The glass you choose for your replacement windows near Dublin, CA, is important. Rather than just being limited to basic glass, there are many different options to choose from depending on your needs. Whether your priority is privacy, insulation, or protection from UV rays, there is a type of glass that will work for your home.
At the most basic level, window glass typically comes in one of two types: annealed, and tempered. Tempered glass is the most commonly chosen type of glass for windows today, and it is significantly stronger than annealed glass. If tempered glass is broken, it will form many small pieces, which is much safer than the large, sharp shards that form when annealed glass is broken.
Moving beyond the basic glass material, there are many coatings and treatments available that have different qualities that may be desirable. You can find glass that has a texture or pattern imprinted on it, which is often used for privacy in bathrooms. This type of glass allows light to enter the room while obscuring the contents of the room to anyone looking in. For added privacy, some people add tints to their glass. Glass tinting can be used for several different purposes. While it does offer an extra layer of privacy, it can also be used to lower the amount of sunlight that is able to enter the home. In windows that receive strong sunlight throughout the day, tinting might be desirable to help keep heat from building up in the house. This can help with energy efficiency, as well.
These days, most windows are treated to block UV rays from coming through. This protects your belongings from sun damage, and it also protects your family from the same thing. Windows can also be made to have added insulation, which is important in both warm and cold climates. Most typical windows are made with double-paned glass. This means that there are two pieces of glass with a gap in between, and that gap is filled with an inert gas. Moisture is not able to permeate this layer, and the empty space in between helps protect the inside of the home from the outside temperatures. This helps tremendously with energy efficiency and can result in significant savings on your heating and cooling bills. In some places where the temperatures dip down very low in the winter months, triple-paned glass is used to add even more effective insulation.
As you can see, there is much more to window glass than meets the eye. Newer technology allows us to have windows that can protect our family and possessions from the harmful rays of the sun, while still letting in beautiful natural light. There are also many options that provide more privacy, as well as greatly increased insulation. Your installer of replacement windows near Dublin, CA, can tell you about all the different types of glass and coatings that they have to offer. During their in-home consultation, they can tell you about which types of glass might be most beneficial in each area of your home. Then, you can enjoy the benefits of beautiful new windows in a more energy-efficient home.