Windows in high residential towers

ITguy2

I'm wondering if anybody else has noticed something peculiar in a lot of the new high residential towers down in the docklands in Dublin, and in other areas of the city which were developed in recent years - the windows facing out onto the street.

One place for example, is the tower across from the new Grand Canal Theatre. This thing must be nearly 10 stories, and even 10 stories up, there are glass windows which seemingly go down to the floor level. I don't know about you, but I would not live that high up with only glass between me inside, and the massive drop to the ground outside!

Even more worrisome would be for older couples who have kids, living in these types of apartments. What is the deal with the design of these buildings, I know personally that I would not live in one! I'm sure they are nice inside, but I would never live in one, or even rent one.

4zn76tysfajdxp

Which city?

ITguy2

Alexzander Tasty Bellows wrote: »

Which city?

Dublin.

4zn76tysfajdxp

ITguy2 wrote: »

Dublin.

Oh right.

tbh, I would imagine that people with children will teach their children to just be more careful when playing next to the windows.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

Alexzander Tasty Bellows wrote: »

Which city?

ITguy2 wrote: »

I'm wondering if anybody else has noticed something peculiar in a lot of the new high residential towers down in the docklands in Dublin...

Don't you just love it when people read the op and refelct before posting??

My name is URL

Is that the same type of apartment that Alison O'Riordan was living in? If she wasn't dumb enough to fall to her death then I doubt any child is.

JimiWonderDoor 92

I definitely think that if the place in which you live may occasionally give you Vertigo... it's probably not the place for you

patneve2

What worries me is the amount of heat lost through all that glass. Sustainability=zero. Even more worrying is the ****e quality of the apartments that went up in Dublin during the boom (there are exceptions though).

Mr McBoatface

Am I the only one who saw ITguy2's thread title "Windows in high residential towers" and immediately thought it was going to be about Microsoft and BSOD ?

cyrusdvirus

jobyrne30 wrote: »

Am I the only one who saw ITguy2's thread title "Windows in high residential towers" and immediately thought it was going to be about Microsoft and BSOD ?

yes

Mike 1972

patneve2 wrote: »

Even more worrying is the ****e quality of the apartments that went up in Dublin during the boom (there are exceptions though).

+1

I have been in Soviet era apartment blocks in Poland and the former GDR that are a damn sight better built than most of the ones Ive seen in Ireland.

geetar

OP you do realise that the windows dont open fully? :rolleyes:

also im sure the glass is very very strong.

Logical Fallacy

There are assorted reasons. From an architectural point of view glass is in right now....lots of glass equals a good building.

From an engineering point of view, it's entirely possible the placement and size of the glass is being factored in to the heating and cooling of the building (depending on which way it's facing etc ) and helping to generate air flow and ventilation.

However, given that this is Ireland i kind of doubt the latter part.

Mike 1972

geetar wrote: »

also im sure the glass is very very strong.

I lived in a four storey block for a while which had windows like the OP describes and while the (bottom part of) the windows didnt open it seemed to be pretty much bog standard glass.

Blisterman

It's pretty difficult to accidentally fall through a window.

Kevin Duffy

I've been in a number of those buildings. I came up with the innovative, creative precaution of not throwing myself against the windows. So far it's worked out quite well. I think I'll try to patent it, in case it catches on.

4zn76tysfajdxp

Ikky Poo2 wrote: »

Don't you just love it when people read the op and refelct before posting??

Almost as much as I love the op being edited after the first reply.

The_B_Man

There goes my dream of owning an indoor bowling alley in a penthouse in the city!

mconigol

They should tax windows like the good old days. Despicable!

zuroph

lol. OP, you could shoulder charge these windows and be fine. Its massively thick laminated safety glass.

Adhamh

Honestly, what I simply cannot understand is how people living in these places (and the architects) aren't bothered by the utter lack of privacy. There's one apartment in particular in a very busy part of Dublin on the corner where two main roads meet and the place is constructed entirely from glass from the first floor up. If you're on the other side of the road you can see everything going on in the place.

How impeded is your quality of living when you can't sit around watching TV naked while eating old pizza because at any one time you're visible to a few dozen people?

How wants to live in a zoo?

Blisterman

I live in an apartment like that, and I've discovered that an easy way around that is to abandon any sense of shame.

Solnskaya

Blisterman wrote: »

I live in an apartment like that, and I've discovered that an easy way around that is to abandon any sense of shame.

laughed out loud when I read that, We built one place, 4.5million squid and the shower was all glass and faced out onto the street, admittedly 6 storeys up, but you would want to be pretty fit to have a shower there, what with the whole neighbourhood watching. Another place we worked on they fitted the glass arseways into one of the bathroom windows-"lady of the apartment" used to be having her ablutions, admiring herself in the mirrored glass while all us lads watched the crystal clear view from outside. Oh how we laughed. If they knew, they'd sue.
edit:actually I still feel a bit guilty about not telling them about this, she was really not that good-looking. For anybody reading this, maybe go outside and have a look up at your bathroom window, make sure its not see-through from the outside and mirrored on the inside, It will make me feel better.

stovelid

At least you'd get a best-selling lachrymose ballad out of it if your kid did happen to fall out of one.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

Alexzander Tasty Bellows wrote: »

Almost as much as I love the op being edited after the first reply.

