Along Avoca Road and around Pineridge Crescent in Silverdale, the homes sit on bigger blocks than most of Sydney, with long wide frontages and plenty of glass facing the paddocks. Many were built between the 1980s and the 2000s in brick veneer or render, and a good share of them have large single glazed windows that were never chosen with summer heat or winter cold in mind.
Key takeaways
- On an open block the glass is exposed on most sides, so the glass choice matters more than it would in a sheltered street.
- Figures published through NatHERS treat the glazing a home uses as one of the largest single influences on its heating and cooling load.
- Low-E double glazing is the all rounder for Silverdale; laminated glass is the add on for noise or for rooms where you want extra security.
- Thermal breaks in the aluminium frame matter almost as much as the glass once you move to double glazing.
- Replacing windows in the existing openings is often simple from an approvals point of view, but enlarging openings or working on bushfire prone or flood affected land is where you should check first.
What makes an open block different from a normal suburban home?
The short version is exposure. A home in a built up street is shaded by neighbours, fences and trees for part of the day, while a home on acreage often has sun on the glass from first light until it drops behind the hills.
Many homes in this part of Silverdale were designed to take in the view, so the biggest windows face wherever the outlook is rather than wherever the sun is kindest. That often means a long run of west or north west facing glass in the living areas, which is exactly where single glazing struggles on a January afternoon.
The flip side comes in winter. Open ground loses heat quickly after dark and the still, clear nights in the outer west can be a lot colder than the inner suburbs. Single glazed windows become the coldest surface in the room, and that is where the heating goes.
Which glass combination handles both heat and cold?
A low-E coated double glazed unit is the one glass type that improves summer and winter at the same time, which is why we start there for almost every home out this way. The coating reflects radiant heat, and the sealed air or gas gap slows conduction in both directions.
From there the choice is about tuning. If a room cops full afternoon sun and tends to overheat, a slightly tinted or solar control outer pane holds more of that heat out.
For noise, which does come up on properties near Avoca Road, one laminated pane in the unit does more than simply making the glass thicker. The interlayer dampens the sound in a way plain glass of the same weight does not.
| Glass option | Summer heat | Winter cold | Best suited to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clear double glazed unit | Moderate improvement | Good improvement | Shaded bedrooms and south facing rooms |
| Low-E double glazed unit | Good improvement | Very good improvement | Living areas, kitchens, most of the home |
| Solar control low-E unit | Very good improvement | Good improvement | West and north west facing glass with no shade |
| Laminated low-E unit | Good improvement | Very good improvement | Rooms facing the road, home offices, front bedrooms |
Newage measures every opening on site and recommends a double glazed combination for each room based on its orientation. Call 0408 585 846 for a free measure and written quote.
Do bigger windows on acreage need special sizing or support?
Often yes, and this is where a made to measure approach pays off. Double glazed units are heavier than single panes, and the wide openings common in acreage living rooms can push a standard sliding or fixed window past its comfortable limit.
Many homes in this part of Silverdale have picture windows or long banks of sliding windows that span most of a wall. When those are replaced, the sashes may need to be split differently, the frame section may need to be deeper, or a fixed centre pane with opening awning windows either side may suit better than trying to slide one enormous panel.
Newage makes double glazed windows to measure in its Smeaton Grange workshop, so each opening gets a frame and glass combination designed for that size and that exposure rather than a catalogue size made to fit.
How do you decide which rooms to tackle first?
Start with the room that is uncomfortable most often, which on an open block is usually the main living area with the biggest run of glass. Bedrooms that face the road or the morning sun come next.
If the budget does not stretch to the whole house in one go, there is no harm in staging it. The guide on which rooms to double glaze first walks through that order of priorities in more detail, and the same logic applies out here with the extra weight on west facing glass.
Does replacing windows need council approval in Silverdale?
In many cases, replacing windows like for like in the existing openings does not need separate council approval in NSW, provided the structure of the wall is not changed and the look of the home stays broadly the same. That covers a lot of straightforward window upgrades.
The picture changes when openings are enlarged, lintels are altered, the home is heritage listed, or the land is mapped as bushfire prone or flood affected. In those situations a private certifier or the council may need to be involved, and specific glass types can be required.
Newage advises on this as part of the free on site measure. The team has been doing this since 2009 across Sydney and surrounding regions and can tell you early whether your project looks like a simple replacement or something that needs sign off, and point you to the right next step if it does.
