Windows are a key element of our home, on the one hand they allow us to be in relation with the outside, enjoy the environment, fill our spaces with light, but at the same time they must protect us from the inclemency of the weather and not be a foyer for the that we lose the heat of our house in winter or the freshness in summer. That is why we must pay special attention when changing the windows of our house or choose them in the case of new work. For this, it is best to trust our architect and follow his instructions, here we leave you some keys when choosing and setting up good windows for your home.

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Pvc, aluminium or wood?

Basically, these are the 3 materials that we can choose for our windows. Nowadays the use of PVC is very widespread since it is cheaper and among its properties is that it is not a good conductor of temperature, that is, PVC itself insulates well. However, there are equivalent solutions in aluminium (always with thermal break) and even in wood.

The main difference between aluminium windows and other PVC is that, in the first, we can have a finer profile, however in PVC the profiles (the window frame) are usually thicker, which will leave less space with glass. On the other hand, if we talk about very large windows, we may be forced to choose aluminium because it is more resistant than PVC and can withstand larger and heavier glass.

Wood is possibly the most expensive option from the economic point of view, but it also has a very good behaviour. Remember that wood is non-conductive material by nature, a good thermal and acoustic insulator. If we have old wooden windows in the house, we may be interested in changing the glass and restoring them and keeping the frame, all of this as long as the fittings and the entire closing system work properly (it is important that they maintain water and air tightness).

We can also find windows that combine aluminium (on the outside) and wood (on the inside). We must not forget that wooden windows require more intensive maintenance (protective varnishes and other treatments) than PVC or aluminium.

Types of opening

The type of opening of the window is also important if we want to optimize the welfare and energy consumed in our home. As a general rule, we should know that the windows with flap closing are more hermetic than the sliding ones. Sometimes, in enclosures that give access to a terrace or an outdoor garden, we may be interested in a sliding door solution for aesthetics, a good option for these cases are the elevating slides or the parallel ones, which have a more airtight closure than the standard ones, although they also have a higher cost.

As we have already said, if what we are looking for is a good thermal-acoustic insulation it is best to avoid sliding windows and place swinging, tilt-and-turn or even pivoting.

With shutter or without shutter

The blind is typical of the Mediterranean culture, especially in Spain. Without a doubt, it is the best system to guarantee total shading or darkening of the interior of a room. In short, they are a good system to regulate the amount of light that enters our home. In recent years they have also been established as a good anti-theft system thanks to the security blinds, better and more aesthetic than traditional grilles.

Putting or not blinds in the windows will depend above all on our customs and the use that we will give to each room. For example, in a room a blind is not completely necessary. We must also take into account that a blind badly placed, poorly sealed or with a poorly executed box can generate problems of thermal bridges, air leaks or acoustic bridges. It does not help to put some very good windows if they are accompanied by a system of poor quality blind or poorly placed.

If we want to place blinds in the windows, it is best to choose a compact solution in which blinds and windows are one piece, which guarantees optimal operation of the whole from the thermal and acoustic point of view. The blind box must incorporate thermal insulation and have a tight seal, ideally is that they are motorized because the manual closure with tape is another weak point and can be a drain of cold, heat or noise.

Another option is to separate the blinds from the window. In this case the blinds are usually hidden in the façade itself, an architect will design a good constructive detail so that the interior that houses the roll of the blind has no thermal or acoustic bridges. This type of solution has the advantage that the blind box can be completely concealed inside the front wall.

The type of glass

If we want our window to work optimally, we must know that, at a minimum, we will need a double glass. In the chamber that is formed between the two glasses we can introduce a noble gas (such as Argon) that will make the window isolate even better, since they are less conductive gases than the air of standard composition. In addition, we can go further and ask that the piece that separates the two glasses, called spacer, instead of being metallic is made of PVC (we will reduce even more the transmittance of the glass). Of course, if we add a third glass we will reach the most demanding standards regarding the quality of the window.

But the orientation is also important, the glasses must have different treatments depending on where they are oriented. Windows facing north and south must have glass with a high solar factor (> 50%). However, the east and west orientations must equip solar control glasses. In general, it is recommended that all glasses are, in addition, low emissive. Finally, if the windows overlook a very noisy street, we can equip the glass with an acoustic sheet or, at least, equip the window with two glasses of different thicknesses, thus its frequency of vibration will be different and better isolate the noise.

Thanks to our top blinds at  Sure Shade you can finally enjoy top quality external cover that will help you keep your house cool and comfortable for these hotter days as well as protecting yourself of excessive UV rays.