Big windows in new builds - a good idea or not?

jimmmy

Looking at many of the trendy photos of modern houses in the media, a lot have large windows i.e ceiling to floor. Walls of glass. I know window quality / insulation etc has got hi-tech over the years. I am just wondering how people found those windows in these winter conditions - if they were building again would they go for smaller windows ? I know large windows can look lovely and let lots of light through etc....but how are they to live with - keep clean, keep house warm etc?

the_syco

My main concern is how much heat they'd loose, and also how easy are they to replace? Oh, and how big is big?

Macha

It depends which side.

If the large windows are on the south/east side of the house, you would benefit from solar gain from much of the day and this would help cancel out any losses during the night. You can also help this by fitting the windows with heavy curtains that can be pulled during the night.

I would very strongly advise against putting a large amount of glass on the north/west side of a house as it will impact on your heating bills and your BER.

housetypeb

I agree with not having large windows on the north side, but wonder about windows on the west side .
Nearly every newbuild in ireland have their sunrooms on the west side, are you saying thats a bad idea ?

jimmmy

surely the east is the same as the west from the point of view of heat loss/gain?

also, would the heat gain be noticeable in the winter, as its usually not sunny..... and large glass walls are bound to be less efficient at conserving energy than a wall with normal size window ?

After the past few months weather, I am wondering what do people who have lots and lots of huge windows - say facing south - think of them now, and would they go for less glass if building again ?

Macha

housetypeb wrote: »

I agree with not having large windows on the north side, but wonder about windows on the west side .
Nearly every newbuild in ireland have their sunrooms on the west side, are you saying thats a bad idea ?

This is in terms of utility. We tend to need light in our "living rooms" during the day and therefore the solar gain is more likely to replace any heating (and light) we have on if these rooms and windows are placed on the eastern side.

Bedrooms should be placed on the north/west side of houses where heat and light from the sun aren't as important.

I know quite a few builds have sunrooms on the west side but if you look at how it impacts on the BER, it isn't good in terms of the energy performance of the building.

jimmmy wrote: »

surely the east is the same as the west from the point of view of heat loss/gain?

I hope I I gave a reasonable answer to that above.

jimmmy wrote: »

also, would the heat gain be noticeable in the winter, as its usually not sunny..... and large glass walls are bound to be less efficient at conserving energy than a wall with normal size window ?

After the past few months weather, I am wondering what do people who have lots and lots of huge windows - say facing south - think of them now, and would they go for less glass if building again ?

Solar gain would not be as high in the winter as sun levels are lower but solar gain can still take place. Moreover, even at this latitude, home owners are advised to put solid roofs (as opposed to glass roofs) on conservatories as the solar gain can make the conservatories unbearably hot in the summer (yes, even the Irish summer!!)

irlrobins

My apartment's living room has large floor to ceiling windows facing SSW. I'm happy with having such a large window area as
a) it gives the maximum natural light
b) any sun light (even a low winter sun) can heat the room sufficiently thus reducing the need for heat. Some days during the winter I don't need to turn on heating at all.

The cons?
a) It can get very warm at summer
b) During exceptional cold spells like this Christmas can result in heat loss.

However these two factors can be reduced using blackout curtains to block light/heat in summer and retain heat in winter.

So in summary, I'm very happy with my glass wall, but if I was on the otherside of the building and not getting the sun I might have a different opinion.

The_Conductor

I have full length windows and glass doors in my living room- which are double glazed. The place can get quite incredibly hot in the summer- and while not as cold as outdoors- and despite the double glazing, its not unusual to have condensation and frost on the inside of the windows in the winter. If you have heavy fabric curtains to use outside of daylight hours- its actually quite pleasant, as the amount of natural light allowed in is lovely- but by god- you need heavy curtains once the evening comes.

How Strange

We have a very large (floor to ceiling) window in the living room of our apartment and we're south easterly facing (I think!). We get the sun from mid morning to late afternoon/early evening depending on time of year.

The great thing is if we pull up our blind on a sunny day the room heats up very quickly even in winter so there's no need to turn the heating on. It can get very hot in the summer and at night time the heat can just evaporate if we don't pull the curtains. We got relatively heavy floor to ceiling curtains and they seem to effectively combat the heat loss problem at night time.