The Benefits of Energy-Efficient Windows

Windows can add beauty and charm to your home, but if you choose them based on appearance or price alone, you’ll very likely end up paying more than you ever anticipated. Because those beautiful sources of natural light can allow as much as 30 percent of your heating or air conditioning to escape, you could end up paying significantly more on your utility bills each month, making your inexpensive window purchase anything but a bargain. While energy-efficient windows do cost more up front, they will pay for themselves in just a few years with lowered heating and cooling costs.

 

Understanding Energy-Efficient Windows

When you start looking at the various choices in windows, you may be overwhelmed by the acronyms and unfamiliar terminology you see. Here’s a breakdown of window ratings:

• U-factor: This rating indicates how fast non-solar heat passes through the window. Low U-factor ratings equal better energy efficiency.
• Solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC): The SHGC indicates how much solar energy passes through the window. Lower ratings mean that less solar energy is transmitted, which is good for warm climates. Higher ratings indicate the opposite and would be ideal for colder climates.
• Air leakage: Low ratings in this category mean that air leaks less slowly through the window.
• Visible transmittance (VT): This rating refers to how much visible-spectrum light enters the home. Lower VT ratings mean that less natural light and glare pass through the window.
• Light-to-solar gain (LSG): The LSG refers to the ratio between the VT and SHGC. Simply put, this rating shows how well the window blocks heat gain while still allowing sufficient daylight in the home.

 

The Parts of Energy-Efficient Windows

Choosing new windows that help you save on energy costs boils down to two components: frames and glazing. When it comes to frames, aluminum conducts heat quickly and wood tends to contract and expand depending on the weather, making both of them poor choices. Composite, fiberglass or vinyl frames are better at preventing these issues. There are several choices in window glazing to improve the energy efficiency of your house:

• Gas fills: Windows containing gases such as argon can help decrease the U-factor.
• Heat-absorbing tints: Manufactured in colors such as blue, green or black, heat-absorbing tints allow more VT and a slightly reduced heat transfer.
• Low–E coatings: These coatings can be placed on the outside of the window to prevent solar heat from passing through or on the inside to prevent heat from escaping.
• Insulated: Lowering the U-factor and the SHGC, insulated double or triple-glazed windows have space between the panes for more energy efficiency.
• Reflective coatings: Best for hot climates, reflective coatings block sunlight and reduce VT, glare and SHGC.
• Spectrally selective coatings: These coatings allow maximum light to pass through the windows while lowering the U-factor and SHGT.

Replacement Windows Lancaster PA

If your old windows are making it difficult to keep your home warm in the winter and cool in the summer, it’s time to consider replacement windows in Lancaster, PA. Energy-efficient windows can not only help lower your heating and cooling costs, but they may also allow you to replace your large air conditioning unit with a smaller, more efficient one, which will save you even more money in the long run.

Bean Bag Chairs – Neat, Comfortable and Relaxing

Utmost comfort and conduciveness to studying as well as concentrating on any other time consuming task aren’t exactly factors that an average chair can feature without it coming across as more or less an ill-conceived disaster. Integrating brilliant ideas that manage to transform a bland, average chair suited for a singular purpose into a versatile piece of furniture capable of lulling owners to a state of comfort after a hard day’s work in addition to providing much needed support for individuals hard at work is hard to pull off. Needless to say, countless niche furniture makers have mastered this particular craft through the years, although the fee they charge in return for their most sought after works will likely make the average person wince—it all comes right down to pricing at the end of the day and locating suitable chairs that offer satisfactory versatility without draining a hole through your pocket in the process.

Bean bag chairs seem to be the best option so far—casual recreation involving reading literature alongside killing time while watching a movie, TV show or playing a video game doesn’t seem to come with major downsides once you add them to your living room. Moreover, it doesn’t quite weigh as heavily as any other furniture out on the market today, and moving it from your living room to a much quieter study area can be accomplished in no time at all.

We’ll start our review the dual purpose properties bean bag chairs by assessing the suitability of its recreational components. It goes without saying that bean bag chairs have always been designed to be as comfortable as possible right from the start—it also conforms to your build and adjusts accordingly the moment you sit. Meanwhile, professional designers have taken the liberty of installing cup holders meant to hold beverages, remotes and any other portable gadget with ease. Furthermore, cleaning it isn’t going to be much of a chore—since most of the default bean bag chairs on sale today are waterproof and can withstand wear and tear for decades (with proper handling on your part, of course).

