Thermal imaging was used to examine qualitative impacts of the windows on
heat gain to the interior. As expected, infrared photographs showed a noticeable
decrease in the amount of heat entering the conditioned space for the improved
house versus the base house. The impact of thermally improved metal frames
was very evident. This is not surprising given the large calculated impacts
in previous simulation analyses (Wright, 1995).
In the example shown, an infrared photo taken of a west-facing window at
12:30 PM on an early fall day (ambient temperature was 85°F, interior
temperature was 76°F) showed that the inside surface of the glass was
approximately 8°F cooler for the improved windows versus the standard
windows, while the inside surface of the thermally-broken frame was approximately
12°F cooler than the standard window frame.
Numerous photos are available for both the base and improved house.
© 2007-2014 University of Central Florida. The Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC)
is a research institute of the
University of Central Florida.
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