Sun Shade
Sun Shade
Solar Shades Can Significantly Reduce Energy Costs
Saving money on home energy bills can be a challenge when hot, sunny days make us dependent on air conditioning. According to Consumer Reports, “Americans spend more than $22 billion a year…to cool their homes with air conditioning” (July 2008). Lowering our dependence on the air conditioner is possible with the easy and cost efficient addition of solar window shades, also known as sun shades, to our windows and doors.
Solar shades are very different from typical window shades and offer numerous advantages beyond lowering home cooling costs. Sun shades are manufactured with a uniquely efficient, breathable fabric that allows light and air to filter through. Sun shades are not black-out shades, but they do reduce the amount of direct sunlight that streams in through a home’s windows, patio doors, and sliding glass doors. Unlike interior window shades, solar shades are installed on the outside of a home’s windows or doors. This prevents up to 75% of sunlight from penetrating the window and significantly lessens the heat transfer. Solar shades can reduce a room’s temperature by up to 25%, making the indoors more comfortable, even on the hottest summer days.
Sun shades not only make our homes cooler, thereby saving us money on air conditioning costs, they protect our indoor furnishings from the destructive effects of the sun’s ultra-violet (UV) rays. Over time, UV rays will discolor, fade, and crack the various materials we keep in our homes. Fabrics, furniture, upholstery, carpets, paintings, and more are negatively affected by exposure to sunlight. Damage increases over time, too, so the more sun exposure our home interiors experience, the more our property will suffer the repercussions. The specialized fabric in solar shades can block up to 90% of the sun’s UV rays and protect our interior spaces.
In addition to being breathable and able to block significant amounts of UV rays, sun shades are simple to keep up; they are weather resistant, mildew resistant, and can easily be cleaned with mild soap and water. Sun shades offer the benefit of privacy, as well. The breathable fabric allows us to see out of the windows and doors, but neighbors and passers-by are unable to see into the home.
Reduced spending on air conditioning costs would be reason enough to install solar window shades on our homes, but the additional benefits described here — protection of interior furnishings from UV rays, easy maintenance, and privacy — make sun shades a practical choice for home improvement.
About the Author
Trey Collier is owner of BackyardCity.com, North America’s finest Outdoor Casual Living Store, designed and created to help fashion outdoor living spaces. Since 2001, BackyardCity.com has offered internet customers quality outdoor living products, including energy saving Solar Shades, at very reasonable prices.
Do you need a car sun shade if you have tinted windows?
I have the car seat in the middle of the back seat. So maybe just one for the rear window?
I am getting things ready for my baby’s arrival (I am due in 5 weeks). I live in Arizona where it’s hot and always sunny. I have tinted windows on my car. Should I get a car sun shade as well?
I had it done after I purchased the car. It was the darkest available (other than limo tint) that is legal in my State. I don’t know the percentages though…darn!
How dark is your tint? Is it factory tint or is it after-market?
I have a small SUV and my front windows are 20% and the back windows are 5% (This is the amount of visible light let through the window after the tint is applied). I do not need to use sun shades, but my tint is very dark and rejects about 65% of solar energy and 99% UV rays. So my kids are not bothered by the sun at all.
I had a Impala when I had my first child that had factory tinted windows and needed to use sun shades on all back windows: side and rear. Most factory tint is 50%.
It may seem weird that I know this but my hubby does a lot of custom work on vehicles and tint is one thing he has done a lot of so when we applied tint to my SUV we chose to use the darker tint so we did not need to use sun shades…those things are a pain in the ass most of the time! LOL! They never seem to stay put, they were always falling off or rolling up, flying off the window…slightly dangerous! LOL!
Hope this helps!
***I would not buy them right away and see how your tint is for blocking the sun, if it’s sufficient than you did not spend money on un-needed shades. If you need them they are easy to find and you can always put the sun canopy up on the seat to keep the sun out of your daughter’s face until you have time to run to the store to get some!
Soneva Patio Sun Shade Retractable Awnings