Did you know that up to 20 percent of heat escapes through your home’s windows? It can be said that for more than half of the year you pay to heat your home, and some of this money “escapes” through the window… How to remedy this? The solution is a warm frame
The growing need to reduce energy losses, among others in residential buildings, has made it necessary to develop technologies in window structures that will reduce the problem of “escaping” heat. One of the latest solutions that meet these requirements are the so-called warm frames. What is such a frame?
Each window manufactured nowadays is equipped with so called distance frame, which separates the panes in double or triple glazing packages. This is a very important element of window construction – it is responsible for the tightness of the edges of combined panes and has an influence on heat permeability. Various types of spacers are used in window structures. In order to find out the difference between the commonly used frames and the so-called warm frames, let us first see what characterises the frames used so far.
Aluminum frames are installed in windows by default – their advantage is low price, but unfortunately they are characterized by high heat transfer. As a result such a frame turns out to be a weak point of the window, influencing the deterioration of its insulating properties. Up to 20 percent of heat may escape through the window from our house, which obviously results in higher heating costs. Fortunately, the new technology of warm frames can solve this problem.
A spacer created from materials with lower heat conductivity than aluminium would result in better insulation – thus reducing energy losses. This is how the idea of warm frames was born. A warm frame is therefore called a distance frame made of materials with very good insulation properties, e.g. stainless steel or plastic
Increasing the insulation of a window significantly influences the limitation of energy losses – heat will not escape through a pane with a warm frame as in the case of a standard window. This will allow us to significantly reduce the costs of heating rooms. Windows with warm frame technology can reduce the use of energy needed to heat the house by up to 20 percent
You’ve probably noticed yourself that water vapor accumulates on your windows during the winter due to the temperature difference between the outer and inner pane. A warm frame will solve this problem by increasing the temperature of the inner edge of the glass, which will prevent the accumulation of water vapor.
The role of spacers, apart from insulation, is also to protect the interior of the window against condensation and dirt. For this purpose the space between the panes is filled with a special gas – argon or krypton – which has drying properties. Unfortunately, with leaky glazing this gas escapes and in addition to lowering the insulation properties, the windows are also exposed to the penetration of moisture and contamination. In consequence, the accumulated moisture may lead to the formation of mould and such a window may only be replaced. The use of a warm frame eliminates such problems.
Main photo: Andrew Neel/pexels.com
