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Frequently Asked Questions
What makes glass acoustic?
A damping interlayer between laminated panes.
And panes of different thicknesses.
Greater mass helps as well.
All three work together.
It is a laminated construction at heart.
Why do the panes differ in thickness?
Identical panes resonate at the same frequency.
Sound at that frequency passes easily.
Different thicknesses move the resonances apart.
Neither pane offers a free path.
That is what asymmetry buys.
How much difference does that make?
It is measurable and it is free.
A unit with two 6 mm panes underperforms.
One with 6 mm and 10 mm does better.
The cost of specifying it is the same.
It is the commonest missed opportunity.
What does the interlayer do?
It damps vibration in the glass.
The formulation differs from standard laminate.
Vibration converts to a little heat.
That energy does not pass through.
Standard laminate helps less.
Does the cavity width matter?
Yes, and not as you might expect.
The best thermal cavity is not the best acoustic one.
The two requirements pull apart.
A unit specified for heat may disappoint.
Say which performance is being bought.
What limits the result in practice?
The weakest path, and it is rarely the glass.
Frames and seals pass sound.
So do trickle vents and letter plates.
And the junction with the wall.
A good pane in a leaky frame achieves little.
What should be specified then?
The tested performance of the whole system.
Window or facade, not the glass alone.
Figures for glass are laboratory values.
Installed performance is always lower.
Ask what was tested and how.