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Mitchell & Dickinson’s expert craftspeople can retrofit vacuum glazing to the original windows of your period or listed property to improve thermal efficiency.
When considering how to improve the thermal efficiency of a listed or period home, many homeowners consider vacuum glazing as an option to maximise heat loss reduction.
Vacuum glazing is a high-performance insulating technology that uses a vacuum layer between two glass panes to significantly improve thermal insulation in windows and doors. It gives the same U value improvement as triple glazing but is much slimmer.
Mitchell & Dickinson can retrofit vacuum glazing to your original windows if the timbers in your windows have sufficient depth to allow for modifications to the rebates. At the same time, we can restore your window timbers so they last another 50 years, and we can also add draught proofing to give you beautiful, energy-efficient windows.
How vacuum glazing works
Vacuum glazing is made of two flat tempered glass panes separated by micro support pillars, sealed around the edges, and formed with a vacuum chamber in the cavity. This vacuum chamber is what makes vacuum glazing stand out from other traditional double glazing units. The vacuum acts as an insulating layer, reducing heat transfer and providing exceptional thermal performance.
The vacuum chamber also acts as a barrier to prevent moisture and gas from entering the cavity, ensuring that the insulation performance of the glazing remains consistent over time. Using tempered glass also provides exceptional strength, durability and safety, making vacuum glazing suitable for a wide range of applications, offering excellent energy efficiency and durability, as well as superior acoustic and environmental performance.
If you’re interested in finding out more, we’re happy to talk you through your options.
Drop our friendly customer services team a call or use the enquiry form below.
FINEO – our vacuum glazing partner
FINEO is Mitchell & Dickinson’s vacuum glazing product of choice. It is a superior glazing unit, designed and manufactured by Fineo.
FINEO provides substantial improvements to energy efficiency with an impressive U-value of 0.7 W/m²k. This means valuable heat is not lost through your windows. FINEO’s ultra-thin profile (7.7mm) is perfect for retrofitting into existing sash windows – so the original historical frames are maintained.
FINEO is ideal to retrofit into existing timber frames. It boasts an elegant, slim profile, whilst ensuring maximum use of sunlight, often making FINEO the most cost-effective solution for renovation and restoration projects, particularly for historic Georgian, Victorian or Edwardian homes.
Mitchell & Dickinson chose to partner with FINEO over other vacuum glazing suppliers because of their sustainability credentials. Half of their research and development budget is dedicated to creating eco-friendly solutions and sustainable production methods.
If you’re interested in finding out more, we’re happy to talk you through your options.
Drop our friendly customer services team a call or use the enquiry form below.
Benefits of vacuum glazing
- Aesthetically beautiful: The ultra-thin profile makes them perfect for conservation projects. Although they do have visible features embedded in the glazing that are created in the manufacturing process, which are not acceptable to some customers and conservation officers.
- Low-E glass: The sealed glass units are made with Low Emissivity (Low-E) glass which improves the energy efficiency of buildings by reducing heat transfer. In cold climates, Low-E glass helps to keep the interior warm by reflecting heat back into the building, while in warmer climates, it helps to keep the interior cool by reflecting heat away from the building.
- High return on investment: Retrofitting the original windows in your listed or period property with vacuum glazing significantly reduces heat loss, meaning lower energy bills.
- Increased warmth: Comfort with exceptional thermal performance, insulation properties to (centre-pane U-values of up to 0.7 W/m²k)and superior G-values.
- Reduced condensation: Because vacuum glazing minimises heat transfer between the interior and exterior surfaces of the glass, it helps to reduce the formation of condensation on the interior surface during cold weather. The high vacuum interspace effectively eliminates dew condensation, while the outstanding thermal insulation performance keeps the interior glass surface free of condensation.
- Noise reduction: Vacuum glazing has a positive soundproofing effect against medium and low frequency noise such as traffic and construction noise. It offers good acoustic performance, without the need for thicker, heavier panes of glass.
- Reliability: Vacuum glazing units come with a warranty and an anticipated lifespan of over 25 years.
- Sustainability: Units are fully recyclable and have no noble gasses which are energy intensive to produce.
- Improved EPC rating: Installing vacuum glazing in your listed or period property will improve its energy efficiency and thus its EPC rating.
Mitchell & Dickinson’s ethos is to repair rather than replace, however, if your windows are not suitable for a vacuum glazing retrofit, and are in a state of disrepair, we may recommend replacing them. In that case, we can supply and install newly crafted windows made with sustainable timbers, and with vacuum glazing and draught proofing already fitted.
If your property is listed or in a conservation area then planning permission for vacuum glazing will be required.
Where we can install vacuum glazing
We have operational teams across the South, South West and the Midlands, including London, Bath, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, Gloucestershire, Monmouthshire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire, the West Midlands, Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Wiltshire, Hampshire, Berkshire, Surrey and Sussex. We would be happy to arrange an initial consultation with you at your home to assess your property’s suitability for vacuum glazing.
If you’re interested in finding out more, we’re happy to talk you through your options.
Drop our friendly customer services team a call or use the enquiry form below.
Your vacuum glazing questions answered
Vacuum glazing has excellent U values, better than CosyGlazing, which may be an important factor if you want to improve the thermal efficiency of your listed or period property. However, most older window construction does not support the depth and weight of vacuum glazing, although it is slimmer than triple glazing. So for those with beautiful original Georgian windows with multiple panes of heritage glass, CosyGlazing remains the better option and the only practical option.
CosyGlazing is also the most eco-friendly option because to vacuum glaze Georgian style windows the original windows would probably need to be completely replaced with new timber windows. This means throwing the old windows and glazing into landfill at worst and recycling at best.
CosyGlazing will provide a vast improvement to the thermal efficiency of a listed or conservation window and will not be subject to the same rigour in listed building consent. This is because it does not involve the replacement of heritage glazing. It is also completely removable and invisible from the outside and, as such, complies with listed building requirements.
Vacuum glazing can either be retrofitted to older windows, provided the original timbers have sufficient depth and strength, or it can be fitted as part of a complete new window installation.
Yes, with expert craftsmanship and a thorough understanding of the construction of original period joinery, vacuum glazing can be retrofitted into both original sash and casement windows where there’s sufficient depth to the original timbers to bear the vacuum glazing itself.
No, vacuum glazing can be retrofitted into original windows, but only where the original timber profiles of the window have sufficient depth to receive the vacuum glazing pane. Where it cannot, new replacement windows can be made and fitted with the vacuum glazing. This would require planning permission for listed or conservation properties.
There are different vacuum glazing brands, such as Fineo, Landvac and Pilkington Spatia. They have slightly different features and benefits but all improve energy efficiency by improving the U value of your glazing.
Yes, in all cases, for new or retrofitted glazing listed building consent is required.
