Double Glazing Vs Triple Glazing: Key Benefits You Need to Know

Let us unravel the contrasts and shared benefits of double glazing and triple glazing to help you be more informed about what they each offer and learn which of them you should be buying. Everything you need to know is here if you want decisive insight on the two solutions.

triple glazing vs double glazing
Double Glazing Vs Triple Glazing

Understanding Double Glazing and Triple Glazing

Window glazing is the glass area of a double or triple glazed window that plays such an important role in home insulation and energy efficiency, with double-paned windows being the most commonly used designs in the UK’s housing stock. 

Increased insulation and thermal efficiency arises the more layers of glass a window has, triple glazed windows u value being outstandingly low, but it drives up the cost, worth pointing out if your budget is tight.

Light transmittance and the physical barrier provided by window glazing are separate essential functions, bedrocks for illuminating interiors with visible light and intercepting trespass to keep you safe. 

Triple Glazing vs Double Glazing – Key Differences

Aside from the price difference between double and triple glazing, an obvious dissimilarity is that a double glazed unit accommodates two panes of glass, whereas a triple glazed unit houses three of them and subsequently has an extra air gap filled with an argon gas. But the distinction extends further than just that. 

Structurally, a triple glazed unit has a greater depth, around 36mm, with a double glazed unit roughly measuring a standard width of 28mm, and triple glazed windows are weightier, so existing framework may need reinforcement to hold their added weight.  

Clearview harnesses use of UPVC and aluminium to craft its plethora of window styles and almost all of them can be supplied in double or triple glazed form.

The Benefits of Double and Triple Glazing

Global acceleration of the price of energy has activated a huge rise of uptake in double glazing and triple glazing windows as householders look to conserve greater volumes of energy at home and keep bills down. 

Upgrading to either solution from old single glazed windows can make a vast difference to overall comfort if you feel the cold indoors during the winter months, with both excellent at harvesting the sun’s energy and stopping its escape. 

Triple glazing is the more insulating of the two if you’re wanting a honest opinion on double glazing vs triple glazing (you get nothing else but honesty at Clearview!) but double glazing has first-rate thermal properties and shouldn’t be dismissed. 

If you get disturbed by noise and want a quiet living atmosphere, double and triple glazing can potentially reduce sound levels, to a greater degree when they include specialist acoustic glass.

Triple Glazing Advantages

Triple glazed windows u value is impressively low (approx. 0.8 W/m2K) when you consider that building regulations stipulate a minimum u-value of 1.4 W/m2K and it has been a catalyst in its rising popularity, fuelling much conversation about triple glazing vs double glazing. Triple glazing is also able to accomplish an A++ energy efficiency rating. 

A recurring discussion point about triple glazing is its noise reduction qualities and whether or not these are exaggerated. 

It’s true that triple glazed windows can lessen the audibility of traffic noise, but noise reducing glass is only achievable if the glass panes and cavities are different thicknesses, or else it has little effectiveness. 

Prompting an improvement in your home’s EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) rating, which may occur as a result of having triple glazing installed, is known to boost the appeal and valuation of properties.

Double Glazing Advantages

There is quite a list of advantages to upgrading to double glazing, beginning with how it will improve thermal efficiency, taking the pressure off your heating system to fuel your house with warmth by restricting draughts, preserving heat, and funnelling it in via the sun. 

Amplified security is another as quality double glazed windows include advanced locking mechanisms, high-security hinges etc., and are internally glazed, preventing the removal of glass from outside. 

Think of how much nicer the property will look too and the simplified maintenance there is involved in prolonging the natural elegance of the frames and glass compared to traditional wooden windows. 

Making the Right Choice for Your Home

We can’t deny that selecting between double and triple glazing isn’t a straightforward choice, but if you know the facts behind the two competing solutions and what they offer, it removes any clouded thinking. 

Triple glazing first took off in Scandinavia, where citizens experience viciously cold winters and need top-level insulation at home to stay warm and reduce heat loss. There are areas of this country that justify its inclusion to bat off freezing conditions, so the location of your residence may resolve the triple vs double glazing debate for you. 

Cost will, of course, come into the picture too and there’s a higher outlay for triple glazed windows, but the price difference in most instances is marginal. You can also recoup some of the cash spent on either through long term savings made on energy bills. 

Any replacement windows bought must exhibit a design that’s consistent with your home’s architectural style. Thankfully, double and triple glazing is a buying option for most window types, whether it’s a contemporary look and feel you need or a traditional touch. 

Clear any uncertainty in your mind about these two possibilities by chatting to a Clearview consultant over the phone or in a showroom.

Your Questions, Answered

What is the u value for triple glazed windows?

Before getting into what the average u-value of a triple glazed window is, we need to demystify u-values first in case you’re not familiar with what a u-value represents. 

It’s nothing complicated and is just a measurement that tells you the energy efficiency of a window – the lower the u-value, the higher the standard of insulation offered. 

Common consensus is that a good u-value for modern replacement windows is anything less than 1.6 W/m2K.

A triple glazed window’s average u-value comes in at roughly half of that, somewhere around 0.8W/m2K, signifying it is an immensely strong insulator. 

Is triple glazing much better than double glazing?

In all honesty, it very much comes down to personal preference and what you’re seeking to gain from replacement windows, so there’s no winner or loser. 

Unsurprisingly, due to it possessing an extra layer of energy efficient glass and two air gaps, triple glazing has the better insulating qualities, perfect for rooms deficient in warmth owing to draughtiness or minimal sun exposure. Don’t discount double glazing on this basis though as it’s an effective source of heat projection and retention. 

Correctly specified, triple glazed windows can also shut out noise and reduce decibel levels more greatly, again because of that third pane, a blessing if traffic noise blights your indoor space. 

So far as maintenance is concerned, UPVC and aluminium double and triple glazed window frames are evenly matched and jointly require only moderate cleaning. 

What is the price difference between double and triple glazing?

We make no secret of the reality that triple glazed windows come at a bigger expense than double glazed window designs by approximately 10 to 20 per cent and sometimes more. 

Putting a figure on the exact gulf in cost would be total guesswork on our part, which we’d be uncomfortable doing. An estimate will hinge on what window sizes you buy, how they’re designed, complexity of the window fitting, the window material, selected style, and so on. 

Rather than offer any unfair speculation of price, it’s best to communicate the relevant information to us first and we’ll calculate a cost on screen in front of you, devoid of any hidden charges or unexpected extras. 

Should I get double or triple glazed windows?

That’s a difficult question for us to answer as it’s a decision that depends on what your objectives are and how much you’re willing to pay. All we can do is present the facts to help you choose. 

Double glazed and triple glazed windows will both improve thermal efficiency, reduce heat loss, and lead to long term savings on energy, more so with triple glazing because of its additional layer of insulation. 

The extra pane offered by triple glazing can block out noise more effectively, but the caveat to that is unless the trio of panes have varying thicknesses, it won’t make much of a difference. 

There’s less outlay in the purchasing of double glazing but if all-round insulation throughout your house is quite poor, triple glazing will have minimised impact. 

Visit your local Clearview Showroom

Everyone is welcome to come in and browse around our Preston showroom in Lancashire, or our Nantwich & Warrington showrooms in Cheshire, where our friendly sales team will be pleased to help with any questions you may have.

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