| How Good are Energy Star Rated Windows? |
| Written by Charles Faust | |
| Tuesday, 20 May 2008 | |
Energy Star Rated WindowsQuestion: We are looking at replacement windows and notice that all of the windows have Energy Star stickers on them. Since they all seem to "pass the test", what's the big deal with having the sticker? Answer: Years ago replacement window companies really had to put some effort into designing a window in order to make it compliant with the Energy Star's standards. For example, a double pane window use to have a rating of around .50 and Energy Star lowered this rating to a .35 (the lower the number the better). Over time Energy Star has done nothing to push window companies to produce more energy efficient windows. Some window companies are now making windows that are almost twice as energy efficient as what Energy Star requires. While the newer and more energy efficient windows are on the market Energy Star seems to have no interest in making consumers aware of these products or pushing for higher standards. Since almost every window on the market has their sticker the charm is lost. In and of itself the sticker does not make the window a good window, it just states that the window meets some very minimal standards. If you take the time to learn about the numbers on the sticker you can get a feel for how energy efficient the window is. The one thing that the sticker fails to do is to tell you how well built the window is. I would suggest that you compare the ratings on the stickers when you are shopping for new replacement windows. Don't make your buying decision on the fact that the window has a sticker. Hopefully over time Energy star will start to issue a rating system so homeowners will not have to figure out what all of the numbers mean.                 |
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