26 March 2021
Are you thinking about renovating or designing your custom home to gain more space? Converting your garage into extra living space may be a quick solution that is easier to do than you imagine.
DECORATIVE GLASS
Adding windows to your garage door to instantly add luster to the room. This will allow you to further personalize the front of your home, as decorative glass options are abundant.
To determine what type of window is best for your garage door, start by identifying your needs in terms of:
• The amount of natural light you want for your garage
• The location of the windows
• The climate
• The general design of the building
• The type of window you want
Your choice will ultimately depend on the use and look that you and your family members want to give to your garage. To help you see clearly, Garex, in collaboration with our long-time business partner Multiver, the cutting edge of the glass industry, and with our new partner Verre Select, a leader in the decorative glass business, is delighted to offer an overview of the types of glass available to you.
In this article, we will detail the advantages and disadvantages of a selection of products for your garage door.
SIMPLE OR DOUBLE PANE AND TEMPERED OR STANDARD
Depending on your desired glass type and thickness as well as on your needs and budget, glass options include standard or tempered, and single pane or double pane glass (a.k.a. insulated windows).
Tempered glass is a type of safety glass. If broken, it crumbles into small granular chunks that can easily be picked up.
Double pane windows are a sealed product that provides greater insulation and limits the appearance of condensation between the glass panels. Double pane windows can be made with a combination of different glass types. Let’s review those glass types now.
FLOAT GLASS
Float glass is a basic product made by pouring molten glass into large flat chambers with a bed of molten tin at the bottom, and then by passing it through metal rollers that control its thickness before letting it slowly cool and cutting it.
It is a cost-effective see-through glass that easily matches the windows of any home and offers an authentic view of the outside world.
PATTERNED GLASS
Patterned glass has a flat surface and a patterned surface that produces a blurry image when looking through it. There are a variety of glass patterns to choose from, with different aesthetics depending on your taste and the architecture of your home.
Although this type of translucent glass lets in the sunlight, it is designed to obscure what is on the opposite side of the window and to show only vague shapes of what is behind it. This makes it the perfect choice for people looking to safeguard their privacy without losing out on natural light.
The images below present some patterned glass varieties offered by Garex.
TINTED GLASS
Tinted glass is any type of glass to which pigments are added. Our partner Multiver adds certain metallic oxides in the glass composition to give a uniform and translucent color to the glass. For instance, iron, cobalt or selenium oxides allow manufacturers to achieve various shades of blue, green, bronze or gray. Its aesthetic potential is infinite! This is the medium used to create the stained glass windows that adorn our churches.
But when it comes to dressing up garage doors, consumers usually prefer their windows to be homogeneous in color because they are easier to match with other architectural and decorative elements on the facade of a home.
Note that the color of tinted glass becomes more or less pronounced depending on the thickness of the glass. Therefore, we recommend using the same glass thicknesses for a project unless the designer intended such an effect.
Several things can influence the appearance of the glass color you select: the glass thickness, chosen tint and reflection intensity, the environment, lighting and much more. It is preferable to have samples produced before making your official tinted glass selection.
Also, you should know that tinted glass lets in less light than other types of glass. In addition, it distorts the colors that enter the garage, which will definitely affect your choice of paint for the walls of your garage, or the hobbies you practice there, such as watercolor painting or furniture refinishing.
On the other hand, this type of glass ensures privacy in our garage and reduces the heat of the sunlight. This advantage can be very useful in the hot season to keep a comfortable room temperature. Like sunglasses, tinted glass can partially block the passage of UV rays.
FROSTED GLASS
Like patterned glass, satin glass offers the perfect balance of brightness and privacy. For example, opaque satin glass is a glazing that has a flat glass surface, but is etched to give it a misty appearance. Instead of being restricted to a pattern on the entire surface of the glass panel, the Masterline model allows the panel to be partially obscured to benefit from clear areas.
Garex now offers a wider range of partially satin-finished glass thanks to our new partnership with Verre Select.
Their most popular window model for front doors is the CBG. These glass panels leave one inch of clear glass around the edges, giving a glimpse of the outside world without allowing passers-by to see clearly inside the house.
JAVA satin glass takes the clear glass design around the glass edge of the CBG model and adds a modern touch with black tiling that accentuates the geometric lines of the facade, enriching the architectural style of your home. The 2-inch wide tile is mounted in a 2 ½-inch clear glass band.
As for the RYU, it features a horizontal line of clear glass smack in the middle of the satin panel to create a discreet and attractive pattern. The RYU is available in two thermos models: a 24-inch-wide model with a 14 x ½ inch clear glass line and a 40-inch-wide thermos with a 30 x ½ inch clear line.
Whether you choose the CGB, JAVA or RYU models, Verre Select panes offer a quick and easy way to make sure your Garex garage door windows match those on your home with more elegant appearance!
MIRROR GLASS
Mirrored glass includes a reflective effect on one side and is completely transparent on the other. This style may remind you of the windows on skyscrapers and happens to be a perfect choice if you want privacy and to see very clearly outside.
However, there are a few drawbacks to this type of glass. Although they ensure maximum privacy during the day, the mirrored glass loses its effectiveness at night when the light intensity is higher indoors than outside. You will have to install curtains on your windows to maintain your privacy!
Also, mirror glass is slightly tinted, which results in a loss of luminosuty. On the other hand, it will keep your garage cool on hot summer days because it reflects the sun’s ray by keeping them outside your garage.
As you can see, there are many types of decorative glass for your garage door windows. Regardless of your choice and whether it is for a new door or to refresh the look of an existing door, proper installation is necessary to ensure its adequate functioning, insulation and durability. Note that adding a large number of windows to an existing door may result in the need to replace or readjust the spring(s) of your door.
Do not hesitate to call on one of your retailer experts to assist you in the creation, customization and installation of your garage door manufactured here, in Canada, and designed to offer the best energy-efficient performance on the market.
