Heat loss can be a serious problem for even the most modern homes. Don’t wait until your Winter energy bills start to pile up to address heat loss in your home. It is a waste of hard-earned money and precious energy.

There are many ways to prevent heat escaping, but one effective and overlooked measure is replacement of your window glass.

A recent guide from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (www.seai.ie), A Guide to Insulating Your Home reveals that “of all the components in a building, it is through the windows that most heat is lost. This is because glass allows heat to escape more readily than most other building materials. In fact, given the same area of window and wall, the window will allow up to 8 times more heat escape.”

This is the reason one Irish company has introduced a revolutionary new approach to upgrading and improving your current windows – that costs half the price of installing new ones and you won’t even have to redecorate.

The initiative involves replacing existing window panes in the home with the latest hi-tech, energy-efficient Low-E-Plus2 glass from Energlaze. It is a simple, affordable concept that pays for itself over time through significantly reduced heating bills.

This new glass from Energlaze is manufactured using Pilkington, Optitherm S1 Plus Technology is the latest innovation in glass and offers thermal efficiencies in a double-glazed unit previously only achieved using triple glazing.

Energy-conscious homeowners throughout Ireland see retrofitting as the way forward. Most Irish homes have perfectly good window frames, so it makes perfect sense to retain those frames and simply upgrade the glass.

The expert fitters at Energlaze install new Low-E-Plus heat-retaining glass into existing uPVC, aluminium or timber windows making the windows up to 82% per cent more efficient if you have single glazing and up to 70% if you have old double glazing.

Customers can save up to 50% compared to a full window replacement, significantly reduce annual heating bills and enjoy a warmer and more comfortable home all winter long.

Energlaze’s managing director Peter Campbell says that their unique approach is one of energy-efficiency improvements to existing windows as opposed to installing new windows. “To date we have retrofitted thousands of homes with this new heat-retaining glass and feedback from our customers has been fantastic. Most people believe that one double-glazed unit is the same as another, however there are big differences between them. Two years ago you would need to have installed triple glazing in order to achieve the thermal properties of our new glass unit.

“Our sales team can demonstrate the heat-retaining benefits of our double-glazed unit compared to older double glazing, and once people see for themselves they are amazed. On the very rare occasions we are unable to upgrade the glass, we offer new windows and doors with our heat-retaining glass, but we won’t do this unless the existing frames are economically beyond repair or the customer wants them. Another stipulation is that to truly maximise the potential savings, at least half the house should be upgraded, prioritising rooms with the most glass.”