Energy Efficiency Increases Selling Price

Tuesday, July 01, 2025

With energy prices increasing in Australia as well as the general cost of living, it is no wonder that energy-efficient homes in the market are selling at a higher price than houses with no energy-efficient features. These could be roof and ceiling insulation, solar panels, and of course, high-performance windows and doors.According to a recent report by the Domain Group, the demand for energy-efficient houses is increasing across Australia. This demand is adding a premium to homes with energy-efficient features at the sale, while ongoing energy bills will be lower for the life of the home. It includes new builds

Critical Documents to request from Window Supplier

Tuesday, May 27, 2025

Windows and doors must comply with several Australian Standards, and your window supplier must prove that they do. There is a real risk to architects and builders by falsified or non-existing test reports or the quoting of a different Standard. Australian Standards: AS 1288 Glass in Buildings - selection & Installation AS 2047 Windows and external glazed doors in buildings AS 4055 Wind loads for housing AS 3959 Construction of buildings in bushfire-prone areas NCC – National Construction Code - 2019 Commercial NCC – National Construction Code - 2022 Residential Performance Tests: Under AS 2047, windows made from timber, aluminium,

Window Development 1950’s to today

Monday, May 27, 2024

The building industry in Australia represented by HIA and Master Builders are addicted to low cost windows. From the 1950’s onwards, glazing became cheaper and allowed architects to frame views and bring light into the building. Also, builders realised that windows at that time per square meter were only about half the cost of a wall. So with using more glass, one could construct cheaper buildings. As a solution to keeping such glasshouses at a liveable temperature, larger air-conditioning systems were required. Central Europe: Houses and windows in Europe developed quite differently. In the alpine region already a couple of centuries ago they

Paarhammer at THRIVE PASSIVHAUS Conference

Monday, May 20, 2024

The THRIVE PASSIVHAUS conference is on in Melbourne on the 23rd and 24th of May 2024. Experts from around the world will present on the potential of good design principles and more. Our managing director, Tony will run a training session on the first day of the conference at 11am. Under the topic of Windows and Doors within the Passivhaus Building Envelope, Tony will explore: European door and window installation approaches Essential materials for airtight installation The 4 biggest mistakes when installing windows Important documents to request from your window supplier Comparison between window construction types Comparison between window opening types Door threshold options Criticality of certification of the

Modern Windows

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

A more comfortable indoor environment, more security and more energy-efficiency to save on heating and cooling, are some of the expectations of modern windows. While tilt & turn windows and lift-slide sliding doors have been common in Europe for decades, these opening types are fast becoming a much-loved part of Australian homes.Frame MaterialsTimber is very much in demand for its biophilic and health properties and its natural look. Timber also re-grows, hence it is a sustainable material that provides strength when manufactured into European style window and door frames. These frames are generally 68mm thick, or for even higher performance

Window Trend for 2024

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Large expanses of glass are definitely the trend for 2024. To achieve this modern look and the connection to nature while still creating a comfortable indoor environment, the thermal performance is important with double or triple glazing and high-performance frames. Expanse of glazing Views, space, light, glass, natural, sun etc. are words that show people’s aspirations when building or renovating, and real estate sites mention the same. Large, glazed areas ensure an indoor-outdoor feel of openness and connection to the environment which boost our mood, health and wellbeing. It also let’s natural daylight in to make a room appear larger and enables

BAU Expo Munich

Thursday, June 22, 2023

Tony Paarhammer and Andrew Ferguson were part of the 190,000 visitors at the BAU Expo in Munich end of April, gaining insights into all the newest products on show. The 2260 exhibitors from 49 countries included the following topics which might also become significant for the Australian building industry: Façade insulation and secondary façade insulation, Prefabrication and materials to streamline the building processes, Lifting equipment like small tower cranes to make work easier on the building site, Solutions to reduce or eliminate thermal bridging in building envelopes, Low and zero level thresholds with drainage and thermal breaks, Screws, bolts, connectors for the timber construction industry, Low VOC

Glazing - Latest Trends

Wednesday, August 31, 2022

Would you like thermal comfort, natural acoustics and safety and protection, or all in one? Glazing companies have now developed glazing to suit highest energy efficiency and comfort: Viridian Viridian has released a new type of glazing: Vista Tech and Vista Tech XP. Both are triple glazed Insulating Glass Units (IGU’s) with either 1 coat of Low-E or 2 coats of Low-E coating, and a warm edge spacer. Viridian mentions that there are minimum sizes of 600mm x 400mm to maximum sizes of 5000mm x 3100mm, subject to component, spacer and weight limitations, and the maximum unit area permitted under

2x Passive House Tradesperson

Tuesday, February 08, 2022

Paarhammer is proud to have 2 certified Passive House Tradespeople on staff and congratulates Thomas Paarhammer (Paarhammer Windows) and Andrew Ferguson (Siegware - Architectural Innovations) to the successful completion of their course. A PHI Certified Passive House ('Passivhaus' in Australia) Tradesperson (CPHT) is equipped to implement the Passive House building standard. They have passed the accreditation exam issued by the international Passive House Institute, and they are in a unique position to work with design teams that have targeted Passive House certification as a project goal. 'Certified Tradespeople can demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of Passivhaus principles' as stated on

International Year of Glass: 2022

Monday, February 07, 2022

Glass is a major part of window and door products and of our daily work here at Paarhammer. But with its unparalleled versatility and technical capabilities, glass provides so much more to our society like glass optical fibers, containers for life-saving medicine, optical glasses, support of solar cells, glass fibre, glass art and so much more. Therefore, the United Nations has decreed the year 2022 to be the Year of Glass. As window makers, we require glass in sheets, first flat glass was used and later float glass. The float glass process was invented by Sir Alastair Pilkington in 1952

What is the largest size for sliding doors?

Tuesday, December 07, 2021

Giant lift-slide doors can be made up to 400kg per leaf. This means that a height of 3.4m and a width of 2.5m (maximum of 8.8m2) per sliding leaf is entirely possible, or a slider leaf height of 2.4m with a width of 3.6m (again at a maximum of 8.8m2) can be made. Stacker lift-slide doors can be made up to 14m wide. Even large sizes like these can be easily moved manually and glide smoothly, and single slider configurations can also be automated. How lift-slide doors work: With a turn of the handle the slider lifts up to free

Passive House Presentation

Thursday, September 24, 2020

Tony Paarhammer has been invited to record a presentation for the South Pacific Passive House Conference 2020. The virtual conference will take place from the 12th to the 16th of October. The Window and Glazing Performance presentation shows facts and figures of why all window ratings are not equal. Learn about the main differences between international standards and what to look out for to achieve the best results. The Australian AFRC / WERS, North American NFRC, European EN, ISO and Passive House ratings are discussed, and key differences explored. Boundary conditions, centre or edge of glass, reference sizes and installation