Anodised aluminium doors and windows: your most sustainable choice
Planning a sustainable, energy-efficient new home or renovation is both exciting and challenging, and it’s never too early to explore your glazing options.
A visit to a UK manufacturer to see and feel products in person is an essential step, and at ODC we always welcome prospective clients and their architects to our showrooms for this essential fact-finding process.
Here in our showroom, you can consider a range of window specifications including sightlines and panel sizes, U values, thresholds, security and details like handles, as well as take a factory tour to see our product quality audit in action.
Your architect will be able to confirm that windows and doors made from anodised aluminium make green sense and will be a real asset in helping you achieve your sustainability and efficiency goals.
Why aluminium?
Aluminium is a unique construction material: lightweight, versatile, resistant to corrosion and with an attractive modern silvery sheen and a long, prestigious design history.
At the 1951 Festival of Britain, visitors saw the world’s largest aluminium dome, the Dome of Discovery. It measured over 110 metres in diameter and had purlins, roof sheets and canopy all in aluminium.
Its durability and performance mean today aluminium has many architectural applications including sliding doors, bifold doors, windows and curtain glass walls.
Anodised aluminium doors and windows: the most sustainable glazing option
Anodised aluminium is one of the most sustainable materials to use in any building project and an environmentally responsible choice. Its superb corrosion and abrasion resistance means your anodised frames will last, withstanding the elements and requiring little maintenance.
What is anodised aluminium?
Anodising is an electrochemical process that gives the aluminium a durable, corrosion-resistant, oxide finish. When we specify aluminium door and window frames for exposed or coastal locations, we recommend that they be manufactured from anodised metal.
It’s not a surface coating like paint or plating but is fully integrated with the aluminium substrate. It cannot chip or peel and yet has a porous structure which is the ideal base for colour coatings and other finishes. It’s ideal for marine and city environments because it’s resistant to chlorides and sulphates.
Alternative mill finish for your aluminium frames
ODC door and window frames are usually powder-coated in our standard black, white or anthracite grey, but customers can choose a colour from the 200 plus RAL colour chart. Alternatively, you can opt for a mill finish and enjoy the natural, unpainted surface of aluminium. It has a semi-dull, semi-reflective appearance and is yet another option when looking to minimise your project’s resource footprint.
How is anodised aluminium made?
ODC doors and window frames are made from lengths of extruded aluminium. The aluminium is heated to 400 – 500° which makes it malleable, but not liquid, amazingly! Next, it’s extruded through a die to create a shape – in our case, door and window frame profiles. The lengths are then air or water-cooled.
Anodisation is an additional stage at this point. Our frame lengths are submerged in an acid electrolyte bath and passed through an electric current to create a matte or bright silver finish. Finally, the anodised lengths are coated with the chalky polyester powder coating.
You can find out more about how aluminium doors and windows are made in this quick ‘Behind the Scenes at ODC‘ read.
Recycling aluminium door and window frames
We recognise that home renovation and refurbishment can inevitably mean replacement glazing. New doors and windows will have performance specifications to reduce your energy consumption and designs which add to the quality of life at home. The good news is that your old glazing doesn’t have to go to landfill.
Members of the Glass and Glazing Federation (GGF), FENSA-approved installers and BFRC registered manufacturers like ODC Glass can access free aluminium recycling services.
Alutrade’s aluminium collection service is a key element for future decarbonisation of the glass industry. They handle around 11,000 tonnes of extrusion scrap every year from all sources and in all forms, including offcuts from aluminium fabricators and door and window frames from installers and construction companies.
Talk to our team about sustainable glazing for your project, or even better, visit our newly constructed Show House, a whole house model of the latest high-performance glazing designs suitable for the most sustainable plans.
