Add style to your house with window drapes. So when you’re looking for drapes and valance ideas for you house, you should consider both parts of it. Drapery websites and home inspiration magazines are great places to get ideas for what you want for your home. They can tell you which drapes are good at keeping out light or keeping in heat in the winter. And you’ll be able to see if they fit the style of your home. Depending on the house, you might want to decide between drapes or blinds for your windows. Both have their advantages and come in a variety of sizes and prices. If you don’t find something you want and you have money to spend, you can also consider buying drapes made to order. While it will take more time and money to order these, it might be worth it. In this case, you’ll know exactly what you’re getting. You’ll never fall in love with the color of the drapes just to find out that they don’t keep in any heat.
A home needs many things to be complete and comfortable to live in, from quality wall insulation to a leak-proof roof to good furniture and climate control. Windows, meanwhile, serve double duty as functional(looking outside and letting natural air in) and can be centerpieces of a room’s aesthetic. A window can be more than a pane of glass surrounded by a frame; window treatments can make a window beautiful, practical, and even money efficient. Motorized window blinds, good quality drapes, motorized window shades, and more can remake a window into something great.
Why Treat Windows?
To function, a window really only needs glass and its frame, but this bare bones assembly is not only boring to look at, but it can reduce a home’s energy efficiency, and thus cost the homeowner extra money over time. Sunlight can quickly warm up a room, even in cooler months, and this forces the air conditioner to keep turning back on to compensate. Something similar is true for winter; heat can leak from a house through the windows, which overworks the heating system. However, drapes and motorized blinds can fix this.
The Natural Resources Defense Council has stated that up to one third of a home’s thermal loss can happen due to windows and doors, and the overworked HVAC system racks up extra energy bills. However, drapes and blinds can prevent this, and the Attachments Energy Rating Council, or the AERC, has worked out the numbers. For example, roller shades installed on a single pane window can save a homeowner up to $180 per year due to controlling temperature levels from the sun, and cellular shades installed on a single pane window can save even more, somewhere between $280 and $470 each year. Overall, the AERC has found, window attachments can boost a window’s performance and up to 13% of a home’s annual energy use can be saved. Finally, drapes, too, can help save on heating and cooling bills. They can reduce a room’s heat loss by up to 10%, and drapes can be both affordable and stylish to hang over a window.
Installing Automated Window Blinds and More
Window treatments can be surprisingly easy to install, and very convenient once they are in place. Some of them will need to be plugged into a wall socket with a cord, so socket and window placement will have to be factored into the plan. Others require batteries, so they can be used anywhere, but the batteries will have to be replaced every so often. Regardless of the energy source, automatic blinds and shades not only effectively block sun rays that heat up rooms, but can ensure privacy as well. These blinds can be controlled with a remote control or wall panel, which may be especially convenient if the window’s blinds are heavy and the person is petite and couldn’t handle big blinds alone. Automatic shades can achieve a similar effect, rolling down a screen that blocks spying neighbors and sunlight alike.
Drapes are not electrical, but they can still block sun rays in summer or keep warm air inside the home during winter, and their material and color allow them to fit any room’s decor with ease. For a cleaner and more minimalist look, they can hang off the floor, or for a more exquisite look, they can be a few inches longer than necessary and be semi-bundled on the floor while they hang.