Much to everyone’s dismay, R&R cannot possibly go on indefinitely and catching up to work related duties once again assume its top priority status. Hauling bean bag chairs into an area that is a lot more conducive to work a is a cinch—an average chair has a valve with wide openings to make sure that rapid inflation or deflation can be done in seconds. You can subsequently adjust it to take on a form that leads to better sitting posture. Prop it up next to a study table and you’re all set to tackle any work related tasks afterwards.

Stairway Selections: Choosing Your Perfect Staircase

Although we may not truly recognize the importance of the staircase within the home, it certainly proves to be an essential element of every home build and can go on to offer your home a truly unique characteristic to make it stand out from the crowd. Although it may seem like an obvious addition, stairs still offer a sense of style to the construction of your property.

Adopting a Stylish Stairway

As a vital addition, incorporating a unique sense of style into your stairs may not be the first thing you consider during their construction. This is generally because many home owners don’t realise the potential that a staircase offers in terms of adding personality to the décor. In fact, stairways are available in a massive range of styles and designs regardless of the space in which you plan to add them to. Even the smallest of stair cases can be designed to combine perfectly with any existing style that you already having in place.

A Step above the Rest

Whether you’re looking to create a truly contemporary feel within your home or wish to add a little more tradition for a more classic feel, stairs can be especially designed and adjusted to suit your requirements accordingly.

Cool Contemporary
 

Believe it or not, even a staircase can add a sense of contemporary style to your décor. Many home owners that are looking to create a truly modern atmosphere are opting for gleaming glass panels as oppose to traditional wood. A transparent surface first of all creates the illusion of additional space as well as proving a clean and clear surface that can be easily maintained.

Usually surrounded by a strong wooden framework such as timber, this sort of balustrade provides a safe a sturdy alternative to a traditional wooden style.

 
Traditional Tones
 

For a more classic style, there is now so much more available than just the generic wood finish. Varieties of wood types are available offering various tones and shades, and carved perfectly to create an elegant and luxurious feel. The beauty of the more traditional stair case is that they can co-ordinate with both classic and contemporary decors, making them an especially popular choice for renovations.

With the ability to customize any space and add a unique sense of style, traditionally built balustrades is becoming increasingly popular in both new and old builds alike.

Finishing Touches

From glass in-fills through to gun metal connectors, it’s essential that your new stairway is completed perfectly with suitable finishing touches. Small additions have the ability to complete both modern and traditional styles so when electing anew staircase, consider what will be required to bring out the finer details.

It is highly recommended that stairways are purchased from a reputable supplier who specializes in design, construction and installation. This way you can feel rest assured that your stair project will have assistance every step of the way from experts in this field.

Richard Burbidge provides the finest quality stairs and stair parts for a range of property settings. For more information and to browse their extensive product range, check out the website today or call 01691 678300 to discuss your project with our friendly customer service team.

 

 

Importance of Getting Innerspring Mattresses for Your Growing Child

Throughout childhood and even on to adolescence, quality mattresses are essential not only for the comfort they provide each night, but also for the health benefits they offer. This is because a child's body develops at a rapid pace all the way until his teens. The skeletal system, in particular, will need to rest on the right kind of mattress each night to form properly, and prevent the development of problems.

Your growing child's spine can grow as much as 1.5 cm every night as the intervertebral discs between their vertebrae fill up with water while they rest. Hence, it's important that their spine isn’t exposed to stress to reach optimal growth. Since a growing spine can be very flexible, it can be susceptible to deformity issues when in an awkward position for long periods of time such as sleeping for 10 to 12 hours every night. Innerspring mattresses can help prevent deformities by keeping your child's body in the right ergonomic position all night.

Innerspring mattresses are one of the most recommended mattress types for young children. Alongside the comfort it provides, these beds support a child's growth as it prevents the development of skeletal problems by conforming to the body while sleeping.

This mattress type supports and aligns his lower back to prevent tension, strains, and muscle fatigue that can lead to problems such as a stiff neck and/or shoulders that can affect his quality of life. His bed should allow his neck and spine to be in a neutral position to minimize stress and prevent restrictions that may hinder his growth.

