Does window film keep the cold out?
skyb...@gmail.com
new ones. One alternative we're considering is putting down window
film. How effective is it at reducing heat loss? Does it block a lot
of natural light?
Rod Speed
skyb...@gmail.com wrote:
> We have single-pane windows, but we don't want to spend $10,000
> for new ones. One alternative we're considering is putting down
> window film. How effective is it at reducing heat loss?
Not very.
> Does it block a lot of natural light?
Yes.
John Weiss
> We have single-pane windows, but we don't want to spend $10,000
> for new ones. One alternative we're considering is putting down
> window film. How effective is it at reducing heat loss?
What kind of window film, and what kind of installation?
There are MANY window films, from cheap polyethylene that you tack/tape to the
frame as an attempt at a storm window, to self-adhesive films that you apply
directly to the glass to reduce radiant heat transfer.
If your old window frames are not well insulated and installed, you will not
see much benefit from any film. If the frames are tight, though, a heavy-grade
plastic in a "storm window" type installation will help somewhat. Without cold
wind and rain directly on your window glass, convective losses will be reduced.
> Does it block a lot of natural light?
Again, it depends on the type of film. Cheap polyethylene is only translucent,
so you won't be able to see well through the windows. The radiant barriers
block a significant amount of light, but the better ones are essentially
transparent, so you can see well through them in the day time.
Tockk
heat rays from the afternoon sun. It blocks about 20% of the visable light
in the process.
As far as keeping heat inside, in cold weather, ya, it helps, but only a
little bit, and not enough to justify the expense.
You'd probably be much better off if you caulked around your windows real
well, and put up some extra heavy draperies over the windows.
When I owned a house, I'd put some sheet styrofoam over the windows that
didn't face the street, and also on the metal front door. It was cheap,
and simple to do, and cut heat loss enough to pay for itself. But, it also
made things fairly dark inside -- but that didn't matter much, as I was
working nights at the time, and slept during the day.
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Craig
<s...@gmail.com> wrote...
As others have said, I wouldn't expect film applied to the window glass to
reduce heat loss much at all. If your windows would look good with
double-cell "honeycomb" window shades with minimal air gap between the
window wall/sill and the shades, they can help reduce winter heat loss quite
a bit and be much cheaper than new windows. A plastic film or sheet applied
inside or outside the window frame with an air gap between it and the pane
will help, but I wouldn't want to leave it up all summer long--and the
effort of installing/removing it annually would get to be a real pain. If
you go with the double-cell shades, wait until your local department store
has a sale on them. JC Penneys, for example, generally offers "65%"
discounts on custom shades at least once a year.
Craig
Seerialmom
Here's an article that might be more of what you meant (I hope...since
window film...like them tinted low riders....is different than shrink
wrap insulation).
http://lifestyle.msn.com/HomeandGarden/BeJane/Article.aspx?cp-documentid=1052724
Don K
My first house had single pane windows.
I put reflective film on the windows. It had a noticeable effect on direct
heating from the sunlight in summer. It seemed less beneficial in
winter because it would reflect beneficial sunlight during the day.
More effectively IMO, I also built-in some plexiglas inserts that
were screwed into the window frames to create dead air space.
Of course this meant I couldn't readily open and close windows,
but that didn't matter to me since I ran central air in summer.
The whole thing was done for 2 or 3 hundred bucks.
I removed the film and the homemade plexiglas when I sold the house.
Don
Rick
If you mean an adhesive type film that is directly applied to the glass
- no, that isn't gonna help. That type of product is meant to block UV
radiation and solar heat from entering the home - not exactly what you
want to do in a leaky home in the winter.
If you mean something like the 3M clear wrap that surrounds the window
and you shrink it to fit with a hair dryer - it can only help so much.
If your home is so old that it still has single pane glass, does it have
any insulation either? If it doesn't, putting the plastic wrap over the
windows is akin to trying to block a street mob from mowing you down
with a piece of cardboard. In some many words, it might help to keep air
from getting in directly around the windows, but that may only be 10% of
your overall problem.
To find out if this is even frugal or wasteful you many want to check
with your local energy companies for an "energy audit" of your home. A
lot of utility companies provide this service at no cost to give you a
good assessment of how and where you home is wasting energy and what you
need to do to correct it.
Rick