2.1.3 Radiation
- Daily Solar Radiation and Natural Lighting
Another important consideration in this sense are the windows. As it has been said in the Irkutsk architecture is very characteristic to have a high number of windows, and also bigger than in the rest of Russia. The idea is to take advantage of the sun light. But if the proper windows are not use, the result can be to have great heat losses. To avoid losses double or triple glazed windows must be chosen, also with a special coating in the right pane that allows the heat to enter but no to abandon the building. Apart of air other gases can be used to increase the performance such as argon. And finally and looking a bit deeper in the thermal bridges aforementioned it is important to choose the correct material for the window frames. Big windows can also reduce the illuminating electrical load of the building, allowing the use of more natural lighting.
Historically, the usual materials for them have been wood or iron, for security reasons. Those are not exactly the best thermal performance materials. Reason why aluminum frames with thermal breaks such as polyamide are more suitable.