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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.

Solar Shades