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Everyone is talking about higher energy costs for this winter. Using proper window treatments is one way to combat this problem. New window treatments are a good economical choice and they can help beautify your home for those long, cold winter months spent indoors.
Windows and doors are the primary way that things move in and out of your house. They allow you to see out as well as allow people to see in. They also allow air to move in and out of your house (even when they are closed). Light, sound, and thermal energy pass though them as well. Windows and doors, therefore, are highly important elements of your home’s architecture. Let’s address the insulating characteristics of window treatments.
Even though today’s double-pained, gas-filled windows are highly efficient and provide better insulation than the windows of the past, they could still use some help from window treatments. On a cold day go and place your hand on the glass. Does it feel cold? It does, doesn’t it? Thermal energy, heat from the inside and cold from the outside, are being exchanged on this surface. This means that the air inside your house is getting cold as it passes over the window.
The proper window treatment can offer help here. Lined draperies, cellular shades, or Roman shades are all excellent choices. They help the same way that fiberglass insulation works in your walls. They trap air. Lined draperies and Roman shades create an air pocket between the window and your room inside. In the case of cellular shades the air pocket is created inside the shade. Buying cellular shades with multiple layers of honeycombs can increase their insulating value.
Exchanging thermal energy with the outside isn’t always bad, though. Letting the sun shine in during the day can warm the house as well as lift your spirits. So, make sure that you buy something with a good quality lifting or traverse mechanism that won’t break from daily use. If you are building a new home, remodeling, or putting on an addition now is a great time to be thinking about motorization. Motorized shades can be wired in and programmed to raise and lower automatically to maximize energy efficiency.
Another important factor to consider is the color and style of your window treatments. Just think, you are going to be spending a lot more time looking at those same windows and walls over the next 3 to 4 months. Introducing some warm colors and new style to the room could be just what the doctor ordered. It is well known that psychology plays a large role in our health and well being.
Colors such as yellow, orange, and red cheer you up and make you feel warmer so that you can fend off the winter blah’s. So now is an excellent time to think about redecorating to breathe some new life into a tired décor. New window treatments can be both beautiful and practical and are worth considering when taking on those indoor projects for the winter months.
Courtesy of Cindy Anderson, V2K Window Fashions
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