4 Affordable Window Treatments To Reduce Energy Spending
Windows are designed to allow light into your home, but they can quickly become an energy vacuum, especially if poorly maintained. Installing new, energy-efficient windows can drastically reduce your energy spending, but the installation costs is often too high for many homeowners. Luckily, there are many tools you can use to help prevent some heat transfer through the windows. Check out these four affordable window treatments that will reduce energy spending.
Low-E Window Film Coverings
Large, spacious windows are popular among home buyers because they allow natural light to fill the home. However, the more light a window allows to enter, the more heat that beats down on the glass, heating the air inside the home. Energy-efficient windows are specially designed with a low-E coating that blocks some light waves. Luckily, you don't have to get energy-efficient windows to reap this benefit because you can purchase low-E films to cover existing windows.
The benefit of these low-E film coverings is that they only block some invisible rays: UV rays. This means you get less heat transferring through the window without sacrificing light. As an added benefit, because the films block UV rays, you also protect yourself and your belongings from the harsh effects of UV radiation, such as fading, chipping, etc.
Blackout and Regular Roller Shades
Blackout roller shades are another option to use in conjunction with or instead of low-E window film coverings. With these types of shades, you get the benefit of traditional, slotted shades without the disadvantages, such as dust. As the name suggests, blackout roller shades block out sunlight. This allows them to work much like low-E window coverings, except they block all light.
One reason buyers choose roller shades over other window coverings is because they are easy to use. This allows you to seamlessly transition from open to close without much fuss, which is especially important during the colder months, when you want to let light enter during the day. Roller shades also come in non-blackout options, which can allow some light to enter through the shade.
Insulated Drapes
Insulated drapes are another option to use in place of roller shades, and they can be used to keep heat inside the home as well. Like shades, insulated drapes help block some of the light from entering the rest of the home, which keeps the temperature low. However, the insulation also blocks heat that transfers through the glass. The drapes trap the heat so it doesn't increase the temperature inside the home.
During the winter, you can use insulated drapes to prevent drafts. If a window pane gets cold, the warm air inside the home may cool. This creates drafts, which is why you may need to turn up the heat during the winter. If you keep your insulated drapes closed during the winter, the drapes act as a barrier between the warm air and cold window.
Window Awnings
Depending on the location of your windows, awnings may be an excellent choice to help block some sunlight during the summer. During the summer, the sun often sits higher in the sky, which allows awnings to block much of the direct light from hitting your windows. During the colder months, the sun usually sits lower in the sky, so more light enters, which naturally heats your home.
Typically, awnings are best on windows facing the south and west. Having awnings on these windows may lower the natural heat gain in your home by up to 77 percent during the summer months. Depending on where you live, retractable awnings may be a better choice. They give you the same benefits as non-retractable awnings, but you can adjust them to allow as much sun as you want to enter, regardless of season.
If you are ready to reduce energy spending each month, consider installing one or more window treatments. They may block some light and even keep the interior warmer during the winter. For more information about roller shades or another window treatment option, contact a specialist in your area today.
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