Common questions regarding residential glass:

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Q: What is the difference between annealed vs tempered?

A: Tempered glass is safety glass and much stronger.  It will break into a million tiny pieces.  Annealed glass is regular glass.  It will break into large shards that you could easily get cut on.  If the glass is going on a sold surface such as a table or desk, annealed glass is fine.  Annealed glass is also used in house windows.  Tempered glass is used for doors, sidelights and any tabletops that are not solid.

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Q: What is the difference between single pane vs double pane?

A: A single pane window is one piece of glass.  It is typically 1/8" thick and used in wood frames, such as in a puddy window or window held in with wood stops.  Also common in metal frame basement windows.  We cut this to fit here at the shop.  Double pane windows, also known as Insulated Glass Units (IG units) are two pieces of glass with air space sealed between them.  IG units are custom ordered per window and take about 7-10 days to get.  Window glass, single pane or double, can be annealed or tempered.  

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Q: How much is a typical window?

A: Since there are no standard sizes or 'typical' windows, everything is priced based on square footage.  We can give you an approximate cost over the phone if you have rough measurements.

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Q:What is Low E?

A: Low-Emissivity.  Low E is a special coating on IG units.  Low-E coating reduces the amount of heat transfer.  Low E  also stop UV radiation waves while still letting in visible light.  So, it keeps the heat in during the winter and heat out during the summer.  

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