Type Cooling Stars Heating Stars Cool% Heat% Uw SHGC AI
Double Glazed 3mm clear glass/12mm air
gap/3mm clear glass IGU (Insulated Glass Unit)*		 blue starblue starhalf blue star red starred starred starred starred starhalf red star 40% 55% 3.0 0.61 5.0
Single glazed 3mm clear glass &
4.5mm Magnetite		 blue starblue starhalf blue star red starred starred starred starred starred star 37% 61% 2.6 0.66 0.5

 

*WERS standard typical industry window

Summer - the ideal situation is to minimize the heat coming in from outside and prevent the cool air inside from escaping through the window. This will make your home more comfortable and reduce your air-conditioning costs. The ideal window for summer, or for a large west-facing window, will have a low SHGC to limit the heat from the sun's direct rays, as well as, a low U-Value to prevent the heat in the air outside from moving through the window and warming the cool conditioned air inside. It is better to have a shading film on the first (outer) glass pane to limit the heat that enters the double glazed unit.

The combination of Magnetite retrofit double glazing and Solartite outperforms the traditional insulated glass unit for hot climate. Magnetite fit over an existing window with reflective film will give better summer heat control than a double-glazed window with supertoned glass.

The Magnetite system stops the conduction and convection of heat better than glass windows giving superior results for summer conditions. Combined with a film or a shading device, Magnetite is the ideal solution for the hot Australian conditions.

Glazing Type Cooling Stars Heating Stars Cool% Heat% Uw SHGC AI
Double Glazed 5mm Supertoned glass/6mm
air gap/5mm clear glass IGU (Insulated Glass Unit)*		 blue starblue starblue starhalf blue star red starred starred starred starhalf red star 54% 425% 3.30 0.461 5.0
Single glazed 3mm glass Solartite**
and 4.5mm Magnetite		 blue starblue starblue starblue starblue starhalf blue star red starred starred starred star 73% 38% 2.4 0.19 0.5

 

*WERS standard typical industry window
**Solartite is a range of high performance window film. The window tested above has Solartite’s low-e film.

Click here to view pdf version of Magnetite WERS test result.

Noise Reduction Technical Data and Results

Proven Results

Noise pollution is one the biggest problems faced in the cities today, particularly in a high-density living. Unwanted noise can be responsible for sleep loss and lack of concentration. This can lead to a deterioration of health through increased stress levels, headaches, high blood pressure and loss of hearing.

Noise penetrates windows through leaky seals or vibrations through the window structure. To reduce noise, a window should minimise air infiltration, hold enough weight to limit vibration and allow a large air cavity. This cavity, or air gap, is the key to secondary glazing.

Expert Advice:

CSIRO Research by John Davy shown an air cavity can effectively enhance sound insulation performance. The larger the air cavity the more noise the window system can reduce. Results show a wide air gap of 100-125mm will improve sound insulation by an average of 7dB(A) more than windows with a narrow gap of 8-13mm.

Window or Glass Door Type Total Glass Thickness (mm) Air Cavity Thickness (mm) Sound Insulation (dB)
Single Glaze 3mm 3 0 23
Single Glaze 6mm 6 0 27
Double Glaze Narrow Gap 9-12 8-13 31
Double Glaze Wide Gap 9-12 100-125 38

 

The human ear is less sensitive to low frequency sound. According to a study released by the CSIRO, the human ear needs a change of 3dB to detect a difference in noise levels and the human ear perceives a change of 10dB as a doubling or halving of the noise level.

If you double the thickness of glass in a window the noise level will decrease by 3dB the least amount possible to make a difference. If the glass is laminated there is no perceived difference in noise reduction.

National Acoustic Laboratory Testing:

Working with the principles of noise transfer, Magnetite® and Soundtite are designed for high performance, which is achieved by combining air tight seals with the ability to maximize an air cavity and the flexibility to vary glazing thickness to suit. Magnetite® is excellent at reducing general noise such as busy roads, commuter trains and noisy neighbours. Whereas, Soundtite works well to combat low frequencies noise such as garbage truck, freight trains or airplane during take-off and landing.

Test Code Material Tested Rw* Improvement
ATF 707 (test window) Aluminium sliding window, 3mm float glass with mohair seals 23 N/A
ATF 709 Test window, 100mm air gap and Magnetite System (4.5mm acrylic panel) 35 52%
ATF 1507 Test window, 100mm air gap and Magnetite System (10.0mm acrylic panel) 39 70%
ATF 817 Test window, 100mm air gap and Soundtite (6.38mm laminated glass) 41 78%

 

*The Weighted Sound Reduction Index (Rw) is a measure for sound insulation performance of a single building element such as windows. The higher the Rw rating, the better the sound insulation.