Stained glass: what is it? Over years of professional work in glass business, we received dozens of questions regarding the nature, utility, and functionality of stained glass. This is why we at Mesa Glass believe that our customers need to know more about different types of glass, and today we decided to focus on stained glass.

Why stained glass? ? Because for years, stained glass had been associated with one of the most outstanding human creations. Actually, stained glass is colored glass, which has been known to the humanity for at least one thousand years. Look at the windows in churches and other religious buildings. Take a look at the way many museums and architectural developments currently look. Stained glass is everywhere, and you cannot escape its presence. Today, stained glass is not merely a piece of colored glass but a material that enables talented architects to create three-dimensional sculptures and structures.

Stained glass is made of conventional glass, with the addition of metallic salts. These are metallic salts that color stained glass. We at Mesa Glass have learned that stained glass provides virtually unlimited freedom for thought and creativity: with stained glass, you can create different pictures and express your emotions, by simply arranging its pieces in the form of different patterns. Certainly, stained glass is not easy to use. Special artistic skills are required, to develop a truly interesting and inimitable glass window design. Today?s buildings using stained glass include English Coventry Cathedral built in the middle of the 20th century, Brown Memorial Presbyterian Church, and Cathedral Basilica located in Kentucky. Additionally, you can see the way stained glass fits in the modern and postmodern architectural designs, in the houses of Frank Lloyd Wright and prairie style homes. The Hungarian Room at the University of Pittsburgh, the Town Hall in Liberec, Czech Republic, and the National Library in Jerusalem, all have stained glass in their designs. Look at them and ask Mesa Glass professionals for more information!

Tempe Glass professionals constantly monitor changes and developments in the glass market. We try to stay informed about the latest advancements in glass technologies, to be able to provide our customers with the most recent information and highest quality glass solutions. We must say that, in the past 10-15 years, the residential glass market has undergone serious technological changes. Residential glass windows are not what they used to be a decade ago. Today?s customers face a wide choice of residential window options, and Tempe Glass professionals are here to help them make the best choice. All they need to know is that window technologies never stop, and there is always something new and surprising for everyone.

The past years witnessed the emergence of several new glass window technologies that have greatly reshaped today?s glass window market. Low-e (low-emissivity) glass coatings represent just one of the many examples of such technologies. With the help of low-e coatings, you can reduce energy losses during winter and reduce the heat gain in summer. Just imagine how much energy you can save, only with the help of low-e windows! Triple and quadruple glazing will be a good way to reduce heat loss through your glass windows. With Temple Glass you can have all these options installed in your home! If you are still not confident that low-e glass is what you need to optimize your energy costs, ask for improved glass spacers that reduce the heat loss. Whatever type of glass you choose, you should know that in the age of technologies, there is nothing you could not do to improve your home. All you need to do is to choose a professional in the field of glass, and Tempe Glass is definitely the best professional choice. Here you can get acquainted with the latest news in the field of glass-making and decide what exactly you wish to do in order to feel more comfortable and warm at home.

Summer is coming, and everyone wants to have the best quality glass windows for their home comfort. Today, Tempe Glass has something to say about the principles of designing energy-efficient glass windows. Hopefully, this information will be helpful to those who do not understand how solar design in glass windows really works.

We design home glass windows that are intended to collect and distribute solar energy in ways that make your presence at home more comfortable. In winter, our glass windows operate as an instrument of solar energy collection. In summer, you will see how our glass windows reject sunlight to make it cooler inside. This is actually what specialists at Tempe Glass call ?passive solar design?: we have a good command of solar physics laws and use them for your benefit and our profitability and success.

Take a step back to your school years and think about the fundamental law of physics: heat moves from a hotter to a cooler object. The goal of this movement is to achieve the right balance of temperatures: heat energy will move between the objects until their temperatures are equal. Passive solar design of our glass windows makes use of the same principle: with the help of conduction and convection, we guarantee a sustained balance of temperatures within your house every day, irrespective of the season and weather outside.

More often than not, our glass products reflect the basic principles of physical conduction, when heat affects solid matter molecules, making them vibrate. Professionals at Tempe Glass know that it is through these vibrations that materials transfer heat. Remember what happens to you when you place yourself into a hot bath tub: your body becomes hot and your skin goes red! Each molecule of your body vibrates, accepting the heat from the bath tub water. In a similar way, our glass windows are designed specifically to transfer the outside heat to make your house warmer during cold winters!

When you are building a new house for your family, you certainly want the best for yourself. This is why you ask questions and seek professional answers. The question of glass is no exception, as you want to know what types of glass, windows, and doors will best suit your needs. We at Gilbert Glass often get calls from our current and prospective customers, who want to know the difference between transparent and opaque glass, as well as the benefits and weaknesses of both. This is why we decided to devote some time to the discussion of these issues.

In order to understand how opaque glass differs from transparent glass you should first learn the principles of glass physics. We have already talked about conduction, and here we must turn our heads to convection. The latter is the way heat moves through gases and liquids. For example, warm air is usually above the air which is cooler: this is one of the basic laws of physics you learn at school. Likewise, heat moves through the window glass, and professionals at Gilbert Glass know that the quality of windows and your comfort at home greatly depends on the way glass transmits heat. This is where the difference between transparent and opaque windows comes into play.

All opaque objects, including glass, do not transmit more than 50 percent of heat and light. Some opaque objects absorb as much as 95 percent of energy and solar radiation. The darker the opaque glass window the more solar radiation it will absorb. So, if you are looking for a sun-absorbing window, use dark opaque glass that will leave all solar energy beyond your premises. For example, in industrial manufacturing units opaque glass can become a real savior and a perfect protection against overheating.

By contrast, transparent glass absorbs only 10 percent of solar radiation, transmitting the rest into the house. Once transmitted, this solar radiation is re-transmitted again by the interior surfaces in the form of infrared radiation. Yet, transparent windows are the best solution for homes, and you can choose among different energy-efficient varieties of glass, to meet your comfort demands. Gilbert Glass is always at your disposal!

Indirect gain: What is it? In the previous blog, we spoke about the benefits and principles of direct gain. However, passive solar design is not limited to it. Indirect gain is just another element of the passive solar design game, and we at Mesa Glass are willing to tell more about its benefits and strengths. Unlike direct gain windows, where energy from the sun comes directly through the window and is absorbed by the interior constructions, such as floors or walls, indirect gain windows operate through an energy storage located between them and the interior. For example, many specialists in the glass industry use a Trombe wall consisting of a 8-16 inch masonry material, always on the southern side of the house. This is critical, since most sunlight energy comes from the south. This is why we always tell our customers that, when designing their homes and windows, they should be extremely considerate with the choice of the location, climate, and home design. Using a masonry wall on the south side of the house is a good solution to many energy problems that emerge on a daily basis. With a Trombe wall on the southern side of your house, you will have a dark surface absorbing the sunlight and a mass of wall material keeping this energy to get it back into the living space, when there is no sun.

One of the major benefits of indirect gain windows is that the mason wall used in it releases the energy from the sun several hours. However, we at Mesa Glass cannot ignore the fact that indirect gain windows are difficult to manage in home and business buildings that have been completed. Certainly, indirect gain windows and walls present a perfect solution to many energy problems, but only at the stage of design. This is why we recommend that our glass professionals and your construction agents work together to create a perfect home for you!