by Cary Underwood
Many people have seen roll up window shades used on screen porches to block the sun, yet let the air through. Many of the roll up window shades are specifically made to block up to 90% of the UV rays, but they can also be used for energy efficiency, when they are placed on the outside of your home and used as a exterior shade for a west facing window in the summer months.
Some of the people that make patio awnings also offer the roll up window shades, since some are made of materials that are suitable to be used outside. In fact, it is not unusual to install a roll up window shade over the top of your sliding patio door to block some of the sun's rays, if it is a west facing slider. Because they are so quick and easy to roll up and down, they don't take but a few seconds to lower when you need them.
Life is infinitely stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent. We would not dare to conceive the things which are really merely commonplaces of existence. If we could fly out of that window hand in hand, hover over this great city, gently remove the roofs and peep in at the queer things which are going on, the strange coincidences, the planning, the cross-purposes, the wonderful chain of events, working through generations and leading to the most outre results, it would make all fiction with its conventionalities and foreseen conclusions most stale and unprofitable.
—Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930)
The most popular outdoor roll up window shades are made from PVC coated all-weather polyethylene fabric and come with warranties that are typically 3 years. Because you can buy them in sizes up to 8 foot by 6 foot, you can protect furniture from fading and install them over picture windows that might need additional shading during extremely hot days for energy efficiency.
Many people use them to convert a deck that is above a patio into a relaxing and shady place. You simply hang the large 8 foot by 6 foot roll up window shades from the lower edge of the overhead deck and lower it for privacy or shade when you want to get a breeze but block the sun's rays. When you consider they run around a hundred dollars for this size, it is easy to see why they are so popular.
Exterior styles will have stainless steel tie-downs and come with all the hardware you need to install them, whether over your patio door, over a picture window or installed as a private patio sunscreen. Because they are so affordable, they can easily save their cost from your air conditioning bill, if you have windows that take on direct sun during the summer months. It takes little effort to protect your household furnishings from fading and they can keep your house cooler.
Unless, governor, teacher inspector, visitor,
This map becomes their window and these windows
That open on their lives like crouching tombs
Break, O break open,
—Stephen Spender (1909–1995)
There are several popular brands of roll up window shades, including Coolaroo Premier Sun Shades for outside treatments. Sunsational roll up window shades use SunsationalSelect fabric, which allows you to see out, but increases privacy because it distorts the view from the outside to the inside. Many people will install these types of roll up window shades on the interior of their home. They are slightly more expensive, running almost two hundred dollars for the 8 foot by 6 foot, versus Coolaroo, which are cheaper and installed on the outside, but don't offer the unique privacy feature.
No matter what brand of roll up window shades you select, they can be part of an energy efficiency savings for your home. They will pay for themselves in a very short amount of time from the savings on your air conditioning bill