We’re shopping for high-performance aluminum clad windows for a house we’re building in Montana. The Jeld-wen Custom rep tells me they don’t sell argon filled windows due to problems with bringing them from their low altitude place of manufacture to here–about 5,000 feet. Has anyone experienced problems with argon filled windows at high altitude? If so, what sort of problems did you have?
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I used to live/build at altitude in Colorado. The problem is this:
If the units are sealed at sea level, the units expand and break the seal when moved to altitude. To deal with this, the manufacturer has to include breather tubes. Proper practice is to let the units acclimate for a day, then crimp the breathers and tuck them into the edge.
Guess what? Most installers forget to crimp the breathers. This results in gradual loss of argon fill. (It can also result in moisture entry and unit failure, but high altitudes tend to be dry, so this happens less often.)
Customer notices performance degrade on his pricy windows, tests windows for fill, sees reduced or no argon, and sues the manufacturer. Case is settled and company institutes policy you now see.
This is a case where tort law reform could actually result in a good product being available where it is needed.
Air-filled units still have the breathers, but the fill cannot lose expensive gas, so the legal exposure is much reduced.
Bill
I think this recent discussion covers it:
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages/?msg=95543
John
J.R. Lazaro Builders, Inc.
Indianapolis, In.
Edited 11/8/2007 2:35 pm ET by JLazaro317