Guardian highlights the importance of properly enclosed windows and offers tips on how to achieve the best acoustic performance.
International Noise Awareness Day serves to remind us that excessive noise can be harmful both to our health and to the ecosystems that surround us. Guardian Industries’ Glass Group in Europe supports this awareness initiative and helps explain the importance of good window insulation and provides advice on how to choose the best glass system for the sound insulation of homes.
•The attenuation of an entire building is not proportional to the surface of each architectural element, so that, although the surface of the window openings is less than that of the walls, windows still play a vital role in blocking noise.
•Sometimes not enough importance is given to the need to properly insulate windows, yet the insulation of gaps in a façade is so important that sealing a “defect” of only 0.1% of the total surface may increase the sound attenuation by 10dB (decibels) or more.
•When performing a good enclosure on the windows, consider that the sound attenuation is directly related to the glass thickness. Also important is the asymmetry of the two glass thicknesses that are embedded in a double glazing unit.
•One also can increase the acoustic insulation of windows by incorporating laminated glass, which combines several sheets of glass of different thicknesses with a thin, intermediate layer of polyvinyl butyrate, or PVB. One can further boost the sound insulation if that PVB sheet has specific acoustic performance properties.
For this purpose, Guardian offers LamiGlass® Acoustic, laminated glass with a special sound-reducing interlayer that increases acoustic insulation, and which also can be a certified safety performance glass.
The focus on acoustic insulation responds to the growing desire by consumers to improve the comfort of their homes. The latest glass technology perfectly combines low emissivity, solar control, transparency, sound insulation and safety.
Visit Guardian’s Technical Centre at www.sunguardglass.eu, where you can register to use various online tools and resources, including the Guardian Acoustic Calculator.