THERE is a lot of misinformation coming from many areas whether treble glazing saves any extra heat and energy. Glass technology has come on by leaps and bounds over the last decade, so buyer beware. This is an important consideration as we now know that energy prices are never going back to where they were before the price hikes, and with heat-pumps on the way, we need the best insulation.   

We should ask ourselves why do many colder countries have some form of triple glazing if it didn’t help? At this time, some UK window companies don’t do Triple Glazed windows. With the research I have done, I found these companies always said: ‘It makes no difference.’

It seems to me; they say this as an excuse why they don’t do it. Sure, the units are heavier and need two people at all times to handle them, but their answer is not accurate when they say, ‘not needed as there is little or no heat savings.’   

The following is the most used official U value ratings, and you can see for yourself there is a considerable amount of savings with Treble glazing, over Double glazed sealed units. Keep in mind that the lower the U Value, the better the insulation value. Normal building regs needs it under 1.6 uv. But is now not looked upon as very low.   

Single Glazed = 5.2 uv.  Double Glazed Old style non coated and normal air filled = 2.7 uv.  Double Glazed 20 mm gap latest Planitherm one coated & with Argon gas filled = 1.2/1 uv.  Triple Glazed with two gaps of 12 mm, Planitherm one coated, & Argon gas filled =  0.8 uv.  Triple Glazed with two 9mm mm gaps, coated Planitherm one & Krypton Gas filled = 0.4 uv. Zeon gas filled is the most insulating with the correct gap, but the most expensive. It is therefore, used for special jobs only. For example – a large walls of glass, not normally used in residential homes unless an architect recommends it. No UV figs available as depending on other factors. 

The conclusion is that Triple Glazing with coated glass to reflect the heat back inside and with Argon gas filled at 12 mm gaps, is the best all-rounder for cost and energy saving; condensation reduction on the glass and cold wall effect.

And despite the wrong selling information given out by some window companies is actually around 33% better than the equivalent double glazing per sealed unit. This would be the normal high quality Eco home installation and if you are thinking about heat pumps, this would be the best option. 

Please bear in mind that the 33% is not a further amount off your heating bills, as windows may only be say, 17% of your outside windows to wall ratio. In this case, it could mean up to 5% reduction of heating costs if all windows were the best Treble glazed as above and not just Double glazed with coated and gas filled units. Or up to 70% better insulated glass compared to old type Double glazing with no coatings and Argon gas in them.

In that case, this could save up to 10% on your heating part of your bills depending on your home and its orientation. It is all a bit technical, and can vary slightly, but as you can see the facts tell the right story; Triple Glazing beats Double Glazing on all counts, other than weight and just a little more expensive.