The Denver area is an amazing place to live–especially if you love the sunshine. But, let’s talk about energy efficiency. Your home could be facing up to 40% energy loss at the window. That’s a lot of energy consumption to be wasting. How can it be prevented?There are a few ways the energy loss occurs. One way could be described as “Hot Spots.” When sunshine enters your home through glass, it hits a surface–most likely flooring or a wall. This area becomes a “hot spot,” and you only need to observe your pets for a brief period of time to know exactly what we’re talking about. This is the spot on the floor where your pet gravitates for a morning or afternoon nap. It’s toasty warm, and it lulls them off to sleep. That heat that has been created spreads throughout the room.

Contributing to energy loss, and piggy-backing off the hot spots, is what we’ll refer to as the “Greenhouse Effect.” While we enjoy spending time with our windows and doors open, there are plenty of time when it’s not an option, due to extreme temperatures. When that direct light shines into your home, heating up surfaces, as the rays move throughout the course of the day, that hot air has nowhere to go. It will continually heat up your home’s interior until the heat is exhausting. Not only does it zap your energy, but your thermostat can’t keep up–triggering your AC to run around the clock.

The last way that we will discuss here is the insulation at the window. If you’ve purchased, or considered purchasing new windows for your home, you might remember hearing about energy saving properties. Air moving outside the window can influence the temperature of the air existing just inside your window. This energy transfer is greatly reduced with insulation at the window–in the form of energy efficient window treatments. Cellular shades, in particular, create a barrier that keeps the interior air from being influenced by the exterior temperature. The cellular structure traps air within the cell. This insulation can greatly reduce energy loss within your Denver area home.