Coatings - Viracon - Single Source Architectural Glass
Search
REQUEST SAMPLE

Coatings are thin layers of metal applied to glass to improve solar performance.

The first building façade coatings were reflective coatings and reduced solar heat gain by reflecting the sun’s energy away from the building.

Today, the most popular coatings are low-emissivity (Low-E). Coatings with low-emissivity properties have low heat transfer properties and higher light transmission than reflective coatings.

Viracon offers a broad selection of both reflective and Low-E coatings. Our coatings can be applied to clear, low iron, mid iron, or tinted glass substrates. In addition, printed patterns can be applied to the same surface as the coating for excellent solar performance and appearance.

 

The specific coating needed for a given project is typically dictated by a required solar performance or a desired appearance. Viracon’s Product Search simplifies the process of selecting specific glass coating and color combinations.

 

Surface Designation

When describing glass products there are industry standard recommended surface designations. Each ply of glass has two surfaces. The surface facing the exterior of the building is referred to as surface #1, the back of this glass ply is surface #2. For glass units with multiple glass plies, there could be 6 or more surfaces. Shown here are a few examples:

Surface Designation explained

For cooling dominated buildings, the best solar performance is achieved when the coating is applied to the #2 surface, therefore Viracon coatings are located on the #2 surface.

Viracon Product Descriptions

Viracon glass products have a primary description and a detailed description. The primary description includes an alphanumeric code for each coated glass product. The code describes the exterior glass substrate and the coating.

The first portion of the code represents the coating family. Any coating family with the letter “E” in the code is a Viracon Low-E coating and those without an “E” are Viracon Reflective Coatings. Within each family, the available coatings are identified by their nominal light transmittance. If the coating has 4 digits, the last two digits represent the SHGC.

For additional details regarding Viracon’s Product Descriptions and nomenclature, see Products.

Coating Availability by Product Configuration

Coatings Matrix Chart 2

Coating Availability for Laminated Configuration

Coatings Laminated Chart 2-01