Problem: FOGGING UP— The number one problem and complaint at the very top of the list that consumers have with replacement windows is that they FOG UP. The seal breaks around the spacer (all it takes is a pinhole) and the idea of a hermetic seal is lost forever. Humidity gets into the glass pack and the result is a permanent cloud in your line of sight.
This is all spacer-system related. This commonly used aluminum spacer bar with a rubber butyl backing is a very inexpensive means of sealing the glass pack. The problem simply is that it doesn’t work over the long run. Especially with an all-vinyl sash frame where all the expansion and contraction literally stresses the glass pack by twisting and distorting it. The end result is a blown seal.
Solution: We solve this problem with Guardian’s warm edge spacer sealant that will forever remain pliable. It won’t ever harden or become brittle like the conventional butyl rubber sealants used on typical replacement windows. Manufacturing a warm edge Guardian glass package is very time-consuming. It involves an oven compression process where the glass package is gradually sandwiched. The initial up front price to have this kind of sealant is higher, but there is no way Guardian would ever make any compromises here… after all, what good is a window if you can’t see out of it. This is one of Guardian’s trademarks. There are just too many people out there who just don’t know any differently. They are literally spending their hard earned dollars to replace their windows, and then they end up with more problems than what they had originally.
Problem: LOSS OF INSULATION– Here’s another problem that you should be aware of. Once the seal of any glass package is broken, then you no longer have a trapped air space. You have lost the insulating benefits of a true hermetic seal. Worse yet, in the case with Krypton Gas, the gas will now escape, and you lose that additional sound and thermal barrier that you may have paid extra for.
Solution: Again, with Guardian’s warm edge sealant, the integrity of the seal will never be broken… and keep in mind, we’ve already proven that with years of trouble-free service. So not only will you have a window with a clear, unobstructed view, but you can be assured that the Krypton gas will always remain there year after year, giving you a return on your investment.
Problem: HIGHLY CONDUCTIVE– Most all replacement windows have an aluminum spacer bar that physically separates the panes of glass. What you have here are two materials that are highly conductive in direct contact with one another… glass and aluminum. There really is no kind of thermal break with this design. Consequently, in the wintertime, the glass pane inside your home is ice cold just like the outside pane, which in the end makes for high fuel bills.
Solution: Our Guardian windows uses a warm edge technology which is a polymer sealant that encapsulates a thin aluminum wafer that separates the glass. This polymer is non-conductive and acts as a thermal barrier keeping the inside pane of glass at a temperature independent of the outside pane. In the end, thermal efficiency is maximized, and people’s fuels bills DROP.
WHY A GUARDIAN INSPECTION IS NECESSARY
Law suits are Exploding Exponentially involving Real Estate transactions. Serious construction defects are rapidly escalating, creating catastrophic structural issues to homes that cost “tens of thousands” of dollars to repair. Some properties are even being condemned in this process because they become unhealthy and unsafe to live in. Residential construction projects for [roofing, siding, and windows] life-cycles are now at a historic low point averaging only 8-12 yrs. before needing complete replacement or major costly repairs. Even newly built homes are requiring large, premature investments in replacement projects for new roofing, siding, and windows as early as 10 years or less after they were built.
HUGE RISK TO REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONALS
Both buyer & seller agents, real estate professional offices, as well as home inspectors are increasingly caught in expensive and costly litigation involving huge unexpected costs when construction defects reveal themselves years after the real estate transactions because there was a failure to identify and disclose building envelope issues or moisture infiltration. Failure to identify a failing building envelope’s integrity can cost “Tens of Thousands” of dollars to remedy and involve expensive, time consuming litigation. Because of this, the courts continue to support the idea that “All real estate professionals” are and should be increasingly liable and responsible for any negligence around proper pricing, evaluation and condition reports for properties that cost new home buyers of existing or new-construction homes, unexpected large expenses within 5 years or less of a real estate transaction.
