Double glazed windows?
Question:Does double glazed windows need to have the aluminium strip between the two panes of glass and what is it called and what is it for?
Mine only seems to have black rubber between the glass?
Answers:
Your window panels do not contain gas, but they are made by putting two pains of glass together with a gap in between them, which is just air. air is a great insulator when it is trapped, indeed a cavity wall construction is exactly that, a cavity with trapped air within it.
The aluminium trims you refer to are filled with a silica jel based particle which 'suck' in or soak up this airbourne moisture, although the unit is 'sealed' is is neither a vacuum, or a gas filled space.
These Silica particles hold the moisture within them during the entire life of each sealed unit or pain of glass, this is usually 10-12 years. At this point they may start to steam up.
The trims now come in many colours, gold, black, silver, cream, and white are now commonly used. You are likely to have a 10mm gap between the pains of glass, although this can vary depending on specification and is sometimes 6 or 8 mm.
If you live near a railway line or airport, you may even have tripple glazing, for sound proofing benefits.
The trims you mention are in fact tubes which contain silica particles, these are similar to the small paper packets found in shoe boxes which prevent the shoes from perishing whilst stored in their boxes.
This is why the trims often appear to have small holes in them, which the moisture in the trapped air is 'sucked though' by a process called capillary action.
If your windows are fairly recent, there will be a series of numbers stamped onto the trim. This will give the reader the exact date the panel was made. This is handy to establish the likleyhood of them failing, as they have a limited lifespan.
All windows must now be fitted by a FENSA certified installer, and this is due to regulations within the construction industry.
Depending on the manufaturer of your windows, all are made with the same purpose in mind, to keep out heat and cold. As long as the "seal", be it rubber or aluminum is intact, the windows will do their job. If not, you will get a cloudiness from moisture infiltration. Then you will have to replace them.
i think you mean a 'glazing bar' and no it does not.
The strip you refer to does not have to be aluminium in colour - they do come in Silver, White and Dark Brown (almost Black) - Don't know what it is called to be honest but you would soon know if the glazing was faulty as you would have misting on the inside of the units.
If you haven't got the misting (gas leaks out) then the windows are OK
that aluminium bar is called the spacing bar ..it comes in 6..10 12..16..20..24.mm widths and as the name suggest it keeps a space between the glass
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