We may be used to the strong rays of the sun here in Austin, but prolonged exposure to sunlight can have serious effects on our bodies – not to mention make our homes uncomfortable! Although windows reflect some of the light and heat from the sun, a lot of it enters your home. To protect your home from temperature influences and yourself from high sun exposure, consider installing solar screens.
Champion AC & Plumbing wants your home to be comfortable, safe and eco-friendly. With solar screen installation, you can begin to achieve all three. Read on to find out how solar screens work, why they are good for your home and body and the different types available to you.
The Science Behind Solar Screens
Sometimes referred to as a “sun screen”, a solar window screen’s main purpose is to reduce glare, heat and light absorption into your home. Each level of mesh fabric making up a solar screen’s material has unique capabilities to allow lower percentages of light to enter through your windows. What we often refer to as sunlight is actually radiation from the sun.
Some of it is visible light that we can see, but some of it is unseen. These unseen UV rays are what damages our skin and furniture after prolonged exposure – like when you get sunburned!
What Are The Main Benefits of Using Solar Shades?
Solar screens and shades are primarily meant to block the light from entering your home, but why do you need to block the light in the first place? A sunny day may be just the thing we look forward to, but solar radiation comes in several forms that each have their own negative side effects.
Champion AC & Plumbing wants to make sure you are aware of what every form of light can do to your home and body. The three types of radiation that solar shades regulate are:
Infrared Light
We mainly feel the effect of infrared light in the form of heat. An overload of infrared rays affects your home’s temperature control. Think of it like this: when that summer sun hits your windows it is entering your home as heat. All those hours the sun is up it is actually heating up your home. While this may be beneficial in the winter, Austin sees more hot weather than cold.
Solar screens work to reflect some of that heat away before it can enter your home. Your AC system uses a lot of energy to try to control the temperature in your home, but with waves of heat coming in through your windows, it must work harder to achieve the desired result. Solar shades take some stress away from your AC unit and make your home feel cooler.
Visible Spectrum Light
The rays that enter your home that you see as bright light are on the visible spectrum. These rays can be bothersome to your sight as well as strain your eyes after long exposure. Solar shades block the glare from the outdoors while still maintaining clear views of your view. It looks a lot like the view through sunglasses – filtered for your eye’s safety but still clear enough to see.
UV Light
Ultraviolet rays are the most harmful form of light to shine on your home. Solar screens block 99% of these harmful rays and help avoid the premature fading, cracking and splitting of your furniture.
Solar shades also protect you from the damaging side effects of UV light exposure – including skin cancer, cataracts, premature skin aging and even immune system suppression!
Interested in Solar Screen Installation?
Champion AC & Plumbing is Austin’s premier source of quality solar screen installation and recommendation. If you’re ready to make your home more efficient, comfortable and safe, count on our team to get the job done right. Give us a call!
