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Bay:
The section of a sunroom from one post to the next extending from the sill to the ridge.
Bay Width:
The distance from the centerline of a rafter or post to the center of the next one.
Base Wall:
A short wall below
the glazing on all or some of the exterior walls. Also see Knee Wall.
Condensation:
A collection of moisture on the glass due to temperature differential.
Conduction:
The flow of heat through a solid
material, such as glass, metal, or wood, and from one material to another in an assembly, such as a window, through direct contact.
Convection:
The flow of heat through a circulating gas or liquid, such as the air in a room or the air or gas between window panes. Hot air rises because the heat filled molecules are very actively
banging against each other and thus the air is less dense, making it light, which causes it to rise. As the air starts cooling, it becomes denser and heavier, which causes it to fall.
Countersink:
The placement of screw or nail in wood or metal so that the top of either is flush with or below the surrounding material.
Dual Glazing, or Double Glazing:
Two layers of glass separated by a spacer and sealed at the edges.
Double-Wall Polycarbonate:
A rigid polycarbonate sheet with two layers, 8 mm. thick, with an air space between the layers. Used primarily in greenhouses because of its light weight, high insulation, long life, and
resistance to breakage.
Eave:
The area of the structure where the front wall meets the roof.
Fenestration:
A window or skylight and its associated interior or exterior elements, such as shades or blinds.
Flashing:
Metal
sheeting used to waterproof between two different areas of construction.
Footing:
The base on which the foundation sits, usually made of concrete.
Foundation:
The wall on which something is built or supported.
Front Wall:
Wall of a sunroom running the length of the structure between the two gable ends.
FRP:
Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic. Commonly
called fiberglass, this is a glazing material that is usually corrugated, and has a life of around 7 years.
Gable End:
The end or sidewall of a sunroom.
Gas fill:
A gas other than air placed between window or skylight glazing panes to reduce the
U-factor by suppressing conduction and convection. (Usually Argon, Krypton, or Carbon Dioxide)
Glazing:
The glass or plastic panes in a sunroom or skylight.
Glazing track:
The base of an aluminum extrusion used to hold glass in
place and function as a gutter from ridge to sill.
Gutter:
An internal system of the glazing track that drains leaks or condensate to the outside
rather than leaking into the structure.
Header Board:
A horizontal supporting member that spans an opening in a frame wall.
Heat Mirror (HM) glass:
An almost invisible layer of film is suspended in the airspace between the two panes of glass. This film has a unique metallic coating that reflects
infrared heat waves back toward the source. In winter, Heat Mirror glass helps stop heat energy from leaving your sunroom. In summer, the glass blocks much of the infrared heat, helping to keep your sunroom cooler.
Heat Transfer:
Heat always moves from hot to cold. It is mainly transferred by three methods: convection, conduction, and radiation.
Horizontal:
Parallel to the horizon, flat and level.
Infiltration:
The inadvertent
flow of air into a building through breaks in the exterior surfaces of the building. It can occur through joints and cracks around window and skylight frames, sash, and glazings.
Knee Wall:
A short wall below the glazing on all or some of the exterior walls. Also see Base Wall.
Length:
The
dimension of a structure running the same direction as the ridge, front wall, and the attachment wall.
Low-emittance (Low-E) coating:
Microscopically
thin, virtually invisible, metal or metallic oxide layers deposited on a window or skylight glazing surface primarily to reduce the U-factor by suppressing radiative heat flow through the window or skylight.
Miter Joint:
A joint formed by fitting together two pieces cut at angles to form a corner.
Perimeter:
The outside boundary around a structure.
Pitch:
The incline or rise of a roof. Pitch is expressed in inches of rise per foot
of run, by the ratio of the rise to the span, or in degrees of rise from horizontal.
Post:
A vertical structural member
Projection:
The distance of a structure from the point of attachment to an existing structure to the farthest point outward of the sunroom.
Radiation:
The transfer of heat in the form of electromagnetic waves from one separate surface to another. Energy from the sun reaches the earth by radiation, and a person's body
can lose heat to a cold window or skylight surface in a similar way.
Rafter:
A support member that extends between the front wall and the ridge.
Rough Opening:
An unfinished opening in a frame wall, sized to accept the frame of a door or window.
R-value:
A measure of the resistance of a material or assembly to heat flow. It is the inverse of the U-factor (R = 1/U). A high window R-value has a greater resistance to heat flow and a higher
insulating value.
Screw Channel:
The threaded channel centered in the glazing track.
Setting Block:
A piece of rubber on which a piece of glazing is set.
Shading Coefficient:
(SC) a measure of the ability of a window or
skylight to transmit solar heat, relative to that ability for 1/8-inch clear, double-strength, single glass. It is equal to the Solar Heat Gain Coefficient multiplied by 1.15 and is expressed as a number without
units between 0 and 1. The lower a window's Shading Coefficient, the less solar heat it transmits, and the greater is its shading ability.
Single Glazing:
A single layer of glazing used to enclose a sunroom, usually glass or plastic.
Span:
The distance between structural supports.
SolarCool bronze glass:
In extremely hot regions, SolarCool bronze can help keep your sunroom cooler. It does this with a special light and heat
reflective coating, which is fused permanently to the outside surface of the glass. This coating reduces the amount of sunlight entering your sunroom by 75%, and reflects much of the infrared heat waves radiating
from the ground or nearby buildings.
Solar Heat Gain Coefficient:
(SHGC) the fraction of solar radiation admitted through a window or skylight, both
directly transmitted, and absorbed and subsequently released inward. The Solar Heat Gain Coefficient has replaced the shading coefficient as the standard indicator of a window's shading ability. It is expressed
as a number without units between 0 and 1. The lower a window's solar heat gain coefficient, the less solar heat it transmits, and the greater is its shading ability.
Spectrally selective glazing:
A specially engineered Low-E coated or tinted glazing that blocks out much of the sun's heat while transmitting substantial daylight.
Triple-Wall Polycarbonate:
A rigid polycarbonate sheet with three layers, 16 mm. thick, with two air spaces. Used in pool enclosures because of its light weight, high insulation, and hard to break properties.
U-factor (U-Value):
A measure of the rate of heat flow through a material or assembly. It is expressed in units of BTU/hr-ft2- F or W/m2- C. Window
manufacturers and engineers commonly use the U-factor to describe the rate of non-solar heat loss or gain through a window or skylight. Lower window U-factors have greater resistance to heat flow and better
insulating value.
Visible transmittance:
The percentage or fraction of visible light transmitted by a window or skylight.
Weep hole:
Holes in the sill of the glazing system that allows accumulated moisture to escape to the outside.
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