What does warm window installation involve?
Year by year more and more weight is attached to houses being built or renovated being energy-efficient. For buildings actually to be able to save energy, they must be airtight and have appropriate insulation. Windows are the critical point of every house, because it is precisely through them that the greatest amount of valuable heat escapes. To prevent this, manufacturers of window joinery use ever newer technologies, thanks to which modern windows are airtight and insulate the interiors of a house excellently. No less important is the very way they are installed. Correctly carried out warm window installation is the method that guarantees their excellent thermal insulation properties will be preserved.
What is warm window installation?
Until recently the most frequently chosen method of installing windows was so-called foam installation. Such a way of installing window joinery cannot be used in the case of energy-efficient windows, as it will mean that the windows do not retain the appropriate insulation values. Modern energy-efficient timber windows installed in the traditional way will not give a building the proper airtightness and thermal insulation.
Thermally efficient installation is a way of installing windows that makes the formation of thermal bridges impossible. Thanks to this the valuable heat accumulated inside a building does not escape through the windows. To give windows maximum insulation, as many as three layers of insulation are used during installation: standard polyurethane foam and two kinds of sealing tape (vapour-permeable tape is used on the outside, while vapour-tight tapes are used on the inside).
The polyurethane foam can be replaced with an expanding foam tape, which thanks to its continuous pressure against the wall guarantees the highest level of airtightness. Using a tape of this kind brings a number of benefits. The tape is impregnated with special substances, thanks to which it has both vapour-tight and vapour-permeable properties. Using it eliminates the risk of soiling the windows with foam during installation and also makes it possible to avoid many installation errors. Because of its nature, warm window installation is also called layered installation. It can be carried out both in the face of the wall and in the insulation layer.
How does thermally efficient installation protect the interiors of a house against heat loss?
The place through which most heat escapes from a house is always the junction of the window with the wall. It must be protected on the inside with vapour-tight tape, so that moisture cannot penetrate the insulating layer, that is the polyurethane foam. Thanks to this the foam can perform its task properly, as it does not degrade through damp and seasonal freezing. Thermally efficient installation is an excellent way of preventing the formation of thermal bridges, which are the main cause of heat loss. Another advantage of thermally efficient installation is the effective protection of a building against damp and mould.
This type of installation is in fact complete installation, which protects the interiors of a building against heat loss. Thanks to it modern energy-efficient windows will not be so in name only, because all their thermal insulation values will genuinely be guaranteed, and clients will be able to enjoy reduced heating costs.