Related Articles
Related Articles
How Are Your Windows Performing?
Answer: A and B.
High-performance windows feature thin metal or metallic oxide layers on the glass, which reduce the transfer of heat between the inside and outside. These nearly invisible low-e (low-emittance) coatings also help block ultraviolet light, which can cause interior furnishings to fade.
Energy-efficient windows also have double or triple panes with an inert gas (argon or krypton) in between them. The odorless, non-toxic gas serves as a buffer between the outer and inner panes, providing greater heat and sound insulation in addition to minimizing condensation and frost on the inside glass.
Other features of high-performance windows include improved frame materials, such as aluminum, wood composites, and fiberglass, as well as warm-edge spacers that keep the panes properly spaced, reducing heat flow and condensation.
Energy-efficient windows not only keep your apartment more comfortable; they also help save on heating and cooling costs. It's an open and shut case for your building-but only if your windows stay shut, not open.
How Green Is Your Roof?
Answer: A and B.
Green roofs offer many benefits that conventional roofs do not. For example, the layers of vegetation and soil protect roofing membranes from ultraviolet radiation, extending the life of the membranes up to twice as long as those on a conventional roof. The extra layers also provide additional insulation to the roof, reducing heating and cooling costs approximately 10% to 30% and allowing the building to use smaller HVAC equipment.
In addition, vegetation and soil layers reduce noise from traffic, planes, machinery, and other surrounding sounds for building residents, and the soil absorbs rain, reducing storm water runoff. Not only that: Green roofs add usable space and an aesthetically pleasing appearance to roofs, increasing a building's property value.
But as tempting as all that lush greenery is, please stay out of the rough with your neighbors by practicing your wedge shots on the golf course, not on the roof.