Everyone has heard of the term HR Glass. But what does it actually mean? And what variations are possible? AA Glas is working on this every day so we are happy to explain it to you.
HR stands for High Efficiency. It is an improved version of standard double glazing. But what exactly is the difference between standard double glazing and HR, HR+, HR++ and even HR+++ glass? Simply put, HR glass insulates better than standard double glazing. The more pluses behind HR, the better the HR glass insulates.
We distinguish the following variants of HR glass:
By comparison, single-pane glass has an insulation value of 5.6. The different variants of double-glazing and HR glass are further explained below.
This glass is also called thermopane, as the brand name of a German manufacturer who introduced it to the Dutch market in 1948. It is the first double glazing. Double glazing consists of two sheets of glass held apart by a so-called spacer at the edge of the glass. The space between the sheets of glass is called the "cavity. The edges of the glass are sealed with a special sealant to create a closed unit. In standard double glazing, the space between the glass is filled with air. It is hardly used in facades these days. In a few cases it is still used indoors for sound insulation.
As mentioned above, the space between the glass in standard double-glazing is filled with air. HR glass is the successor to standard double glazing. With HR glass, the glass is coated on one inner side (i.e., in the cavity), making it more insulating. The metal layer allows solar radiation to pass through and reflects long-wave radiation. The more effective the metal layer, the better the insulation. So less energy is then needed to heat the room inside. HR glass is also not often used anymore. In a few cases it is still used in repair work, where no (color) difference should be visible between the repaired window and the other windows.
HR+ glass is again the successor to HR glass. With HR+ glass, in addition to the coating, the cavity is filled with a gas filling (argon or krypton) instead of dry air. HR+ glass is also used only in the replacement market.
The successor to HR+ insulation glass. Here an improved coating is used with an argon gas filling. This is currently the most widely used double glazing.
HR++ glass is also called triple or triple glazing. HR glass consists not of two, but three panes of glass and thus two cavities. The two outer panes have the improved HR coating on the inside and the cavities are filled with noble gas. Triple glazing is a lot thicker and heavier than HR++ glass because of the three panes of glass. Because of this, it usually cannot be used in existing window frames.
Learn more about HR glass such as double and triple glazing on our insulation glass product pages.