Your windows are made in the Newage workshop about 18 km from Silverdale and installed by the same team. Book a free on site measure on 0408 585 846.
What does the process look like from measure to install?
It is a sequence of a few clear steps, and the measure is the part that sets everything else up. Here is how it usually runs.
- On site measure A Newage measurer visits, checks every opening, notes the orientation and the condition of the reveals and talks through what you want from each room.
- Written quote You receive an itemised written quote with the window style, frame colour and glass combination for each opening, with no obligation.
- Manufacture Once you approve, the frames and glass units are made in the Smeaton Grange workshop to the measured sizes.
- Install The Newage installation team removes the old windows, fits and seals the new ones and tidies the site, usually room by room so the home stays secure.
- Handover You are shown how the hardware works and the workmanship warranty is explained before the team leaves.
Is double glazing enough on its own for an exposed home?
It does most of the heavy lifting, but on a wide open block it works best alongside a couple of other measures. The right double glazed windows will stop the glass being the weak point, and after that the next gains come from shading and sealing.
External shade on the west is the single biggest helper, whether that is a deep eave, a pergola or planting. Inside, decent seals on the new windows and doors stop draughts that make a room feel colder than the thermometer says. If the living room opens onto an alfresco, pairing the new windows with double glazed sliding or stacking doors keeps the whole wall performing the same way instead of leaving one big gap in the envelope.
What homeowners near Avoca Road usually run into
The most common thing installers see in homes of this age and position is glass that was simply oversized for the frame it was given. Wide single glazed sliding windows from the 1980s and 1990s often have light frames that have sagged or racked a little over time, so the sashes drag and the seals no longer meet.
The second thing is mismatched orientation. Because many homes in this part of Silverdale were set up for the outlook rather than the sun, the main living space often has the largest glass area facing west with little or no shade. Those rooms are the ones owners describe as unusable on summer afternoons, and they are the first candidates for solar control low-E glass.
Dust and wind exposure come up as well. Open ground means more wind on the glass and more fine dust in the tracks and seals. Newer frames with better drainage and brush seals cope with that far better than older designs, but it is worth mentioning to the measurer so the hardware chosen suits the site.
Planning new double glazing in Silverdale?
The Newage workshop at Unit 2/16 Blackmore Rd, Smeaton Grange is about 18 km from this part of Silverdale, so the people who make your windows are the same ones who measure and install them. Newage has completed more than 2,500 projects since 2009 and holds a 4.7 star rating on Google, with every frame and glass unit made to measure in house and fitted by its own team. You can read more about how the business works on the About Newage page.
If you are comparing options for made to measure double glazed windows from Smeaton Grange, the easiest next step is a free on site measure and written quote. Newage also serves the growing estates nearby, including Oran Park, and works across Western Sydney. Call 0408 585 846, Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm or Saturday 8am to 1pm, to book a time.
Newage has completed more than 2,500 projects since 2009 across Sydney and surrounding regions. Call 0408 585 846, Mon to Fri 8am to 5pm or Sat 8am to 1pm, for a free written quote for your Silverdale home.
FAQ
Is low-E double glazing worth it on a home with a lot of west facing glass?
Yes, it is usually the first glass to consider. The low-E coating reflects radiant heat so the room stays cooler in the afternoon, while the sealed gap holds warmth in on cold nights. For glass with no shade at all, a solar control outer pane adds further protection against afternoon heat.
Do double glazed units need a different aluminium frame?
They need a frame deep enough to hold the thicker unit, and ideally a thermally broken one. A thermal break separates the inside and outside faces of the frame so heat does not travel straight through the metal. Without it the frame edges can still feel cold even with good glass.
Can I double glaze a few rooms in my Silverdale home first and do the rest later?
Yes, staging is common on larger homes. Most Silverdale owners start with the main living area and the bedrooms that face the road or the morning sun. Choose a frame colour and window style you can repeat later so the finished home looks consistent from the outside.
Will new windows in the same openings need council approval?
Often not, if the openings and the structure stay the same and the look of the home is broadly unchanged. Enlarging openings, heritage listing, or land mapped as bushfire prone or flood affected can change that. Newage checks these points during the free on site measure and advises on the next step.
How does double glazing help with condensation on cold mornings?
Condensation forms when warm indoor air meets a cold pane. A double glazed unit keeps the inside pane much closer to room temperature, so moisture is far less likely to settle on it. In most bedrooms and living rooms this reduces morning condensation to a small amount or none at all.
