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New Build Homes in Wales With Luxury Glazing Systems

IQ Glass have been specified on luxury projects and provided bespoke glazing solutions to many luxury new build homes in the North of England and Wales. Our specialist Midlands and North glazing division have worked on award-winning bespoke developments in locations such as Birmingham, Cardiff, Cotswolds and Newcastle, creating a portfolio of inspirational architectural projects.

Bespoke minimally framed sliding doors are a great addition to any luxury new build home, not only do they create vast openings but they also can add value to your home. It is essential to consider the wider building design and how glazing solutions can enhance the quality of life in any new build dwelling.

Thermally broken aluminium frames can be specified in conjunction with triple glazing to enhance the thermal performance of the system. A thermally broken system can insulate up to 500 times better than aluminium alone; this is because the temperatures cannot permeate through the metal as quickly when a polyamide thermal break is included.

Even with triple glazing, the conductivity of non-thermally broken aluminium frames will hinder the system’s overall performance and this is why it is vital for bespoke glazing in Wales to be fully thermally broken.  

The Midlands and North Division of IQ worked on Edge Hill, a new-build family home in Newcastle. The project features large elevations of frameless glass and slim framed sliding glass doors that wrap around the property to create entire walls of moving glass. The contemporary architectural design is finished with dark timber cladding, providing privacy to the home and adding shading and texture to the large glass structure.  

architectural sliding glass door in a contemporary new build wales
floor to ceiling sliding glass doors in a contemporary house in wales

Vertical Sliding Sash Windows in Wales

Bespoke sliding vertical sash windows create opportunities for natural light to flood into any internal space, the multi-function of vertical sash windows is infinite based on the location in which the glazing is installed.  The vertical sash window can be specified as a double-height glazing installation, used as an entry point, or used to create a modern Juliet balcony design 

Vertical sash windows are also perfect for luxury garages, housing classic car collections in contemporary homes. The base detail of a bespoke vertical sash window is completely flush and suitable for driving over, making it the perfect choice for creating a modern garage.  

This luxury new build uses large vertical sash windows to create a multi-functional bedroom space that allows ventilation as well as acting as a safety feature, designed to occupy the size of one entire wall. The sash windows allow plenty of natural light to flood the rooms and can be opened to provide adjustable ventilation or to access the walk-on glass balcony running the length of the villa. Bordered by frameless glass balustrades, these minimal elements prove essential protection for the homeowners while ensuring that they do not detract from the stunning views around the house. 

wales home with floor to ceiling slim vertical sash windows
oversized ultra-slim vertical sliding glass in a luxury new build home

Oversized Glazing in Wales

Oversized glazing solutions are ideal for creating uninterrupted apertures to appreciate the natural surroundings. Using bespoke oversized glazing on architectural projects helps to create that instant ‘wow’ factor and comes with a whole host of other benefits. Modern glass technology has now expanded contemporary design capabilities, providing architectural solutions that still maintain a slim and modern profile. 

A project that was carried out by our Midlands and Northern division was a luxury renovation for Stonecrop, a contemporary home-based in Oakham, Rutland 

Oversized curved sections of the building create a beautiful swooping courtyard that channels the sunlight for a well-lit living space. The new-build home in Oakham was designed with the aim of providing the owners with exceptional views of the surrounding landscape. To achieve this, the architects wanted to include as much glazing in the project as possible. 

bespoke floor to ceiling sliding glass doors in a contemporary house in wales
pas 24 certificated high security sliding glass doors in Wales

Building Regulations for New-Build Dwellings

Approved documents N and F are both relevant for new build dwellings in Wales. These guidelines are crucial to follow when specifying bespoke glazing in Wales. 

  • Approved Document N of the Welsh building regulations outlines the requirements for protection from impact, opening and cleaning. 
  • Approved document F of the Welsh building regulations outlines the requirements for ventilation.  

 

Major changes to the requirements have been proposed for Welsh building regulations for part N, for new build dwellings there are two proposed options to uplift efficiency standards: 

 

  Option 

  Reduction in carbon emissions     (compared to current standards) 

  Anticipated Solution 

  1 

37% 

 High fabric standards   (including windows), natural   ventilation system, gas   boiler, wastewater heat   recovery system and   photovoltaic panels 

  2 

56% 

 High fabric standards   (including windows),   mechanical ventilation with   heat recovery, gas boiler,   wastewater heat recovery   system and photovoltaic   panels* 

*See next section for integrating photovoltaic panels into glazing 

 

The proposed changes include reducing the required Uw value from 1.6 to 1.4 W/m²k for windows and doors, and the improvement of thermal values to enable new dwellings to achieve a specific energy performance target.  

IQ are constantly developing our glass solutions to provide bespoke, high-performance solutions that meet and exceed building standards. All bespoke glazing solutions can be engineered to have better thermal properties by using triple glazing alternatives; some of these can include sliding glass doors and vertical sash windows. IQ Glass supply solutions with Uw values from just 0.8 W/m²k. 

 

Part N firstly details the requirements for protection against impact for glazing in new dwelling properties in Wales, more specifically the way that glass should break in a way which is unlikely to cause injury. Any window or panel glazing solution which is considered critical is classed based on height requirements, anything between the flush floor level and 800mm should have reduced risks when glass breaks. The required way for the glass to break should be robust or in small panes, or alternatively should be permanently protected. Glass doors have a slightly varied height requirement which is any pane size between the flush floor level and 1500mm should break in the same way as the window and panel glazing.    

Section three of Welsh Building Regulations Part N explains the safe opening and closing requirements of windows. Where automation is required for glazing solutions the controls should be reached without leaning over any obstructions and the control panel should be no more than 1.9m above the floor level. IQ’s automated opening roof glazing solutions can be controlled by a multitude of techniques, some of these include keypad control, remote control, BMS integration systems and integrating sensors into the rooflight itself.  

 

Automated opening rooflights can be used in conjunction with Approved Document F of the Welsh building regulations, which outlines the requirements for ventilation. The regulations outline that for new build dwellings each habitable room should be capable of extracting a minimum of four air changes per house (ach) per room to the outside directly. The table below describes the ventilation rates based on how many bedrooms are in the property: 

  

No. of bedrooms  

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

Whole new build dwelling ventilation rate (l/s)* 

 

13 

 

17 

 

21 

 

25 

 

29 

*L/S= Litres per second 

structural glazing with aluminium slim sliding door
ultra-slim sliding glass door with pas24 certificate in a contemporary rear kitchen extension in the uk

Technical Glazing Solutions for Wales

Solar photovoltaic glazing performs as conventional glazing with added benefits of outstanding G and U thermal values, this type of glass can generate renewable energy directly to the power of the structure or building. Photovoltaic glazing produces clean electricity from natural sunlight, penetrating regularly distributed PV cells which are placed between the vacuum of the panes; the cell selectively harnesses a portion of the solar spectrum which is unnoticeable to the human eye, while allowing visible light to enter the space to create a multi-functional system.   

Photovoltaic glazing is also known to reduce thermal gain and when the glazing is fabricated into an insulated unit it is known to produce a U-value of below 1 W/m²K. The main advantage of photovoltaic glazing is the opportunity for the solution to be applied, this glazing can be applied virtually anywhere that standard glazing applications would appear which creates further opportunities for green renewable energy to be generated; this is something encouraged due to the constantly updating building regulations, including high specification luxury glazing systems, for new build homes in Wales. 

IQ Glass, the UK supplier of minimal windows has a regional office close to Wales for these types of projects. For more information, contact the minimal windows team today.