Find different mattress options for your child at Mathis Brothers Sleep Studio. It features a wide range of innerspring mattresses from different brands. Visit MathisSleepStudio.com or call 855-294-3434 to choose one that fits your child's needs.

Cheap Ways to Display Priceless Pictures in Your New Home

You’ve said goodbye to the movers, unpacked the boxes, decided where the furniture goes, filled the closets and the cabinets with clothes and essentials – and now you want to turn your new house into a home by deciding how and where to display your many family pictures. Oh boy! Just how are you supposed to show off all of those funny, warm, outrageous, historical, precious photos of parties, weddings, holidays, children, pets, friends, grandparents and so much more? Don’t worry; I’ve got budget-friendly answers for both prints and digital images.

Shutterfly Photo Books – If you haven’t printed out your pictures yet, this is a great way to show them off digitally. A great friend of mine compiles a family photo book every year; it runs to about 200 pages because a year is such a long time. You can add comments to go with the memories. Here’s the cost-saving tip: Sign up for Shutterfly and get on their email list. They send out coupons frequently offering 40% off, free shipping, and buy two and get half-price on the second. Sometimes you can use multiple coupons at once, so keep an eye out for sales and be a smart shopper.

Photo Albums – Whether you lack computer savvy or you just the feel of old fashioned prints, Snapfish is a great place to print your pictures. Snapfish offers each photo for only 8 cents!  And they too offer frequent coupons Wait until you get the really good deals – like a coupon good for 300 prints for 99 cents total! That usually only comes once a year but it’s worth the wait.

Wal-Mart’s Mounted Photos – Now that you’ve made your digital photo book and/or traditional photo album, you may want to display photos on your wall. Have you ever seen Wal-Mart’s mounted photos? The quality is outstanding and each 5x7 photo is under $10, each 8x10 about $12. Awesome for the kids’ rooms, living room, any room. 

Up the Steps – A great way to display family pictures (especially kids as they grow) is beside the stairs. Kohl’s has great deals on frames; they are either 40%-50% off or buy-one-get-one for $1. Use one of Kohl’s regular 15%, 20% or 30% discount offers and you have a great deal! Start at the bottom of the steps and go from youngest to oldest to the top. Hallways offer great display opportunity for family photos; they’re always there to enjoy but they won’t overwhelm your whole house.

Photo Mugs/Magnets – Most photo websites offer free shipping for purchases over a certain amount. If you’re under the amount, add a photo mug or magnets to your order. Sure, that’s just what the website is hoping you’ll do, but it’s still better than paying for shipping. Work the system!

Let us know how you make out decorating your new home with your hundreds of photos. Send us pictures or post comments below! Good luck!

This post is sponsored by Transit Systems, the best shipping company option in the industry who has been a fully licensed leader in the furniture shipping and moving services for over 20 years. With many specialties including long distance moving, Transit Systems is the best choice for moves big or small.

Formulating an Energy Management Plan for Your Home

In a world of scarce resources, effective energy management is the responsibility of every individual. Your family can do their part by formulating an effective energy management plan for your home to better understand their energy usage and how to manage it.

The first step is to track energy usage by looking at your family's consumption patterns. Do you use several home appliances? Are lights frequently left on even if no one is in the room? Knowing how you use energy at home can better guide you in finding easy ways to minimize wasted energy.

Once you have eliminated unnecessary and wasteful practices, the next step is improving energy efficiency at home.

One way to make your energy use more efficient is to install a lightingcontrol system, which allows both manual and automatic controls over lights in your home. Motion sensors and preset cycles can trigger the system to automatically shut off lights in a room when it is not in use. Dimmers reduce the amount of electricity that is directed to your lights, giving them a longer life without noticeably diminishing their brightness.

Automated control over your HVACsystem, on the other hand, allows better management of temperature and air quality in your home. Like a lighting system, it may be triggered with sensors or set beforehand. You can avoid unnecessary expenses by managing the time when the system is in operation or not.

Installing new equipment to improve energy management may represent a larger initial investment, but doing so can pay off in the long run. Wireless systems have lower installation costs, and they give you the flexibility to install them anywhere.

By being more mindful of your energy usage and eliminating bad habits, you can make sure that both your family and the environment can benefit. Learn more at EGuestControls.com.