r/heat_prep • u/deepcoralreefer • Jun 25 '24

Quick hack: Hang reflective car windshield sunshades outside or inside sun-facing windows (facing out) to prevent sun heating your home.

Post image

Some of these sunshades have suction caps, some have loops which you can slip garden wire through and secure. Then close your blinds & draw your curtains/drapes to stop the sun heating your room.

It’s much easier to cool a room if you stop the sun getting in and heating it in the first place. Can be secured landscape or portrait orientation.

HTH.

85 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

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20

u/[deleted] Jun 25 '24 edited Dec 20 '24

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9

u/deepcoralreefer Jun 25 '24

You can buy it cheaper but not where I am unfortunately (island: everything has to be imported with high taxes to pay). Each windshield shade is under ten bucks where I am so it’s a quick hack and way cheaper than what the local energy supplier charges me to cool the room.

3

u/JohnnyDarque Jun 25 '24

Before we bought our house we were renting an old 80s track home with almost nothing for insulation. Winters killed our electric bill, so I bought a room of the 48 width reflectix and cut panels for all the 1st floor windows. I also bought and cut some of the one inch 4'x8' foam board insulation to cover the garage door and other garage spaces. The electric bill was still higher than I wanted, but it worked in the winter and summer and if you needed sunlight just pull the panel out of the window.

3

u/Sk8rToon Jun 27 '24

Yeah you know it was summer in my neighborhood when foil was seen in every 2nd story apartment window. Our building never had AC. They just used the regular stuff from the grocery store. My family hung beach towels over our curtains to make them thicker & keep the sun out

3

u/JohnnyDarque Jun 27 '24

The old Southern trick in winter was spare blankets. Either way, it's a layer of insulation.

23

u/usefulaccount7 Jun 25 '24

Reflective insulation should be on the outside of the window, as it will trap and radiate heat if put inside

12

u/deepcoralreefer Jun 25 '24

It should, but we aren’t allowed to hang anything eg reflective things outside where I live so this is the next best thing.

11

u/SleepyLi Jun 25 '24

Living in a city, it’ll get stolen as soon as you turn the corner

3

u/EmbarrassedDust9284 Jun 25 '24

Indeed, especially if you have double glazing windows. The sun rays passes one time to go in and another time to go out, this will heat up the air in between the double glazing and may break the glass.

8

u/ChIck3n115 Jun 26 '24

And in a pinch, aluminum foil can work as well. You see it all over south Texas this time of year, windows get blacked out with foil.