A GUARDIAN Inspection will determine what the status of the integrity is for an existing building’s envelope and what if any associated risks and costs will be necessary for remedy if moisture infiltration has occurred. The GUARDIAN report document becomes an integral component of the transaction for determining the real value of the property as well as eliminating any risk associated with failure to identify or disclose.
BUILDING ENVELOPE INSPECTION SERVICES
Pre-Sale Inspections
A Pre –Sale Inspection allows for the early determination of any potential issues with a properties building envelope integrity and can be an important aide in properly pricing the home in the market and helping to sell the home quickly without obstructions. Any building envelope issues that would delay or prevent the transaction from occurring can be detected and dealt with by the appropriate measures prior to investing any money or resources into marketing the property for sale. Appraisers and mortgage underwriters are now including a focus on “determining if / any moisture infiltration” into the building’s envelope has occurred. Because of this new risk awareness of moisture problems, many real estate transactions are getting delayed or cancelled when the property is flagged by the appraiser as a potential problem due to the lack of ability to get financed.
A Pre-Sale Inspection report protects both the Seller and the Sellers’ real estate agent from future litigation and qualifies as a full disclosure condition report document for the properties’ building envelope. Additionally, a GUARDIAN Pre-Sale Inspection report may increase both the asking price as well as the speed or velocity at which a sale can close. Properties that have some type of legitimate documentation as to the certainty of a properties’ condition can be marketed and sold at a higher asking price with little or no negotiation as to the established condition.
Condition of Sale Specialty Inspections
Specialty Inspections are typically required or requested on behalf of the buyers home inspector, real estate agent, appraiser, or the underwriting risk department of the potential buyers mortgage financing company because of suspect and potential moisture infiltration issues.
A GUARDIAN Specialty Inspection report protects both the buyer and the buyer’s real estate agent from completing the sale on a property that might be engulfed in future litigation and major costly repairs. Many times, a remedy for the flagged problem can be specified and used as a transparent negotiating factor to continue on and complete the sale of the property under full disclosure.
GENERAL PROPERTY ENVELOPE INSPECTION
A General Property Envelope Inspection provides an accurate evaluation and documentation of the current condition or defects in a building’s envelope. With this document, any diagnosed problems can then be projected and planned based on priority needs and used to get “educated quotes” from the right type of competent contractors for your actual needs.
Most Home Owners do not have the experience or expertise to evaluate their building’s envelope condition.
Home Improvement Industry Salesmen “ thrive” on the opportunity to take advantage of unknowingly naive home owners. These Salesman are notorious for pitching and pushing whatever the limited brands of products they sell as the “end-all be-all “ fix to the symptoms of the problems the home owner requested repaired or replaced. Home Improvement Salesmen are not focused on determining the actual cause of the problems and the proper specifications needed to permanently fix the problems. A Home improvement salesman’s only agenda is getting a sale by pushing the particular brand of product they sell as the fix to the problem. Because of this, many home owners get taken advantage of by relying on unqualified recommendations from the Salesmen that come to give them bids for improvements on their home, only to find out years later that the real cause of the problem was not actually fixed or that the fix that was done caused more extensive damage and is much worse and more costly to fix a second time. A GUARDIAN General Property building envelope inspection report gives the property owner the peace of mind and knowledge needed to stay in control of their properties needs and of ensuring the proper type of work is done on the property when the work is needed.
Types of Specialty Inspections:
Roof Envelope Inspections
Siding Envelope Inspections
Window Envelope Inspections
Ventilation Inspections
Full Building Envelope Inspections
Guardian is a building envelope consulting and full service turn-key construction firm with clients throughout South Eastern Wisconsin. Guardian specializes in building technology consulting and turn-key construction services for all types of buildings both residential and commercial. Our focus is on preventing and resolving problems related to building design, specifications, and construction. We are nationally recognized for our expertise in building envelope failures, moisture dynamics and construction defects inspections and investigations and our experience in successful construction remediation services.
16920 W Cleveland Ave.
New Berlin, WI 53151
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