Window Material – These days you will usually be choosing between vinyl windows and fiberglass windows. Fiberglass has a stronger frame than vinyl, it usually comes with more hardware/color options, and is paint-able. The downside of fiberglass is that it is expensive. Vinyl is much less expensive, but still offers great energy efficiency, durability, and longevity. Vinyl does not take paint well. Both vinyl and fiberglass require almost zero maintenance. For you wood lovers, we offer the Milgard Essence window that is a fiberglass/wood hybrid. It has the durability of fiberglass on the outside and the warm feeling of wood on the inside. In the Kansas City area, I would stay away from metal windows. We can get them for those who want a trendy “industrial” type look, but they are going to be cold on a snowy morning.

Configuration – Just because you currently have double hung (both sashes move up and down) windows, it doesn’t mean you have to keep double hung windows in your replacement windows. Many people are replacing double and single hung windows with casement (the type with a crank that swings out) for a more contemporary feel and a better view.

Grids – The types and designs of grids you can get with your new windows is almost limitless, and grids drastically change the aesthetics of your windows.

Obscure Glass – Do you have windows in the basement or in a bathroom and you want privacy while letting the sunlight in? Get an obscured glass and get rid of those dusty blinds and shades.

Sound – Most of the time, replacing your old windows with a quality window will reduce the outside noise that enters your home. However, there are many low and no cost options available that will take sound control to another level.

Energy Efficiency – Don’t worry about double pane vs. triple pane. Just take a look at the SHGC (Solar Heat Gain Coefficient) and U-Value (the window’s insulation value) numbers available from the window manufacturer. These numbers will tell you how the window will perform. The lower the number, the better. Also, make sure your windows are sealed well when they are installed.

Installation Type – The type and quality of your window installation is every bit as important as the type of window you choose. If you have rotten exterior window trim, you are worried about current water leaks, or you want the maximum glass area for the best view, you will want a “rough opening” type of installation. Not all companies will do this. In a rough opening installation, the current window is removed all the way down to the framing that surrounds the window. This lets us repair any current water damage and provide the best weatherproofing available. The other type of window installation is called a “pocket” installation. You get a new window, but it is installed inside the frame of the old window. This is a more cost effective way to install a window, but you don’t get the maximum view and peace of mind that you get from a rough opening installation.

To learn more, please read about the window and door services offered by High Performance Homes.

Both the insulation levels in your home and the amount of air leakage your home experiences affect drastically how comfortable your home is and how much you spend on energy bills. However, air leakage and insulation are two very different animals. Your home can be very air tight but lack insulation. Conversely, your home can be very well insulated but leaky. I think most people equate air sealing with insulating because many times insulation is used to decrease a homes air leakage. However, you need to know how, where, and with which material you should use if you want to seal your home’s air leaks while insulating. For example, using fiberglass insulation in your attic will provide greater insulation, but will provide very little in terms of air sealing. This is where energy audits come in. Measuring how much air your home leaks (a service provided in any energy audit) is vital to determining the type of material that should be used and where it should be applied. Without knowing your home’s air leakage, you could be wasting money on more expensive air sealing materials. What’s worse is that, if your home becomes too air tight, you could end up with air quality problems and/or mold problems.

Humidity:

Much of the job of your air conditioner (or heat pump) is to remove excess humidity from the air. This is accomplished by the air conditioner returning the air in your home and blowing that air past a cold surface (the evaporator coil usually above the furnace). What happens, though, when your air conditioner only returns a small portion of the air in your home? This is what is going on when your a/c runs for only 5 minutes and shuts off. When your a/c runs for a short period of time, only some of the air is being cooled and therefore only some of the air is being dehumidified.

High efficiency air conditioners have a solution to this problem – stages. When a high efficiency a/c comes on, it is in stage 1. Stage 1 exercises only a portion of the air conditioner’s total capacity. It keeps running in this stage until it decides that it cannot keep up and your home is not getting to the desired temperature. At this point, stage 2 will activate and cool your home at the unit’s maximum capacity. This way, as long as the a/c is in stage 1, it will run for a longer period of time effectively dehumidifying your home’s air.

Short Cycling:

Short cycling is a term that means your furnace and/or air conditioner is running for a short amount of time and then shutting off. Not only does short cycling decrease the life of your equipment, it makes it run less efficiently as well.

When an a/c shuts off, there is a lot of pressure in those two copper lines that you see coming out of the outside portion of your air conditioner. When the unit immediately starts up again (as is the case in a short cycling air conditioner), the compressor has to overcome this pressure to start again. Of course, this practice take a lot of energy and is inherently inefficient.

As for the furnace, the first 30-45 seconds that it runs, the gas that you are paying for is wasted by going straight out of the flue pipe. So the fewer times the equipment has to start, the more efficient it can be.

Temperature Spikes:

By operating for a longer period of time (while using less energy during the operation time), the furnace and a/c won’t make the temperature go up and down as quickly. Therefore, you home’s air will stay at a temperature that is closer to your desired temperature and you will be more comfortable as a result. Also, your system won’t be as loud because the fan isn’t running full blast.