| You don't have to wait until resale to realize the financial benefits of buying Energy Star Windows. These windows offer savings every month through utility bills that are significantly lower than those of standard windows. The savings can amount to hundreds of extra dollars every year. In addition to saving money on your utility bills, the energy-efficient features of ENERGY STAR® Windows are more durable which may reduce or even eliminate many repair costs.
What Qualifies a Window for the ENERGY STAR® Label?
The National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) rates the performance of windows on how well they help to keep your home cool in the summer, warm in the winter, keep out wind, and resist condensation. Here's what to look for:
U-factor: Measures how well a product prevents heat from escaping. U-Factor ratings generally fall between 0.20 and 1.20. The insulating value is indicated by the R-value which is the inverse of the U-value. The lower the U-value, the greater a window's resistance to heat flow and the better its insulating value.
Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC): Measures how well a product blocks heat caused by sunlight. SHGC is expressed as a number between 0 and 1. The lower a windows's solar heat gain coefficient, the less solar heat it transmits.
Visible Transmittance (VT): Measures how much light comes through a product. VT is expressed as a number between 0 and 1. The lower the VT, the less light is transmitted.
Air Leakage (AL): Measures how much air passes through the window assembly. The lower the AL, the less air will pass through the cracks and gaps in the window assembly. |
