Window coverings can reduce loss of energy through the windows, they can also lower heating and cooling bills for you and improve the comfort of your home. Approximately 30percent of a home’s heating energy is lost via windows. During the cooling seasons, about 70 percent of sunlight which falls on standard double-pane windows enters to be converted into heat. A lot of window treatments will result in energy savings. The exact savings, however, depends on the type of attachment, the season of the year, how the attachment is used and the climate.Cellularshades are a type of window treatment that is used to block or filter light just like Roma shades but they also insulate windows to save energy. The cell sizes usually vary in every type of shades and these are the cells used to hold trapped air and create a barrier between the surface of the window and the room.  

Doors, besides windowscontribute to about one-third of the total thermal loss according to the Natural Resources Defense Council.When air in the rooms comes into contact with windows it is cooled or warmedand by convection this air circulates around the room. The cell shapes in theblinds as mentioned earlier then do the work of trapping the air. Cellularshades can be constructed as double cell, single cell or triple cell shades.  The single cell fabric has an R-value between 0.28 and 0.44 while the double cell fabric has a metric R-value between 0.49 and 0.70. A 6 mm thick single pane window has a metric R-value of 0.16.

R-Value and Windows

R-value is the measure of a give material’s resistance to heat flow and how it can resist heat or lose heat gain. It indicates that when a cellular shade has a higher R-Value, it will provide better insulation for your home.  Ordinary windows usually have an R-Value assigned to them with a typical window having an R-Value of anywhere from .9 to3.0. A modern home’s insulation has an R-Value in the low 40s. In cellular shades, he well-accepted range of R-Values for their cell shades is 2.0 to 5.0. On the low end of the range means that cellular shades more than double the insulation value in your windows. At the high end, they even more than quintuple this insulation value. This is what makes cellular shades the most energy efficient window coverings you will get in the market. They can be found in a variety of fabrics as mentioned and therefore the R-Value is entirely based on which type of fabric used.

In winter, warm air from inside the home tries to escape through the windows and in summer the sun heats up your home and the rays flow through windows. Eventually, you will end up paying for all the extra energy consumption. Go make sure this does not happen, use cellular window treatments. Here is our quick guide to the energy saving effectiveness of cellular shades.

There are many factors that influence the R-Value of your windows including the process of installation, the type of material used for glazing, the number of layers of glass there are and the amount of air space between the glass layers of your windows.

Energy Saving Effectiveness of Cellular Shades

There are two numerical values that help you to easily compare the relative energy saving strengths of any kind of window treatment which are the R-Value and the Shading Coefficient. An example of a cellular shade with a high R-Value is the honeycomb cellular shade such as the Symphony line which has upper insulating values that can result into substantial energy savings year after year.

Shading coefficient is significant especially in hot weather. It is used to show the ability of a fabric to reduce heat flow from the outside through a window shade to inside the house. A shading coefficient of 0.35 means that 65 percent of the heat stays outside. During hot days, heat that comes in the house through window scan raise the room temperature by 15-20 degrees and result into an overworked air conditioner.  A lower one how ever translates into lees gain of heat, more reflected heat and lower cooling costs for you.

When selecting your blinds and shades there are two more comfort-factors to consider first, the light transmission, UV and the light transmission, Visible.  Light transmission UV may be invisible to the human eye but ultraviolet light that comes from the sun can fade wood floors, furniture and carpets after prolonged exposure. UV blockage ratings measure the ability of a fabric to prevent the harmful rays from passing through the shade. Light transmission Visible is the measure of the amount of light that pass through a shade that can be visible to the eye. When the value is low, then the shade will be more room darkening making it less likely for light to pass through it.

Cellular shades operating on side tracks can be the most effective at increasing the R-Value of windows, while those that open from both the top and bottom will allow you to most effectively control the amount of sunlight that enters the home. Other cellular shades aloe the option of automation. They allow the blind to open and close on a set schedule. This schedule can be optimized seasonally to reduce the loads of heating and cooling while at the same time maximizing natural light and the comfort of your home. 

Unlike window blinds that are made of hard materials, cellular shades are made of soft paper and clothlike material. Spun lace and bonded polyester are also used but other fabrics can also be used during the process of manufacture. Just like all blinds, cellular shades can reduce solar gain in the summer and provide enough darkness for you to sleep. They are also raised and lowered horizontally using a string. They are however also available in cordless form to avoid any incidents of child strangulation.

So if you are looking to bolster your home with beautiful custom window treatments, while also reducing their utility bill in the process, cellular shades are the best option above every other window treatment.

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