The relationship between retrofitted double glazed windows and occupant wellbeing

Around a third of heat loss in residential buildings in the northern hemisphere, and cooler climates occurs through windows. Conversely in hotter climates excessive heat gain through windows adds to energy use. As window costs have reduced, buildings have been designed with ever greater areas of glass; and ever greater amounts of energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. In Australia, this situation is compounded further as the average size of residential buildings has also grown. One answer is to retrofit thermally efficient double glazed windows; another might be to reduce window size. Either option is a very tangible change to an existing building to reduce environmental impact. However, windows provide views, which can have a positive impact on human health and wellbeing through exposure to nature and sunlight. The question is how do we balance these conflicts; and further could the retrofit of double glazed units have other positive impacts on occupant behaviour? This conceptual paper presents a theoretical model, which attempts to explain how retrofit double-glazed windows can impact occupant wellbeing.