Sliding glass windows in an open space: plain or treated glass?

Question

The plan is to place sliding glass windows on one side of a bridge connecting two buildings near the Arabian Sea in Mumbai.

I attach three photos of the bridge area. One shows both sides of the bridge, one is east facing, and one is west facing towards the Arabian Sea.

The windows are going to go into the west facing area, which currently has plastic sheets covering it.

As you can see, the east facing side is open. Also, we plan for a couple of the west facing sliding windows to contain wire mesh for ventilation. So I am wondering if it makes sense to use something like Solar Control glass (or similar) on the west side, or not. Or should just plain glass be used?

My feeling is that something like Solar Control glass, which controls the sun heating up the interior, or some other kind of glass to trap UV rays (like low-E glass) only makes sense in an enclosed space, and does not make sense in a passage which is open to the outside. But input is welcome.

Answer 1

Having an opening in your walkway to the exterior (we call that a “breezeway” where I live in the U.S.) only affects the solar heat build up if there is a breeze. Without a breeze to purge the air, the room will heat up and become uncomfortable.

Where you live, I’d definitely use tinted solar glass (like Solar Bronze double pane thermal glass.) If you use any type tinted solar glass, it should be double pane, because the glass is “coated” with the special treatment and could be scratched off if left exposed on one side.

Also, remember to have the glass made of “safety glass” (tempered or laminated) if it’s close to the floor or close to a door. (Here in U.S. it has to be safety glass if it’s within 18” of floor, 12” of a doorway, plus other special conditions.) I’d check with your local building department for current requirements.

Answer 2

As your window is East-West facing you definitely need solar control glass to protect you from glare and heat. Also you said its an unobstructed view, you must be having glare problem between 8-10am and 5-6:30pm so using an moderate VLT glass is must while you consider solar control. Using tinted glass will add color rendering in vision so need to choose neutral glass. I agree with Lee to use safety glass so accidental breakages are less harmful.