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kelly, glazing is either the glass or clear plastic that you put in windows or the act of putting it in. The glass can also be put into assemblies and the whole assembly can be installed or replaced.

Insulation is usually just a method to put a "dead air" space in. The movement of heat goes quickly in dense materials--wood, glass, metals, for example. Softer and more porous materials, as long as they don't let air go right through, are usually better insulators.

OK, there are different kinds of insulation to consider about windows. When windows are installed into a house, a space is left for them during rough framing. The window unit assembly is put into the space but this leaves a gap between the framing and the window where air can move pretty freely. To save the loss of heat (Cold doesn't exist. Cold is the absense of heat.), you can put something in the space to stop air from moving. Fiberglass insulation and low expansion foam that is made for this are your basic choices.

As far as the part of the window unit that you can see through, you have to add dead air space there too, if you want to save heat and money. Windows that come with double or triple panes of glass are a good option but these can't be installed easily and at low cost. Storm windows as separate units are one option but with significant cost in an add-on situation and varying efficiency. Adding a sheet of plastic on the inside of your window opening is something that some people do but it isn't great for a lot of installations or situations. The only way to really get better insulation for the part of the window that you see through it to replace--if you really need to--the window assemblies with new windows.

The operating area of windows, where they open, is also a point of heat loss and the age and design of this can not normally be easily changed. If you have a historically important house, you will want to be careful about your new windows (as a group, called your finestration) match your old house.

So you need to determine what you have and what you need and want to change. I would not do much with windows at this time of the year in most of the country. The time to fix them is when you don't need them as much. This is the time to go to home shows and see what is available. You will get some good information and a lot of talk. Doing some homework before you go to these will be a help in determining which is which. I suggest that you look at the websites of the major national window manufacturers--Pella, Anderson, Marvin--for more information.

Henry in MI