How New Windows Save You Money on Utilities
If you live in a house with old windows, you know better than most how much energy can be lost through windows. Just sitting by the windows in the cold days of winter, you can feel the heat seeping out and the cold flowing in. Or on hot, humid days in the summer you feel the humidity rise significantly as you move close to the window. Replacing your windows with energy efficient models will help improve your home’s energy efficiency and save you money on your utility bills while improving the overall appearance and value of your home.
How much energy is lost through my home’s windows?
The average home loses about 30 percent of the heating and cooling energy it expends through thin windows and the leaks around them. During sunny summer days, the sun streaming through the windows can be beautiful, but it can also make your air conditioning system work double time. In winter, much of the energy spent heating your home is lost through the windowpanes. New energy efficient windows are designed to both block heat from the sun and keep the heat inside your home in winter, helping your heating and air conditioning systems run more efficiently and effectively throughout the year.
How much will installing energy efficient windows save me on utilities?
The amount of savings you’ll see on your utility bills after you install new energy efficient windows depends greatly on how much you use your utilities to begin with, but you will likely see a reduction of up to 25 percent of your bill. The amount of savings also depends on the type of windows you have to begin with — if you’re upgrading from single pane windows to new energy efficient models, you’ll likely see a bigger savings than simply replacing double-paned windows.
What should I look for when buying new windows?
Once you make the decision to upgrade from your old windows to energy efficient ones, it can be difficult to decipher the various terms and determine what type of windows to buy. Some factors to consider when you’re looking at what type of window to buy include:
- Energy efficiency/Energy Star rating: Consider the level of energy efficiency of the windows by examining the Energy Star rating. The level of rating you should have depends on your climate zone, which you can look up on the Energy Star website. Be sure the windows you’re looking at have a sufficient rating to hold up in your climate zone.
- U-factor: This measure indicates the rate of heat loss for an entire window, helping you select the window that best suits your needs.
- Solar Heat Gain Coefficient: This measure indicates how effective the window is at blocking heat from the sun. If your home has a lot of direct sunlight, you may want to prioritize this element more highly than if your home’s windows are mostly shaded.
- Low-E glass: This type of glass has a Low-E coating to cut down on the amount of ultraviolet light and infrared light that can pass through the glass. These types of light can cause fabrics on your furniture or wallpaper to fade or can lead to increased heat. Low-E glass blocks much of those types of light, mainly allowing visible light through.
Is a professional installation necessary for new windows?
While simply upgrading your windows is a major step in improving energy efficiency, poor installation can significantly undermine that effort. If there is poor sealing leaving air leaks around the windows, you’ll still end up losing significant amounts of energy, saving you less money on your utilities bill. At Bellari in Branchburg, NJ, we got our start in the window replacement business and have the years of experience necessary to do a quality job. If you’re interested in replacing your windows, call us today at [company-phone id=1] for a consultation!
