options for thermally insulating window coverings?

[twd000]

We have a 1974 4-bedroom Colonial in New Hampshire (climate Zone 5) with some old plastic blinds that need to be replaced/upgraded. My wife offered to sew up some fabric curtains to replace them, but I wanted to ask here first and see what options are on the market for reducing heat losses while improving aesthetics with better blinds.

I know there are some windows treatments with edge-sealing details to break the convective cooling loop between the cold window and the warm room. We had some cellular blinds at a prior house that we liked but it was in a hot climate so shade was more important than thermally insulating.

Windows are Anderson double-hung vinyl frames, ~15 years old. I have noticed some condensation between panes and at the corners where cold air is leaking path the fin sweeps.

 

[peakbagger]

I have the double cellular blinds with side sealing strips on my Anderson casements and double hungs in Northern NH. I started out with just cellular blinds without side seals and they did work but I got draft from the edges. The side seals solved that and are in general a lot tighter. I have some dual double hungs in a single frame. The only way to do the cellular blinds with side seals was remove the interior wall trim and glue a 1/2" spacer to the back of it and then reinstall the trim. That gave me just enough clearance to clear the center post. The extra deep trim is very hard to notice, I think I had enough room on the single casements that I didn't need to mess with the trim.

On my casements the standard Anderson cranks get in the way. I just leave the cranks loose on the window sill in the winter. Anderson sells a low clearance wing nut style crank that doesn't interfere. One caveat I learned with double cellular blinds is the weak link is the strings. They run all the way from the bottom rail of the window, up through the blind, over some pulleys in the head rail and then through a friction catch before running down the side of the window. They wear out and when the string breaks its a PITA to replace. The dealers will do it but shipping makes it very expensive. I switched to a heavy duty option where the strings that raise the blinds roll up on a shaft inside the top rail. The end of the rod is at the side of the window header. A continuous cord that is heavier duty turns the shaft. I also ordered the super dark option for my blinds in my bedroom, they have a foil layer hidden inside, it blocks all light.

I ordered mine through a place in VT https://cellularwindowshades.wordpress.com/tag/comfortrack-plus/. Good prompt service.

The other caveat is I am unsure if I would buy these if I had a cat in the house. I don't know how well they would survive a cat trying to climb them.

Of course if you do not use the windows, a piece of foil faced foam board cut to size to fit in the opening and covered with fabric works amazingly well for one tenth the cost.

 

[twd000]

thanks I'll check out Comfortrack

no cats in the house thankfully, just a few kids. I remember the last time we bought cellular shades the salesman said not to install them in the kitchen or bathroom where they might get stained or spills, since there is no way to remove and clean the fabric

your comment about foam board as a permanent insulator made me realize that we never open the bathroom blinds. We just want the diffuse daylight benefit. I wonder if there is a cheaper permanent blind that leaves out the string mechanism and just mounts the fabric to the window frame?

All the other blinds need to open and close so I'll have to check out the options for the string and pulley mechanism

We have 16 double-hung windows. Two pairs are within the same frame so I'll have to check the offset for the center divider

So have you noticed any reduction in heat loss with your blinds? Worth the price?
No problems with condensation on the panel behind the blinds?

 

[SpaceBus]

We have some insulated drapes over sliding glass doors and they do an amazing job. Not too expensive either.

 

[peakbagger]

Hard to justify the cost on a $ and cents basis. I could buy a lot of wood for what I paid for the blinds. Windows in a cold climate are a luxury, I would be better off not installing them to begin with or plugging them with foam board all winter. That said I have borderline seasonal affective disorder and really want daylight when I can get it in winter. My home office is set up to get the earliest morning sun and keep it until mid afternoon. Installing the blinds allows me to heat it up before the sun is out and then open them up as soon as the sun is up. Without insulated blinds I would need to pump a lot more heat in it all night. I do my own firewood but the less heat I need the less wood I need to process and load into my boiler and since my I have slat fin type baseboards my 550 gallons of storage is borderline.

As I mentioned, the side seals cut drafts way down. On a cold clear night I could feel cold air spilling out of the bottoms and the sides of the windows without side tracks. I would need to move my chair and the drafts were noticeable in my office on cold days. Once I got the side seals there really is no difference between the window and the wall. The side seals are an option but I would definitely recommend the side shields if you decide to go with cellular blinds.

