Single Versus Double Glazing

Single Versus Double Glazing

Here at Ecostar, we are big fans of double glazing. We’ve written about the benefits of it before and firmly believe it’s a worthy investment. Double glazing is a great way to cut down on your energy bills and carbon emissions while making your home more secure at the same time. 

However, we’ve noticed that the upfront cost of double glazing can be off-putting. This is understandable. After all, who wants to pay extra for something that, at first glance, seems unnecessary? While we sympathise with that point of view though, it’s misguided. Here’s why. 

Single Glazing Or Double Glazing: Which Is Cheaper?

Let’s get this out the way now; in the short term, single glazed windows are cheaper than their double glazed counterparts. They use fewer materials and are less effort to manufacture and install, so if you’re working with a limited budget, we understand that single glazing will be tempting. 

However, there is a big caveat to this. The upfront cost of double glazing may be higher, but it’s the cheaper option in the long run. Single glazed windows are notoriously bad at retaining heat, so keeping your house warm during the colder months will be harder. They’re more likely to experience condensation too, which increases the risk of rot and mould. Consequently, single glazed windows have a shorter lifespan than double glazed ones. Double glazing is the better option if you want to save money on your future heating and repair bills, even if the catalogue price doesn’t reflect this.

A Safer And Quieter Home

Aside from the costs, there are other factors to think about when choosing your new windows, and double glazing is the better choice each time. For starters, they’re stronger. Double glazed windows are harder to break and will resist unwanted intruders and badly aimed footballs far more than single glazed windows.

Double glazing offers superior noise reduction as well. This will be good news for anyone that lives near an airport or has particularly noisy neighbours. They won’t make your home completely silent, but they can reduce external noise by up to 31 decibels.

When Not To Double Glaze

In almost all aspects, double glazing outperforms single glazing. However, it’s not universally applicable and there are scenarios where you may need an alternative. For instance, if you live in a heritage home, it may be difficult to get planning permission to upgrade your windows. 

Thankfully, there are other options and you don’t need to resign yourself to having a colder, insecure house. Secondary glazing is a decent alternative whereby an extra window is attached to the inside of a house. This means the existing structure isn’t fundamentally altered, so it’s easier to get authorised. Secondary glazing isn’t as energy efficient as double glazing, but it is a decent runner-up.

Here at Ecostar, we are firm believers in the benefits of double glazing. If you’d like to know more or want to get started on a project, you’ve come to the right place. You can contact us or request an online quote; one of our experts will be happy to talk with you.