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Marinn Panes always reduce condensation in well-sealed, dry windows.

A little moist room air is caught between Marinn Pane and glass during installation and this can cause misting on very cold days. This usually disappears as the day warms and doesn't affect the thermal properties of Marinn Panes - they are still reducing heat loss as intended. 

Popping out Marinn Panes to wipe away any moisture build up occasionally is straightforward. If it has to be done regularly, this normally just indicates that windows need a new coat of paint.

To be suitable for our Marinn Panes, a window’s frame must meet the glass at 90 degrees and be at least 12mm deep where it does so.

The windows need to be rectangular. We can't manufacture Marinn Panes for curved windows, windows with curved corners or windows with different angles (i.e. triangular windows).

Marinn Panes are usually far more affordable than alternative upgrades, but financial support is still often available. Marinn Panes count as secondary glazing for grant or interest free loan support. 

In Scotland, Home Energy Scotland provide interest free loans to help with the cost. Currently, customers require an initial Energy Performance Certificate that suggests secondary glazing is appropriate, an updated EPC after the gecko panes have been installed, and your Marinn Panes must be professionally installed (i.e. financial support is not available if the Gecko Panes are self-installed). See the website above, or give us a call to discuss this further. 

Other areas often also have support for secondary glazing. We suggest the Energy Saving Trust website as the first port of call for establishing what support is available in your area.

A Marinn Pane simply traps a 12mm layer of air beside the single glazed pane. This acts as an insulating layer, cutting heat loss by up to 50%.  

The rate of heat loss of a surface is measured  using "U-values." The impact of Marinn Panes can be verified using Pilkington's free U-value calculator (here, registration required), or try this simpler one.

These show that a single glazed pane has a U-value of 5.8 w/m2˚C, and that a double glazed pane with a 12mm air filled cavity (equivalent to having a Marinn Pane installed) has a U-value of  2.9 w/m2˚C, which is half as much.

The calculators also show that the thickness of the second sheet of 'glass' (plastic in the case of Marinn Panes) makes almost no difference to the U-value. Hence Marinn Panes achieve a near 50% heat reduction using just 2mm thick clear plastic. 

Marinn Panes drastically reduce condensation because they raise the temperature of the pane such that the dew point is less often reached.  Noise transmission is also reduced. 

Note that Marinn Panes do not improve leaky, ill-fitting frames. Draught proofing, if necessary, is best undertaken as an additional measure. See the relevant section of our website for a low cost DIY approach to this. 

Research by the Building Research Establishment suggests that heat loss through a typical timber framed single glazed window should be reduced by nearly half (48%). The window U-value is reduced from 5.8 to 2.8. See section 2.3 of the report available here. 

Heat loss through a double glazed window is also reduced if Marinn Panes are installed. A detailed analysis has not been undertaken, but glazing U-value calculators suggest that the reduction should be of the order of 30%, from around 2.9 to around 2.1. 

Note that Marinn Panes will not improve ill-fitting or leaky panes. Draught-proofing, if necessary, should be undertaken as a separate measure. See the relevant section of our website for an easy, low cost DIY approach to draught proofing. 

Although an innovative form of it, Marinn Panes meet the official definition of Secondary Glazing for RDSAP purposes (as per section 2.16 of this document). Domestic Energy Assessors should record them as such when calculating EPC uplifts. 

Analysis by the Building Research Establishment suggests that installing Marinn Panes in single glazed properties could result in an EPC rating uplift of up to 3 points.

The uplift achieved should be only moderately less than that delivered by typical replacement timber sash windows (with centre pane U-values of around 2.1), at a fraction of the cost and disruption of replacement windows and preserving the historic building fabric.  

See section 3 of the BRE report available here. Note that actual EPC impacts depend upon a range of factors.  

Marinn Panes can also be used to improve the performance of older double glazing, but the reduction in heat loss is less than in the case of single glazing.

Yes!

Customers consistently advise that Marinn Panes reduce panes 'noticeably', and feedback is generally very positive regarding the impact of Marinn Panes in terms of sound reduction.

We do not yet have formal testing of noise reduction, which means we can't identify a specific noise reduction estimate in Decibels. However, we're not sure how meaningful a decibel figure would be for customers. Also, the degree of sound reduction depends upon a range of factors, so some customers may enjoy a greater impact than others. 

Also, Marinn Panes will not make a noisy room silent. What we can say is that Marinn Panes usually reduce noise to the extent that it goes from being a nuisance to acceptable or at least bearable. 

That depends upon a range of factors, including your type of heating system (gas, electric etc.) and its efficiency, how much you pay for gas or electricity, and the temperature to which, and how often, you heat rooms in which you install Marinn Panes.

However, as a general rule of thumb, in addition to the immediate comfort, emissions and condensation benefits of Marinn Panes, they should pay for themselves in 2-6 years in fairly normal circumstances. 

What we can say fairly confidently is that Marinn Panes will tend to pay for themselves around ten times faster than conventional double or secondary glazing. 

The difference, from a performance point of view, between conventional double glazing and Marinn Panes is that double glazing also uses "low-emissivity" glass and inert gas in the cavity to cut heat loss further.

In standard double glazing, these measures improve the U-value to about 1.8-2.0 W/m²°C from 2.9 W/m²°C, but this is an improvement of only about 15-20 percentage points. In other words, 80% of the benefit is achieved simply by trapping a layer of air, which is what Marinn Panes do.

Marinn Panes will prevent the inside glass surface of your window pane from becoming dirty.

To clean the Marinn Pane itself, ensure that you use a very soft cloth (micro fibre is best) to avoid scratching the acrylic.

A soap and water solution or general-purpose cleaning spray is best. Apply your cleaning solution sparingly to ensure that excess moisture can't penetrate into the cavity where it may cause misting.  

Avoid using glass cleaning products which contain ammonia, as these may damage the pane.

Single glazing is a terrible insulator, transmitting 5.8 watts of heat per square metre, per degree Celsius. That's five to ten times as much as a wall tends to, which is why single glazed windows feel so cold, and why they can be such a significant source of home heat loss. 

As cold single glazed panes cool the air next to them the air sinks, drawing warm air down from ceiling height, causing convection currents (draughts) and discomfort and raising heat loss.

When the glass temperature is below the “dew point”, the warm air convecting past the window condenses water onto the pane causing misting and dampness. 

If your home has several single glazed windows, it will raise your heating costs, and the emissions associated with heating your home, significantly.