There are several ways to reduce cold from your house. Reducing heat loss is one of the most effective ways you can use to keep your house warm.
What would be the best way to minimize heat loss other than using the simplest and easy-to-implement methods like adding the correct curtains or using your curtains effectively?
With that said, I guess you’re asking yourself how do curtains reduce heat loss?
Curtains reduce heat loss by blocking the heat from entering or leaving the house. If you have insulated curtains, ensure you open them during the daytime to allow sunlight in your home. Close them in the evening before it gets cold. This will trap the warmth in the house and keep your house warm.
Warm houses are usually welcoming, comforting, and enjoyable to stay in. however, keeping your house warm can be uneconomical, especially if you’re using electric heaters that require a lot of energy.
To cut on your energy consumption and spending, heat your house efficiently and effectively. To achieve that, consider the role your curtains can play.
Home curtains are simple yet powerful tools to conserve heat in your house. Unfortunately, many people are yet to use their full potential.
Adhering to some simple guidelines on using your curtains can help you make the most of your curtains’ insulating capabilities and keep your home as warm as possible.
How Do Curtains Keep Heat In?
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The process of heat transfer is simple. Heat transfer in the air is mainly by the process of conduction. When we have a temperature difference between the inside and outside of the house, there will be heat transfer.
Warm air will seek the cold air from outside. Since the house’s thick walls are poor conductors of heat, they don’t significantly affect heat loss. The door and windows are opposite. Most of our windows and doors are made of metal, which is an excellent conductor of heat and will thus allow heat transfer. Heat may also escape through cracks that might have developed on the door or window.
Curtains prevent this heat from escaping and create a barrier to prevent the outside cold from entering the house. This is possible since the curtains are made of fabric materials that are very poor conductors of heat. They prevent heat transfer or at least reduce the rate of heat transfer to the outside.
Reducing the heat loss with your curtains will keep your home warm while helping you in saving the heater bills if you were using electric home heaters. Ensure to open your curtains when there is sun and close them before it gets cold. This simple curtain usage will effectively keep heat in your house and consequently keep it warm.
According to researchers at the University of Sanford, drawing your curtains at dusk reduces heat loss by about 15 to 17%.
Laboratories around the world have also seconded these findings. The US department of energy puts the figure at roughly 10%. You can increase these figures to about 25%. It will, however, demand that you seal your curtains to the wall on either side with electrical tape. This will be effective, especially in areas where the rear of the curtain is not visible.
How Much Heat Can Curtains Help Retain?
Thick curtains work more effectively at reducing the rate of heat exchange around the house than other curtains. Comparatively, thicker curtains are more insulating because of the fabrics in them that prevent warm air from escaping outside of the house or cold air from coming in.
Good insulating curtains have a lining attached at the rear. It limits airflow and thus increases the curtains’ insulating abilities and prevents noise transfer.
Blackout curtains can come in handy if you are looking for a thick curtain to help maintain the warmth of your house for longer times. They are curtains made to eliminate light from entering your house when you draw them.
They are also referred to as thermal curtains and are made in two distinct ways. One way is by using a thick piece of fabric that eliminated light. The second way is called the triple weave.
The triple weave is made of a three-layer fabric that has been stitched together. The outer layers on both sides are the standard curtain fabric.
They are attached to preserve the natural look of curtains. Inside the outer pieces, there is an insulated foam coating. The thick coating makes the curtain denser and increases its insulation abilities.
How To Make Your Curtains More Insulating
Find an insulation material
If you already have a curtain and want to make it more insulating, find it an insulating material. Insulating materials can easily be found in fabric stores and craft suppliers.
You will easily find a roll of batting for quilting projects. This type of batting usually comes in different thicknesses and widths. Measure your window and then visit the store to get yourself an excellent insulating material to add to your curtains
Vapor barrier
Placing a vapor barrier on the side of your curtain that faces the heated room will help in creating insulation. A vapor barrier may be a painter’s drop cloth, a sheet of Mylar, or even a transparent plastic sheet. The vapor barrier will help reflect the heat in your room to prevent heat loss and thus keep your house warm for a long time.
Putting it all together
Putting your window covering together by sewing them will help in preventing heat loss. When you stitch them together, you will create a large mass of fabric.
Since the fabric is a poor heat conductor, a large mass of fabric sewn together will make a significant barrier for heat loss that will keep your house warm.
Also, when you want to place your window coverings, position them so that they will fit perfectly against the window frame. You can even seal the edges of your window coverings. A hook and loop tape or magnetic tape can seal the edges properly.
Adding tabs and ties to the bottom and sides of the drapes can allow you to use the simple hooks to tighten the drapes; this will seal the gaps through which the cold or warm air could have flown. A cornice board can also help make your curtain more insulating.
Valuable Tips To Help You Keep Your House Warm With Just Curtains
You may have insulating curtains but still, have a problem keeping your house warm. Here are some of the valuable tips you should follow to help you make the most out of your curtains.
1. Make sure your curtains are floor-length.
A floor-length curtain will offer a more robust resistance to airflow in your house than the sill-length curtains. If you have an insulating curtain that is sill-length, it may still leak a lot of warm air to the outside since air can easily flow below the sill and out of the window.
Scientifically, we know that cold air is dense. Having a sill length curtain will not effectively prevent against the floor of air since the dense air will flow over the curtain and into the room.
A floor-length curtain will provide more reliable insulation since it covers the window and extends to the ground, covering all the air channels that warm air could have escaped.
2. Hang your curtains as high as possible
Hang your curtains as close to the ceiling as possible. This will also work as effectively as having a long floor-length curtain. A high enough curtain will also prevent faster air exchange and thus keep your house warm for long.
3. Hang two curtains
Hanging two curtains will also do the magic when you want to keep your house warm. Two curtains will reinforce the barrier to airflow and thus prevent warm air from going outside the house or cold air from flowing in.
The inner curtain will work by maintaining the temperature within the room. This serves to keep your room warm. The curtain closer to the window works by absorbs heat or cold.
4. Window fixes
A window with leaks may defeat the insulating properties of a curtain. Replace old caulking and replace them with new ones to give your window or door a good seal. Caulking will not only prevent cold or hot air from entering or leaving the room but will also drafts that could give your thermostat an inaccurate reading.
Curtains have not only one proof covering up your home and keeping your interiors beautiful. They can go further to keep your house warm as well. You can save on energy bills by using your curtains effectively to provide natural warmth in the house. Use your curtains to keep cold at bay!
