Frequently Asked Questions

Often Called Plexiglass, Acrylic is classified being visually transparent with a high strength-to-weight ratio making it a great option for damage prone windows and areas. Acrylics can be easily transformed by heat without losing its clarity. It is a great multi-use material while being almost 18-times stronger than normal glass.

Annealed glass is the most commonly used glass in the industry. frequently referred to as standard sheet or float glass. Annealed glass is not to be used where specialty glazing is required. Such as where safety glazing or fire rated glazing must be utilized.

Is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless, inert gas that has been found to be a very good insulator. Thus, it is used inside of double and triple pane insulated glass. It helps with heat transfer through the glass while lowering the u-values making the unit more effective from an energy performance standpoint.

Glass that has had the edge ground and shaped down at an angle. Beveled glass can be in many different sizes and thicknesses.  The most common uses of beveled glass are for mirrors, tabletops, and shelving.

With many different resistance levels, bullet resistant glass is created using multiple laminations of glass with layers of plastics. Bullet resistant glass is created to stop bullets from most handguns and some rifles in addition to heavy impacts. The level of security determines at what level of bullet resistant glazing is needed.

The change in state of matter from a gas (vapor) phase into a liquid phase. It is also the reverse of vaporization. When warm air comes into contact with a colder surface. The warmer air can only hold so much vapor before it turns to a liquid thus you start getting condensation.

Glass that is heated to an extremely high temperature then cooled at slow rate. Its cooled back down to room temperature making it 2 times stronger than annealed glass. With the exception of strength and breakage this type of glass retains the normal properties of annealed glass.

Also known as Dual Pane Glass or Thermal Panes are made from two pieces of glass. The two pieces of glass are sealed against any moisture and have a small space of dead air in between to help insulate the outside temperatures from the inside aiding in energy efficiency.   IGU’s also give an added security as well cutting outside noise by over 80%.

Glass that is created by taking two or more layers and bonding them together under extreme heat and pressure with a polyvinyl butyral (PVB) layer in the middle. The primary benefit of laminated glass is that when broken it tends to keep in place instead of shattering and falling out everywhere. This is a great choice for anti-burglary and anti-accident uses which makes it a safety glass.

Also known as Polycarbonate, Lexan is a strong glass that utilizes a special coating to help clarity and resistance against abrasions. Lexan has the clarity of normal glass but it resists against weathering, wind, hail, vandalism and blocks UV rays. It is 40 times more impact resistant than normal glass or acrylic.

This is simply annealed glass that is thicker then single strength or double strength glass, typically ranging from 3/16” to ½” thick.

Reflective glass can be clear or tinted in that it has a very thin layer of metal or metallic oxide on the surface. The reflective coating is applied during the float process. The thicker the glass, the less light that will pass through Reflective glass helps with restricting heat to come thru into the building or house.

Single strength glass is one of the thinnest types of glass available. Typically measuring 3/32” overall thickness. Simply a single pane of normal glass. Used in smaller residential windows and picture frames.

Glass that is considered safety glazing. By utilizing a big furnace and special heating and cooling procedures that the glass goes through is how tempered glass is made.  Sometimes referred to as tempering.  This heating and cooling process makes the glass four times stronger than the normal annealed glass. Once a normal piece of glass is sent through the oven and tempered, it cannot be cut or modified without it breaking into hundreds of little pieces.

Glass that has had very small amounts of different metal oxides added into the composition when manufacturing. These small metallic additions color the glass bronze, gray, blue or green and do not affect the properties of the glass other than limiting the amounts of solar energy transmittance.  The thicker the glass the darker it is.

Very Similar to insulated glass units in that it has an additional third layer of glass making a second dead air space. It is also sealed form any moisture being allowed into the unit. Triple pane glass therefore is a little heavier the your normal IGU.

The amount of heat entering or escaping through a window. The lower the U-value, the better the insulation value.