How to keep your home warm: Thermal efficiency edition

With the colder months rolling in and energy costs rising, keeping your home warm efficiently has never mattered more than now. Whether you’ve been turning all the plugs off when they aren’t being used or keeping the lights turned off, there are other ways to conserve heat.

Best blinds for insulating?

Depending on your window depends on how much heat is lost. So, if you have double glazed windows then the heat lost won’t be as much as single glazed window. Another factor is how well your window is fitted; if it’s fitted poorly, the heat won’t be kept in as well.

I have one way you can conserve heat and keep your bills relatively low. Blinds! Yes, that’s right, the right blind can do wonders.

Hive Pleated:

Hive Pleated fabrics are the best type to effectively keep your house insulated. This is because of the honeycomb structure of the fabric has layers of air which act as an insulant keeping your home warm. The Perfect Fit frame will also aid in insulation. There are plenty of styles and colours that we offer, even Blackout. So, while your home is staying warm, you can also have more light control.

If the Hive Pleated Perfect Fits aren’t your vibe, it’s okay! Any blind is better than no blind and there are alternatives you could consider. There are other styles of Pleated blinds that you can choose. If you don’t like the PF frame, then Intus could be for you.

Layering:

Layering Romans or Curtains is a good way of adding an extra layer of insulation. It traps the warmth between the layers leaving your home feel nice and cosy.  Even though there are some blinds better than the others for conserving heat, as I said any blind is better than no blind. And so, Verticals, Rollers, Shutters, anything will help you out. Check out our reel which may help explain this a bit more:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CjOGQmov8SQ/?hl=en

Wooden Venetians:

Wood is a natural insulator! The slats are nice and thick, therefore keeping heat in. However, because the wooden slats have gaps in between each one, it is likely that some air can escape through them.

Blinds to avoid?

If you really do care about keeping your home insulated in the winter then there are some blinds which although they do look stylish, they aren’t very efficient at insulating.

Aluminium venetians:

It’s well known that aluminium isn’t an insulator but a conductor. So, the aluminium venetians won’t be the best choice for keeping your home warmer.

Day and night blinds:

These blinds are definitely not good for insulating! This is because the fabric is quite literally mesh, so those tiny holes that make it up, will just be letting the hot air escape.

Make sure that during the day you leave your blinds open so the sun can shine through and heat your home, then close them when the sun sets. This will ensure thermal efficiency. The amazing thing about blinds is as well as keeping your home warm and cosy, they also keep the heat out during the summer. As long as you keep your blinds closed, your house should be a lot cooler than outside.

Blinds really do offer many benefits and thermal efficiency happens to be one of them! So, order some Hive samples and get measuring those windows to transform your home.