Replacement Windows – Energy Star Requirements Tightened

New Energy Star requirements require windows to be more efficient. The new requirements will lead to even more efficient windows than in the past. One of the main goals of the Energy Star program is to guide consumers to the more efficient products. As technology changed a larger and larger portion of the windows manufactured meet or exceeded the Energy Star requirements.

To increase the efficiency of new and remodeled homes the requirements are being increased. For a window to meet the new standards it will have to be over 14% more efficient than the Energy Star rated windows of last year. This will make it harder for some poorer quality windows to meet the requirements.

For us in the Northern Zone the old U-Factor requirement was .35 or lower. The new requirement is .30 or lower, unless the window allows a higher amount of solar heat gain. Being we heat much more than we cool, the windows that allow higher heat gain help us heat in the winter. Any additional cooling costs are offset by using the sun to help heat in the winter. The best window for the Northern Zone is one with a low U-Factor and a high SHGC.

The details of the new requirements are shown below: