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

The R-Value Of Window Treatments And Shutters In Dover

June 23, 2022

Energy efficiency can be a large requirement for your Dover window treatments. With the wrong treatment, your windows could suffer from damaging heat loss, which leads to higher energy bills. To find the most energy-efficient window treatments, you will have to see their R-values.

But which window treatments have the best R-value in Dover?

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

White polywood shutters in a white bedroom.

Everything in your residence that promotes insulation -- from drywall to your windows -- gets an R-value. Those digits represents how well the object hinders thermal energy from going through it. A bigger R-value tells you that the item is a better insulator.

But why should you care about a window treatment’s R-value in Dover? Well, because windows are one of the biggest energy wasters in the house. If you have to keep in the hot air during wintertime or keep your rooms cooler in summer, you need a window treatment with good insulation. A window treatment with a big R-value allows you to keep your home at an optimal temperature.

Window Treatment R-value Comparison Table

Every window covering is not built with the same care, at least not when it comes to insulation. Though there can be a little variation from the materials and quality between models and companies, below is what you’re going to see when contrasting window treatments.

Window Covering	Average R-Value
No window treatment	0.75 - 1
Aluminum blinds	1.5 - 2
Window shades	2.5
Draperies	2 - 3
Wood Shutters	3 - 4
Cell Shades	4.5
Polywood® Plantation Shutters	>6

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

Remember, the bigger the R-value the more efficient the window covering. No surprise that mini-blinds, usually made of thin aluminum, bring almost no protection compared to a more weighty product, like Polywood shutters. That large difference in R-value can be seen in a variance of several degrees – enough to feel an influence on whether you crank up the temperature and increase your energy use.

What Contributes To A Window Covering’s R-Value In Dover?

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

A few things affect a window covering's R-value: build and materials. To start with, treatments that have multiple ways for heat loss will not have a effective R-value. For instance, curtains and blinds don’t firmly cover the window, letting hot air to flow around the sides and bottom of the covering itself. On the other hand, interior shutters are custom-made snuggly around the window pane, trapping air against the window’s glass when the louvers are shut.

Then the materials the window treatment is constructed with can have a huge bump in R-value. Take honeycomb shades, which use overlapping layers of fabric that create “cells” to trap hot air. As a result, they will hinder air flow more efficiently than products like pleated shades. Likewise, our Polywood plantation shutters, built from a impenetrable faux wood polymer, can repel heat more than more porous wood shutters. Polywood shutters also employs weatherstripping, which results in a snug seal on your window when the louvers are completely shut.

Up Your Window’s R-value In Dover

Does it seem like your home could be a tad bit more energy-efficient? How about installing durable Polywood shutters to raise your windows’ R-value? Contact us today by dialing 301-835-1611 or submitting the form below for your free in-home consultation.

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