We have a 2 story 1930 Dutch Colonial revival - PO had alum triple tracks put in top floor and wood storms for bottom The windows to the home are 6/1 config yet the storms were 2/2 - odd - They had hanging hooks over each window that have not worked in yrs due to the windows not fitting properly. each Fall/Spring we had to put them up/down - very heavy & tedious task - dh put really long screws in casements to make them stay up - summer we put in the sort of beat up 1/2 screens We just had the ext of the home painted -painters removed all storms - we realized the cost to rehab the storms (strip, chaulk, paint) & screens would be quite a bit of $$$ The old alum triple tracks were in rough shape - So I did a lot of research - including getting quote from Adams Architecture - however they use pine - and they did not come painted - My other concern w/custom wood storms was I'm finding wood today is far less superior than old wood & too green - I've had so much shrinkage w/newly installed crown molding etc that I did not want the risk w/custom windows which when they shrink would cause signicant loss of energy value The Best triple track storm is made by Harvey - they cost more than the off the rack storms but they do have the market cornered w/the efficiency rating -link below no I'm not in anyway affliated - just lots of research led me there The good news was also when they were installed our detail oriented painter did not notice they were up - This guy notices everything! good luck Here is a link that might be useful: harvey

You are way to hung up on glass thickness and dead air space, when what you should be focusing on is the laminate thickness. A laminate thickness of .90 mil is going to give you greater sound abatement than a .30 mil. As I said before, you need to ask what the OITC is. There are other factors that determine STC other than glass thickness or the size of the gap between 2 panes of glass. Varying the thickness of the glass is also a factor in sound abatement. Again, you need to find out the OITC and quit driving youraelf crazy trying to understand something that has little consequence. If the salesman continues to dodge your questions then tell him to give you a call once he finds out what it is and in the meantime, find another company that has a salesman who knows what he is selling and can answer your questions. This guy you have now sounds more interested in selling you something than in solving a problem. Also make sure you get the OITC and not the STC as the STC in your situation is not as important.

I just moved to my new home (built in 1958 with lathe and plaster walls and stucco exterior) and to my dismay, find the traffic much more intense than expected. I have small truck noise, and flowmaster muffler noise. No one keeps within the 25 mph speed limit, but go more like 40. Thus more traffic noise comes into the house than I thought. I had the installer of sound proof windows come out and talk to me about their product. While is sounds like a great concept, I have such a large picture window, it would be difficult to remove the insert to clean or repair the permanent window. Which is double pane aluminum frame about 15 years old now. I have looked at the Quiet line windows. They look impressive. I would get one with one laminated pane of glass and two regular panes. The rep recommended a rating of 41, so as to not notice the noise that naturally comes in thru the walls. Am wondering what you think of that idea? It is a small house, and will probably put these windows in all the bedrooms too, just to help quiet thing down through out the house. Will the 41 STC with one pane laminated keep the truck and flowmaster rumble down enough to warrant the trouble and cost? Thanks for any info you can give! Mary V

Oberon, thank you for responding. I really appreciate your input. FYI - The Andersen rep and customer service both tell me that the thickness of their lites is proprietary information. Laminated windows are a strain on the budget with a price almost twice that of standard windows, but it appears that I have no choice if I want to reduce noise. Would a triple pane window, with EVEN panes, take the place or even come close to the noise reduction of a double pane anealed/laminated window? I am wondering if it is possible to make an educated guess as to the STC/OITC that I need. Here is my story: My house, built in early 1050s, is 200-300 feet from a local 4-lane highway. The hwy has a posted speed limit of 40 MPH (plenty of cars go 50 MPH) and has lights which slow traffic down. There are bushes between us, and a neighbor's house partially blocks the hwy side. My windows are the originals and they do a minimally acceptable job of blocking the traffic noise from my sensitive ears. Most of the windows are wood, double hung, single pane, covered by storm windows that are closed all year. The den, which is the most exposed room, has a wall of single pane casement windows in steel frames. Each sash is a steel frame/grill that divides the glass into individual rectangles of approx 10" x 12". The den casements are painted shut and covered by storm windows all year. In the winter, there is a draft coming through and they are often wet from condensation. As part of a major home renovation, I am replacing all the original windows with casements and would like to reduce the noise more. Can you take an educated guess as to a minimum STC/OITC rating that I should look for? I am considering Anderson 400 Series or A series casements, and using the laminated windows in the more sensitive rooms - den and master bedroom. I am leaning strongly toward the A Series for two reasons: 1) The STC/OITC ratings of the A Series standard IGU are 27/23 vs the 400 Series 26/22. The ratings of the A Series .060 lami is 33/29 vs the 400 Series 31/27. 2) I visited my neighbor’s house and stood in front of his standard 400 Series casements to get a “feel” for the noise reduction and, while I did not pick up individual car noise, there was a non-stop whirring sound. I visited a friend who lives further down the same highway to get a feel for his 400 Series casements. The same whirring sound. There was once a discussion in this forum about an increase of sound in windows with equal lites. See http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2586644/noisy-andersen-windows. I suspect that my friends are having exactly this problem. I am hoping that the A Series, with a different construction and a higher STC/OITC rating, will provide better noise reduction and no whirring. Oberon, other readers, please share your thoughts and experiences. Thank you.