Hydro rate HIKES - won't retrofitting buildings cost you MORE

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Looking at the above table...
What's the difference between [Double Glass, ½" air space - 0.62] and [Double glass, low-e, (E*=0.2), ½" space with argon - 0.46] really mean? Are the #s.... a percentage? ...what's the units of measurement?
 
@mxs my parents live in a house that was built in 1988. You could yell and scream there (like my dad did) and anyone outside wouldn't hear shyte.
My house built ~16 years ago, you can hear it outside if I fart. Now, not only will I contribute this to cheap building materials, but I believe the windows are a huge part of it.

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Riceburner said:
Looking at the above table...
What's the difference between [Double Glass, ½" air space - 0.62] and [Double glass, low-e, (E*=0.2), ½" space with argon - 0.46] really mean? Are the #s.... a percentage? ...what's the units of measurement?
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U factor is 1/R. So a U 0.25 window is R4, U 0.5 is R2. Yes windows really are that ***** thermally.

Edit:

To answer your question U 0.62 = R 1.6, U 0.46 = R 2.2, so you are looking at 30 to 50 percent improvement in thermal performance depending on which way you want to do your math.
 
crankcall said:
Our biggest energy saver was new windows. Less gas to heat, less electric to blow the heat around. The two bigger benefits was sound reduction, street noise was cut in half. It wasn't cheap, but was absolutely worth it.
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Can you give more info on this? What windows did you find worked so well, and who installed?
 
GreyGhost said:
U factor is 1/R. So a U 0.25 window is R4, U 0.5 is R2. Yes windows really are that ***** thermally.

Edit:

To answer your question U 0.62 = R 1.6, U 0.46 = R 2.2, so you are looking at 30 to 50 percent improvement in thermal performance depending on which way you want to do your math.
Click to expand...

Yes, 30 to 50% improvement, from pretty bad to not quite as bad.

A typical wall these days is going to be insulated to R24 or better. A single-pane window is R1 at best.

Double-pane windows these days will typically give R2 to R5 performance depending on the presence and efficiency of thermal breaks in the frame, the frame material itself, double-pane vs triple-pane, gas fill between panes, and also depending on window coatings. Some really high-performance windows can give R7. Even the best windows will be the weak point insulation-wise, even before they start leaking.
 
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fastar1 said:
Can you give more info on this? What windows did you find worked so well, and who installed?
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I bought Pollard brand, low E glass , all vinyl clad so no exterior maintenence, they are casement windows that seal better than sliders or double hung. I did the installations, I've been doing this stuff a long time.

So many older windows do not have thermal breaks and aluminum frames that transmit cold/heat, single pane glass, or two single panes (still bad) and when you pull them out, even the 10 year old builder install can be 4 nails and fiberglass insul pushed in around the frame. I put mine in place with expanding foam, they dont rattle and are completely sealed and will be for years, fiberglass when compressed is not good and it can settle and leave air gaps.

A lot a window companies buy in the sealed glass units and the vinyl frame extrusions and are actually window fabricators not manufactueres. The differential was the quality of winders and seals and latching parts. The spread on the pricing was staggering when I started shopping.

My 30yr old windows that can out were wood frame side sliders and you could watch the curtains move on a windy day, they met code still today but was a really bad product.
 
Last quote on windows (Landmark lol) was $29,000. Last months gas bill for house and shop rounded up to $115.
 
A very large portion of window and door pricing is markup by the dealer and installation costs. I was very fortunate to not have to pay retail and the install was by me and a couple very handy friends. I have two patio french doors, 4 man doors, large ish bay window and 8 others and had been quoted from $22 to 38K ? Thats a pretty remarkable spread. I spent under 12 with beer and pizza included.
I may never save 12K on utility costs in my time here, but the house looks better, is certainly more comfortable and I will get it back on the sell side.
 
I'm in the process of doing my own windows but not to save money, I'm doing it because it's a lot cheaper.
 
That's the thing... Will I save the $15k+ in the next 5+ years in utility costs? Probably not. Maybe on the resale I might. Hard to say with the housing prices going up like crazy. Comfort isn't too bad as it is now.
I did my last house cause it was time(sort of...10yr old original builder single pane sliders were still ok) and I figured I'd be in the house a long time. A year later it was up for sale. :( No idea if I got my $$ back at resale.

I'm tempted to do mine myself as well. Just feeling really lazy. Who can you order built windows from to self install?
 
I bought the first 4 windows from a local window place thinking it was their own product. Turns out they just get them Gentek which I will do myself going forward. Installing is actually kind of a pia the way I do it but thankfully I consider my home/life a hobby and rarely look at the time involved. That approach doesn't work for a lot of people. I sense the cost of certain home improvements are more based on the value of home prices rather than the job itself. 8g$ for a simple roof? 3 guys x 2 days plus material? $10,000 for a front door? Repeat that enough times in front of a $1000 mirror and eventually it starts sounding normal. $150,000 homes in downtown Hamilton are fast pushing towards $500,000. I guess $400 door bells are just around the corner.
 
inreb said:
I bought the first 4 windows from a local window place thinking it was their own product. Turns out they just get them Gentek which I will do myself going forward. Installing is actually kind of a pia the way I do it but thankfully I consider my home/life a hobby and rarely look at the time involved. That approach doesn't work for a lot of people. I sense the cost of certain home improvements are more based on the value of home prices rather than the job itself. 8g$ for a simple roof? 3 guys x 2 days plus material? $10,000 for a front door? Repeat that enough times in front of a $1000 mirror and eventually it starts sounding normal. $150,000 homes in downtown Hamilton are fast pushing towards $500,000. I guess $400 door bells are just around the corner.
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Hamilton has gone insane. My worry on an older resale would be that the place was tarted up to flip. A year later it falls apart.
 
nobbie48 said:
Hamilton has gone insane. My worry on an older resale would be that the place was tarted up to flip. A year later it falls apart.
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Ottawa is the worst for that. Almost every exterior renovation involves stucco installed over the old facade with no prep or removal of the existing siding.
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