White and beige living room with white polywood shutters above a white couch.

The R-Value Of Window Treatments And Shutters In New Brunswick

June 23, 2022

Energy conservation might be a huge need for your New Brunswick window treatments. With an inefficient treatment, you might feel a good deal of heat loss, which can lead to higher heating and cooling bills. To get the best energy-efficient window treatments, you will have to find out their R-values.

But which window treatments get the highest R-value in New Brunswick?

What Is A Window Treatment’s R-Value in New Brunswick?

White polywood shutters in a white bedroom.

Everything in your house that promotes insulation -- from the walls to windows -- gets an R-value. Those digits represents how well the item prevents thermal energy from flowing through it. A higher R-value and the object is a more effective insulator.

So why should you care about a window treatment’s R-value in New Brunswick? It just so happens that windows are one of the most prevalent areas of heat loss in the home. If you want to trap in the heat during wintertime or keep your house cooler in summer, you have to have a window treatment with greater insulation. A window covering with a high R-value lets you keep your rooms at your preferred setting.

Window Treatment R-value Comparison Chart

Every window covering is not made with the same thickness, and therefore different treatments will have different r-values. Though there may be a little variation with the materials and build between different makes and models, below is what you’re going to find when comparing window coverings.

Window Covering	Average R-Value
Only glass	0.75 - 1
Aluminum blinds	1.5 - 2
Window shades	2.5
Drapes	2 - 3
Wood Shutters	3 - 4
Honeycomb Shades	4.5
Polywood® Plantation Shutters	>6

Source: R-values from Energy.gov and HouseLogic.

Remember, the bigger the R-value the more the window covering insulates your window. No surprise that store-bought mini-blinds, which are made with inefficient aluminum, bring almost no protection when put up against a more substantial treatment, like faux-wood interior shutters. That large span in R-value can be seen in a distinction of several degrees – enough to make an impact on if you crank up the thermostat and increase your energy use.

What Are The Factors In A Window Covering’s R-Value In New Brunswick?

Light gray cellular shades inside a white and rustic styled living room.

A few things affect a window treatment’s R-value: construction and substance. To start with, products that have multiple avenues for heat loss will not have a substantial R-value. For example, blinds don’t firmly cover the window, letting air to flow around the sides of the covering. However, interior shutters are custom-built snuggly around the window, keeping heat against the window’s glass when you shut the louvers.

Then what materials the window treatment is made out of can have a huge bump in R-value. Take cellular shades, which feature several engineered layers of fabric that create “cells” to trap hot air. As a result, they should stop air disbursement more efficiently than products like roller shades. Likewise, our Polywood interior shutters, built from a durable faux wood polymer, can trap heat loss more than more porous wood shutters. Polywood shutters also use weatherstripping, which results in a air-tight seal on your window when the louvers and panels are completely shut.

Increase Your House’s R-value In New Brunswick

Do you feel like your house could be a little more comfortable? How about a change to durable Polywood shutters to up your R-value? Contact us at Sunburst Shutters New Brunswick by calling 732-301-6168 or submitting the form below to get your no-cost in-home consultation.

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