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1. Can you advise on where impact safety
glass should be used in my home?
It should be used in low level glazing, glazing
in and around doors, overhead and in large areas
of glazing to prevent injury following accidental
glass breakage.
2. Can you tell me about the benefits of
toughened glass versus laminated glass?
Toughened glass is upto five times as strong as
ordinary glass which means that it has to be hit
much harder in order to break, also when it does
break it is into lots of small pieces which are
much less dangerous. Laminated glass has the same
strength as ordinary glass but it consists of two
pieces of glass with a sandwich of plastic interlayer.
If the glass does get broken this interlayer holds
the whole piece in place so there is no hole left
in the window for an intruder to get in through
for example or large free shards.
3. What are Window Energy Ratings?
Window Energy Ratings were introduced by the Government
in 2005 as a means for window companies to demonstrate
compliance with Building Regulations Part L concerning
energy efficiency of their windows. The Window Energy
Rating level is shown on a label attached to the
window which looks very much like the kind of label
you will have seen in the past on domestic appliances
such as fridges and washing machines.
4. How can my windows help to reduce the
noise level in my home?
There are a number of ways that this can be achieved
including using double glazed units which have uneven
thicknesses of glass in the front and back panes,
using regular laminated glass in one of the panes
or for the best reduction, use of special laminated
glass such as Pilkington Optilam™ Phon. Ask
us for advice.
5. What is the difference between u-pvc
and pvc-u, one supplier claims better aging, particularly
colour, for pvc-u.
To answer the question very simply, there is no
difference between u-pvc and pvc-u. Both terms refer
to unplasticised (hard) PVC, which is used extensively
in building products where rigidity is an important
attribute.
Plasticised (soft) PVC on the other hand is used
where flexibility is important, for example medical
tubing applications, insulation sheathing on electrical
wiring, etc. Pvc-u is more to do with commonality
of terminology world-wide than it is to do with
formulation. Any claims of better performance of
pvc-u over u-pvc are therefore spurious.
6. How do you see the advantages and disadvantages
of PVCu and aluminium for replacement windows?
PVCu offers the following advantages...
* Good insulator
* Low maintenance
* Many suppliers / usually the cheapest option today
* Now available in wood grain and colored finishes.
If it has a disadvantage it maybe that it has relatively
low structural integrity. This is overcome with
steel or aluminium reinforcement. Also it can be
susceptible especially in south facing situations
to "expansion" in sunlight. Again using
"fully reinforced" frames can reduce this.
Aluminium offers the following advantages...
* Virtually no maintenance over its long lifetime
* Slim, strong sections that will not warp or twist
* About one third the expansion of PVC-u
Its main disadvantage is that it's a relatively
poor insulator. (However thermal break aluminium
frames are available which offer better insulation)
It is also usually more expensive than PVCu .
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