Home Pro Exteriors, Inc.

The  NFRC Label 

Have you ever seen a label on a window that has a lot of numbers and information on it? That’s called an NFRC label! It helps us understand how well the window does its job. The label tells us things like how much heat can come through the window, how much light can come through, and how much air can come through. All of these things are important because they help us choose the right kind of window for our house. So, if we see a window with an NFRC label, we can look at the numbers and information to make sure it’s the right window for us. That way, we can keep our house comfortable and save energy too!

ALWAYS LOOK FOR THE ENERGYSTAR LABEL AND THE MAP DEPICTION TO MAKE SURE THE WINDOWS ARE EFFICIENT IN THE REGION YOU RESIDE!  

Home Pro Exteriors, Inc. is your local window professional handling only EnergyStar products to benefit the comfort and efficiency of your home.  We are a longtime partner of ProVia professional products and operate in their network of preferred dealers/certified installers to provide exceptional window products!

What’s on the Label & What does it mean?

1. U-Factor:

Have you ever noticed that sometimes when you touch a window, it feels really cold? That’s because the window is letting the cold air from outside come in.
U factor is a fancy word that helps us understand how much heat can escape through a window.  

So, if a window has a low U factor, it means that not a lot of heat can escape through the window and make the room cold. That’s good for when it’s cold outside and we want to keep the room warm. But if a window has a high U factor, it means that more heat can escape through the window and make the room cold. That’s not so good for when it’s cold outside and we want to keep the room warm. So, U factor helps us choose the right kind of window to keep our rooms cozy and warm! Contact ‘The PROS’ over at Home Pro to discuss the benefits of upgrading the aging and inefficient windows 🪟 on your home @(845) 343-1777

2. SHGC:

Do you know how sometimes when the sun shines through a window, it can make the room really hot? SHGC helps us understand how much of the sun’s heat can come through a window. It stands for “solar heat gain coefficient.”   For example, if a window has a low SHGC, it means that not a lot of the sun’s heat can come through and make the room hot. That’s good for when it’s hot outside and we want to keep the room cool. But if a window has a high SHGC, it means that more of the sun’s heat can come through and make the room hot. That’s good for when it’s cold outside and we want to keep the room warm. So, SHGC helps us choose the right kind of window for the weather outside!

-In mixed climates like the North and Midwest where homes use both heating and cooling…an SHGC figure less than 0.40 is best.

-In more Southern and Western climates where air-conditioning costs can become high during warm months, windows with an SHGC of less than 0.30 can be beneficial.

3. Air infiltration:

This figure on the NFRC label represents the amount of air that can pass through a window.  Homeowners are often surprised to hear that ALL windows have some level of air infiltration to them.

So how does air infiltration occur and where?

The most typical locations are where two window sashes meet together and lock and where the sash meets the frame!

You can imagine standing by a window when it it 5 degrees outside and there is a 40 mph wind, there is a likelihood that you could move your hand around the interior window surface and feel a very slight draft.

So while it’s impossible to zero-out this figure, for the overall comfort and efficiency of your home, the air infiltration number should be as low as possible.  

How is air infiltration calculated?
The air infiltration number is specifically calculated by measuring how many cubic feet of air can pass through a window in a minute of time.  That figure is then divided by the total area of the window.  So this figure is highly variable from window to window based on the size.

4. The Map Key & EnergyStar label:

On every NFRC label, there is a U.S. map that calls out the four regions and indicates whether a product meets the EnergyStar standard set forth by the Government (Dept. of Energy).  This label will indicate if a product qualifies as EnergyStar.  The EnergyStar label can be identified by its trademark light blue color.

EnergyStar qualifying products have a direct impact on the comfort of your home as well as the heating and cooling costs.  
Contact Home Pro Exteriors, Inc. to learn more and get a cost-free estimate on upgrading your windows! 845-343-1777

(845) 343-1777