He still edited it before you replied!

Forest Master

Ikky Poo2 wrote: »

He still edited it before you replied!

No he didn't. It was edited at 18:30. Frada's post was at 18:28.

Solnskaya

Forest Master wrote: »

No he didn't. It was edited at 18:30. Frada's post was at 18:28.

so there.

Wetai

Imaging having to work replacing the glass of a tenth floor window because of a crack in it.
Kinda like the guys cleaning windows on really tall buildings (e.g. skyscrapers) - all while standing on that relatively small ledge-like thing.

Dunno how they do it!

Cathaoirleach

Dublin doesn't have any "high residential towers".

There's the Millenium 'Tower', which is just a stumpy mid-rise block, and Alto Vetro, which only looks taller because it's 1 meter in width. :rolleyes:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/johncoveneyphotos/4738469228/

Capt'n Midnight

zuroph wrote: »

lol. OP, you could shoulder charge these windows and be fine. Its massively thick laminated safety glass.

http://www.darwinawards.com/darwin/darwin1996-01.html

(1996, Toronto) Police said a lawyer demonstrating the safety of windows in a downtown Toronto skyscraper crashed through a pane of glass with his shoulder and plunged twenty-four floors to his death. A police spokesman said Garry, thirty-nine, fell into the courtyard of the Toronto Dominion Bank Tower as he was explaining the strength of the building's windows to visiting law students. Garry had previously conducted the demonstration of window strength without mishap, according to police reports. The managing partner of the law firm that employed the deceased told the Toronto Sun newspaper that Garry was "one of the best and brightest" members of the two-hundred-man association.

Kiera

Ikky Poo2 wrote: »

He still edited it before you replied!

Need some help?

Lapin

I'd rather be living on the 10th floor looking out than on the 1st floor with the rest of the world looking in.

HerrScheisse

Mike 1972 wrote: »

+1

I have been in Soviet era apartment blocks in Poland and the former GDR that are a damn sight better built than most of the ones Ive seen in Ireland.

And better decorated.

Solnskaya

HerrScheisse wrote: »

And better decorated.

Just love the username!! Nicht so schon auf Deutsch!.

Marty McFly

Blisterman wrote: »

It's pretty difficult to accidentally fall through a window.

When your drunk its not.

Solnskaya

I met a russian bloke once who had fallen from his apartment balcony when blind drunk. He fell 5 storeys, and as he put it "only broke his back, but was fine now". Missus and me stayed in that posh Hotel down next to the point, and because we were on our flash weekend in the big smoke(it was a special offer, probably from NAMA)we had a big feck off balcony. Opposite is a big, glassy apartment complex, and the two of us sat out on the balcony till the wee hours just watching in amazement at all the people just going about their lives in the complex. It was like watching an interesting ant colony. The thought that kept coming to me was "have these feckers never heard of curtains?"

later12

Oh yes... zebra crossings, folk with umbrella that would take the eye clean out of your head, and now fierce tall buildings. City living is getting too dangerous.

Come back Paddy Reilly to Ballyjamesduff,
or why did ya go in the first place?

aligator_am

Ask Eric Clapton, he's probably an expert on it by now.

stevejr

luvbulmers01 wrote: »

When your drunk its not.

When your drunk you don't see the glass:pac:

ger vallely

Fair enough, I live in a bungalow. Though I have safely managed to live here with my childrern for 5 years and not almost fallen through the windows or hurt my shoulders from banging off the walls too much. The kids are still fine and the windows not cracked. I think those folk high up will be fine, even better with the addition of some blinds or curtains..

starbelgrade

Logical Fallacy wrote: »

There are assorted reasons. From an architectural point of view glass is in right now....lots of glass equals a good building.

From an engineering point of view, it's entirely possible the placement and size of the glass is being factored in to the heating and cooling of the building (depending on which way it's facing etc ) and helping to generate air flow and ventilation.

However, given that this is Ireland i kind of doubt the latter part.

Any building which has large glazed areas on the south facing elevation will benefit greatly from passive solar heating. It doesn't matter what country you are in - the principal is the same & to gain solar benefits, it really doesn't matter if the sun is shining or not, as long as it's in the sky!

later12

starbelgrade wrote: »

Any building which has large glazed areas on the south facing elevation will benefit greatly from passive solar heating. It doesn't matter what country you are in - the principal is the same & to gain solar benefits, it really doesn't matter if the sun is shining or not, as long as it's in the sky!

It does if you are in the southern portion of the world!

starbelgrade

later10 wrote: »

It does if you are in the southern portion of the world!

DOH!

*Hits head off large piece of South facing glazing*

Celly Smunt

trust me you could run and smash into one of those windows and it wouldn't even shake.

crazypanda

I lived in an apartment where the "wall" at either end of the open plan kitchen/sitting room was made of glass. Use to stand leaning against the one the kitchen side looking down into the river below, was never scared. Slightly self conscious at times as busy road directly on the other side of river though cause I'd say the blinds got closed twice in the two years I lived there.