Double Glazed Units with Built-In Venetian Blinds - Failures Can Be Avoided

Robert Knudsen

Double glazed units with built-in Venetian blinds are well suited to be used for adjustable solar protection. Using the blinds makes it possible to vary direct solar transmission between zero and the normal amount of transmission found in traditional double glazed units. Units with integral Venetian blinds have been used in Denmark for several years but some projects with failed units have brought the principle into disrepute.

The Danish Technological Institute has analysed these units and found different types of failure, all of which could have been avoided during manufacture. Mechanical failure and failures caused by release of chemical solvents were found. This article analyses the failures and proposes methods of avoiding them in the future.

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