Energy-efficient blinds, also known as thermal blinds, utilise special types of fabric that provide insulation and prevent solar heating. As the UK energy crisis continues, we explore how energy-efficient blinds can help to optimise room temperatures and reduce buildings’ energy consumption.
Traditional blinds with a standard fabric can limit the amount of sunlight entering a room, thereby reducing solar heating to some extent. Energy-efficient blinds are specifically designed to prevent solar heating in the summer and provide more insulation in the winter. As a result, they deliver better results than traditional blinds do.
Solar reflective blinds
Over the summer months, air-conditioned offices will suffer record running costs, leading many businesses to review options to become less dependent on air conditioning.
Solar reflective blinds are equipped with special fabrics that provide solar shading which limits the amount of light that passes through the fabric. This can make a big difference to offices that suffer from long exposure to sunlight because the heat from the sun doesn’t pass through the blind. Instead, it is trapped between the window and the blind.
Cassette blinds are especially good at trapping warm air between the fabric and the window because cassette blinds have side channels which stop the light and warm air from entering the room.
At Yewdale, we manufacture made to measure blinds using a wide range of fabrics which offer different levels of solar shading. For instance, our Roe white back fabric is available in two openness percentages, letting either 1% or 3% of light through. This helps to limit the amount of sunlight entering a room and the heating potential that light has.
White back fabrics achieve a much higher level of solar reflectance because white naturally attracts much less heat from the sun than other colours. White back fabrics ensure even less energy is needed to maintain an optimal indoor temperature.
Thermal blinds
Double-glazed windows have revolutionised buildings and reduced the amount of heat that escapes by over 50%, but despite this, heat is still lost through double-glazed windows. Adding a blind to a window is a fast way to preserve more internal heat and help resist the temptation to turn up the heating.
Blinds provide superior insulation when compared to curtains because they fit closer to the window and don’t have a gap in the middle. Keeping blinds closed when the weather is cold places an added layer of protection between the cold window and the room. Cassette blinds with side channels prevent gaps in the sides of the blinds, minimising the warm air that reaches the window.
Energy-efficient blinds provide a significant advantage because they have a specially treated fabric that prevents heat from escaping through the glass during cold months. Our range of blackout fabric blinds provides exceptional insulation, helping to keep heating costs down when it’s cold.
Summary
Heat reflectance and insulating properties are key to reducing energy bills, which is a key talking point as energy costs continue to rise. Our energy-efficient blinds prevent heat loss during winter and stop sunlight in its tracks, keeping rooms cooler in summer. Our blinds and fabrics come with a lifetime warranty, making them a smart investment for any business looking to reduce its running costs for the foreseeable future.
To speak to a member of our team about our energy-efficient blinds, please get in touch.
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