A thermal break is simply a piece of material positioned between the exterior and interior frame of an aluminium window to minimise heat or cold transfer. The thermal break act as an insulation made of less conductive materials such as polyamide or polyurethane. The ‘break’ effectively reduces temperature transfer and ensures the windows achieve certain performance qualities. Here at Ecoline Windows, we utilise innovative thermal break technology to ensure all our customers who want energy efficiency with the appearance of modern aluminium windows and to never compromise on thermal performance.
Aluminum windows and doors have been used in residential and commercial buildings for many years due to their strength and longevity. Whilst aluminium boasts several positives it does come with a downfall, it’s a highly conductive material. As a result, aluminium windows and doors easily get hot or cold.
Ecoline Windows’ thermally broken aluminium windows and doors use a modern technology between the exterior and interior frames joined together using a less conductive material called polyamide. This will create a barrier between the cold air outside and the warm air inside. This results in excellent window insulation and tackles the problem with aluminium’s high conductivity. When aluminium windows and doors are not thermally broken they will become very hot during the summer and very cold during the winter season.
Thermally broken aluminium windows and doors provide exceptional thermal performance, reducing your energy bills whilst keeping your home well insulated all year round. However, this is not the only benefit to thermally broken aluminium windows and doors. Beside their thermal efficiency, they will also:
- Reduce condensation – A thermal break will minimise how much heat is lost from inside and how much cold is allowed through from the outside. Reducing coldspots and condensation forming.
- Reduce your carbon footprint – In a world where climate change is a very real problem, thermally broken aluminium windows and doors will help you use less energy.
If an aluminium window or door does not have a thermal break in it, you will experience high levels of heat loss through the framing. This will reduce the Uf value of the system (the thermal performance of the frame) and subsequently reduce the overall thermal performance of the window/door (the Uw value).
If a thermally broken window/door system is not used in most cases it will be impossible to achieve the thermal performance requirements for the project. In order to adhere to modern thermal performance requirements (and to achieve Building Regulations minimum requirements for thermal insulation) a thermally broken frame should be used in conjunction with an insulating glass unit. You can achieve a low u value by using a double-glazed unit with a low e coating and argon gas filling