Windows and Health
Health Canada suggests that homes should maintain between 30% and 55% Relative Humidity inside. Below these levels and above these levels can create issues with mould, mites, bacteria and other micro-organisms that make for poor air quality and can cause respiratory problems. We were told that if you could maintain 40% RH you could eliminate the strep throat bacteria, because it cannot survive in 40% RH. This became our goal to develop a window system that would give us the ability to allow homeowners to maintain 40% RH inside the home without any discernable moisture condensation or frosting even when the outside temperature was –40C. We have had success with this challenge by using the very best components we could find in the development of our windows and then having that window installed as close to flush to the inside surface of the wall as possible. As long as the interior +21C air temperature is allowed to flow by the window surface there should be no problem achieving the desired affect.
Another thing we have discovered is people have not been able to get their RH levels up to the desired amount without using a humidifier. By improving the efficiency of the home by installing our high performance windows the homes forced- air-heating systems would cycle less frequently thus not having as much air exchange and the homes RH would increase naturally.
With the advent of the new high efficiency pulse furnaces where there is not the same amount of air exchange due to less recycling of the heating system, the RH levels in the home have increased to the point whereby most other windows will not handle the extra humidity. One can put in an air to air heat recovery system to create an air exchange but not lose an awful lot of heating energy, but in affect all one is doing is lowering the home’s RH level and very often taking it below Health Canada’s recommendations.
Moisture occurs when humidity as a gas comes in contact with a surface that is cool enough to be at the dew point and that is when it condenses. With our window systems and the proper air movement we can keep your window almost as warm as your walls, so windows should be sweating only just before your walls would be. The likelihood of having moisture on our windows is very slight if they are installed in the manner we do them with our top-of-the-line product. No one can ever give a blanket guarantee on performance because of other factors, but we get as close as humanly and as technically possible.