The other thing to note is any insulated blind no matter how well designed does not do as well in hot weather for sun exposure. The blinds are better than nothing but to cut down on heat gain on window the window needs to be shaded from the outside as other wise the window traps the heat inside. It does reduce my AC load but the biggest impact to me is in the winter. I have considered making up some external radiant barriers for summer use on at least one window.

Every window in my house has cellulars except for north facing window over my kitchen sink. Unless they have wipeable waterproof interior layer I just think keeping it clean would mean frequent replacement.

 

[twd000]

We have some insulated drapes over sliding glass doors and they do an amazing job. Not too expensive either.

yes I have a large glass sliding door in my stove room. Do your drapes have some sort of seal around the edge to prevent drafts, or do they just hang loose? I guess if they extend all the way to floor that might break up the convective cooling loop even without a magnet sealing strip

 

[peakbagger]

I have seen magnetically sealing drapes somewhere. I found these on Amazon Amazon product ASIN B07Z6J843F

 

[SpaceBus]

I try to hang my drapes so the outside edges are against the wall and they pool on the floor. The draft is not eliminated entirely, but it is disrupted significantly. I also have sheers, which probably help a bit. My kitchen window does not have insulated drapes and it is noticeably cooler, despite being triple pane, than the sliders.

 

[SpaceBus]

I have seen magnetically sealing drapes somewhere. I found these on Amazon Amazon product ASIN B07Z6J843F

I bet I could add magnets to my existing drapes and hide some metal or magnetic strips on the walls. Once we put interior walls back up (bare studs and rock wool for now) I also plan to make a top valence to completely block the draft.

 

[semipro]

Check out builditsolar.com
In particular you may want to consider using bubble wrap to insulate windows.
We have tried the Comfortrack and they work well. Convective air movement along window is pretty significant.

 

[lml999]

I'm using the same system as @peakbagger. While some of my windows cannot use the side guides due to an angled trim, they are still pretty good at reducing drafts. The cost per window wasn't too bad, and when I ordered they had just kicked off an annual 30% off sale. This was in June or July, if I recall... Worth asking about sales.

 

[peakbagger]

I find that there is a very high mark up on cellular blinds, They usually are on sale for one reason or another every few months. The folks in VT that I have bought mine from over the years have usually been competitive. Since I have them shipped to NH I dont pay sales tax but the shipping eats up the savings.

 

[twd000]

I talked to the folks in VT at CellularWindowShades.com. I sent some photos of my windows and they told me that an inside mount option wouldn't work. I would have to go with outside mounts, which means the side tracks are not an option. I guess I'm surprised since the current plastic Roman shades fit inside but I guess the cellular shades take up more space.

So now I'm not sure what to do. Outside mounts won't look good, and I'm concerned skipping the side tracks would allow a convective cooling loop on the backside of the shades. Any ideas for Plan B?

 

[lml999]

I talked to the folks in VT at CellularWindowShades.com. I sent some photos of my windows and they told me that an inside mount option wouldn't work. I would have to go with outside mounts, which means the side tracks are not an option. I guess I'm surprised since the current plastic Roman shades fit inside but I guess the cellular shades take up more space.

So now I'm not sure what to do. Outside mounts won't look good, and I'm concerned skipping the side tracks would allow a convective cooling loop on the backside of the shades. Any ideas for Plan B?

Lets see a couple of photos

On most of my windows, as mentioned, I have an angled trim piece on each side, so that I could not use the side tracks. I was able to mount the shades as an inside mount, and they hang close to the glass, and pretty close to the side. Yea, the side tracks help more...but you'll get a fair amount of insulating value with the shades next to the glass.

Note - when you mount them, watch how tight you can get to the upper track. If you go too close, the bottom of the shade will hit the lower sash on the way down. Ask me how I know.

 

[twd000]

here's a link to the Google Photos of my windows: https://photos.app.goo.gl/ubFytD97dUBZ5dYt8

 

[peakbagger]

I agree that side tracks will not work with the trim as it is. As I mentioned on a double window is I had to build out the facing trim around the windows by removing the trim boards and adding a backer to them to space them out so the shade cleared the center mullion between the windows. I had plenty of room on my single windows.