Window Dressing Tips for Saving Money on Your Summer Energy Bill

There’s a lot to love about Sydney’s warm weather – enjoying the beaches, dining al fresco, the outdoor festivals and markets. One unfortunate downside, however, is having to turn up your home’s air conditioning to keep the indoors cool and clocking up the price on your summer energy bill. Instead of relying heavily on your home’s air conditioning and electric fans to keep your home from overheating in the summer, a useful mechanism is to use window dressing to save money on your energy bill and to keep your home more comfortable.  Below you will find some window dressing tips that will help guide you through on saving money on your next energy bill. 

Keep Your Sydney Blinds or Shutters Closed  

One of the easiest ways to keep your home cooler is to simply keep your blinds, shutters or curtains closed. As much as 30 percent of unwanted summer heat gain comes through your windows. Everything you can do to keep them shaded, from window coverings to outdoor shade with awnings and plants, will help to lower your indoor temperatures – and your energy bill.  

Use Blockout Blinds or Curtains  

To keep out the sun, use window dressings that will block out some of the sun’s infrared energy. Blockout fabric is opaque. It, as the name implies, blocks out some of the UV rays, preventing the sun from ever streaming in and overheating your home. At Best Deal Shutters & Blinds, we have roller blinds and panel blinds made from a special Blockout fabric in a variety of colours and patterns. You can enjoy the aesthetic you want for your home, whilst keeping your interior cooler.  

Choose Reflective Colours for the Exterior of Your Window Dressing  

Another way to keep your home cooler and to reduce your energy bill is to opt for reflective colours to face the sun. Darker colours like eggplant and purples, dark greys and reds will absorb more of the sun’s heat, which will then radiate into your home. Lighter colours, like whites, creams, beige and pastels will reflect more UV energy, causing more of the sun’s heat to bounce off of your window.  

Simply putting a white plastic backing on the back of your window dressing can reduce your solar heat gain by as much as 33 percent. Reflective blinds, fully shut, can reduce heat gain by 45 percent. If you don’t have a light-coloured set of blinds up, consider putting a white or cream set of roller blinds behind your other window covering – for example ivory-coloured roller blinds layered with a set of drapes offer an elegant aesthetic – and optimal summer window insulation. You can also choose reversible shades, which are light on one side and dark on the other. These can be switched with the seasons to maximise your home’s energy efficiency.  

The right window dressing can make your home more efficient – and more attractive. Learn more about the different shutters and blinds you can use to improve the comfort of your Sydney home. Get in touch with us today for a free consultation.