With summer upon us here in the Denver area, we’re ready for the shift in seasons. From snow to sunshine and cool temps to warmer weather, it’s that time of year! While the sun can be great, there’s such a thing as too much of it.
If you find yourself looking for relief from the sun inside your home, you’re not alone. Intense sunlight can bring heat, glare, UV exposure, and early morning brightness that interrupts sleep or makes certain rooms uncomfortable. Rocky Mountain Shutters, Shades & Closets has window treatments that help you enjoy the sunshine on your own terms.
Finding Relief from the Sun Indoors
It’s no secret—Colorado is an outdoorsy state. And that’s not just the case when it’s time to hit the slopes! The Denver area has so much to offer year-round. But when the heat becomes too much, your home should feel like the perfect oasis to retreat to.
With the right window treatments in place, you can soften the light, cool down hot rooms, reduce glare, and protect the interiors of your home. Then, in no time, you’ll be ready to head back out and enjoy the sunshine again.
Along with relief from the sun, custom window treatments can help with a range of common window issues, including light control, privacy, heat reduction, glare, and UV protection.
Know When and Where the Sun Hits Your Home
Every home has its own unique qualities that make it wonderful—and sometimes problematic. The best way to find relief from the sun is to understand how the location of your windows affects your comfort.
East-facing windows often bring bright morning light. West-facing windows can create intense afternoon heat and glare. South-facing windows may bring steady light throughout the day. Once you understand where the strongest light enters, it becomes much easier to choose the right window coverings.
If you’re dealing with large expanses of glass, explore our large window solutions for ways to preserve the view while controlling heat and glare.
The AC Has Kicked In
It’s still cooling off most nights, so opening your windows in the evening may help keep your house comfortable while you sleep. But chances are, the AC is running during those hot daytime hours. Did you know that your windows—and the treatments on them—play a big role in how comfortable your home feels?
Adding the right shades around your home can provide indoor relief from summer heat while still blending seamlessly with your style. For year-round comfort and insulation, you can also explore our energy efficient window solutions.
Reduce Glare without Losing Natural Light
Sunshine can fill your home with productive light, but that same beautiful sunlight can create frustrating glare. Whether it’s bouncing off your TV, hitting your computer screen, or making a favorite chair uncomfortable, glare can make certain rooms difficult to enjoy.
Window treatments help soften and filter incoming light, so you don’t have to choose between living in a cave and being blinded by the sun. Sheer shades, solar shades, top down bottom up shades, and dual shades all offer ways to customize the light throughout the day. If glare is your biggest frustration, learn more about how to get rid of glare with the right window coverings.
Damaging UV Rays
Just as UV rays aren’t great for your skin, they don’t do anything helpful for the interior of your home either. Have you ever noticed how hardwood floors can become lighter everywhere except under a rug? Is your furniture not looking as crisp and new as it used to?
Harsh sunlight can cause fading on furniture, walls, flooring, artwork, and more. Adding the right window treatments can help reduce fading over time while keeping that pesky glare at bay when you’re trying to relax. For more detail on protecting floors, furniture, and artwork, visit our guide to UV protection for your home.
Sleep Tight and Get Relief from the Sun
Most people have some sort of window treatment in their bedrooms to help keep things darker. But many off-the-shelf treatments still allow light to seep in around the edges or through the fabric.
Room darkening and blackout shades are great options for anyone who doesn’t want to rise as soon as the birds start chirping. Kids’ bedrooms can benefit from room darkening shades even more. Dropping down the shades can simplify nap time, and when bedtime comes, a darker room helps create the right atmosphere for sleep.
Morning Sunshine: Great When You Want It
Morning sunshine can be wonderful—but sometimes, it gets in the way of enjoying your morning. Early rays can interrupt sleep, create glare in a home office, or heat up a room before the day has even started.
Dual shades are a helpful option when you want flexibility. They allow you to enjoy soft natural light when you want it and block stronger light when you don’t.
Dual shades are especially helpful in bedrooms, offices, and bright living spaces where lighting needs can change throughout the day.
Use Smart Shades to Stay Ahead of the Sun
Sunlight is predictable, which makes it easier to manage with the right features. With automation, you can set your shades to welcome the morning sunshine, block the strongest exposure, and adjust again as the day changes.
With motorized shades, you can set schedules, save favorite scenes, and adjust window coverings from a remote, app, or smart home system. This is especially useful for hard-to-reach windows, large windows, and rooms that heat up quickly during certain times of day.
Functional Features That Help Control the Sun
When it’s time to save your home from too much summer sun, function matters. Daily adjustments may be necessary based on window location, time of day, and light intensity.
Some of the most helpful features include:
- Top down bottom up: Bring light in from above while keeping the lower part of the window covered for privacy and glare control.
- Dual shades: Enjoy filtered light during the day and room darkening when you need more coverage.
- Motorization: Schedule shades to move automatically as sunlight changes.
- Solar fabrics: Reduce glare and UV exposure while maintaining a view.
- Room darkening fabrics: Create better sleep and media-friendly spaces.
For more privacy-focused light control, explore our top down bottom up shade solutions.
Find Relief from the Sun at Home
All of the issues that make you crave relief from the sun—heat, glare, UV rays, early morning light, and fading interiors—can be solved with the right custom window treatments. That’s where the expertise of our team can help. You can alleviate summertime issues and get back to enjoying this beautiful time of year. Visit one of our showrooms or contact us for your free consultation.
