Drapes on the window - Aesthetics and savings on heating costs
Of course – aesthetics above all, patterns, colors, visual transformation of the interior – these are undoubtedly the most important and well-known features of drapes, curtains or Roman blinds.
However, anyone knows that this decorative drape limits the heat loss to the outside in a way similar to about 5 cm layer of styrofoam? It decorates and insulates at the same time, and its price has not increased by tens or hundreds of percent (like the prices of building materials). Also with the installation will be easier than with the installation of the aforementioned styrofoam, and in addition we will cover and insulate with it both the window (through which a lot of heat escapes) and the wall. Styrofoam cannot be glued to the glass… :)
The biggest problem our customers reported to us was:
"...all these beautiful fabrics are not cheap, and I can not imagine them on my window, what will fit best?". It's finally easy, we have prepared for you a free application iDESCU.
In the application, on a photo of your window (taken with a smartphone) you can already see how different types of curtains, Roman blinds or curtains will look like. You will see on your own window, visualizations made of currently fashionable materials, both from eco style and others. There is also an option to order a "created" arrangement directly from the application, it will be sewn according to your visualization.
Window drape - addititional insulation of the wall from the inside
Windows of houses and apartments are installed in the exterior walls, i.e. walls directly exposed to our capricious weather. In autumn, winter and early spring – in most of the European climate zone, it is simply cold outside… Through the external walls most heat escapes from the rooms, it is these walls that we try to additionally insulate (both from the outside and inside) to reduce the heat loss from the room.
A properly installed window drape can be a great decorative element and, at the same time, an important additional insulation for a cold exterior wall.
At this point, a smile appeared on our blog readers – a material about a millimeter thick “substantial insulation” of the exterior wall of your apartment?
Secret of success is the additional so-called air void…
For the initiated.
Air void - heat savings through drapes
The phenomenon of additional insulation through the use of closed air layer properties is used in many places.
Closed air is a very good insulator, used, for example, in various types of thermal cups, thermoses and exactly external walls.
Mounted at the top of ceiling and reaching to the floor, the curtain effectively seals off the circulation of air located between the window (exterior wall) and the room interior, generating about 10-20 cm of air void further separating us from the cold outside.
The insulating effect of a 15 cm air void (with a thermal resistance of about 0,18 m2*K/W) is similar to the insulating effect of a 5 cm layer of styrofoam (the thermal resistance of which ranges from 0.03 to 0.045 m2*K/W).
How to install drapes and roman blinds to create the effect of additional air insulation
The basic principle for creating effective air insulation is to restrict the flow of air in the layer of our void/airbag. This task is actually very simple in case of underfloor heating in the room.
In such a situation, a drape installed on both sides of the window will prove best, covering the window and as much of the wall as possible (optimally – the entire wall) when rolled down. It is important to mount it as close as possible to the ceiling and low above the floor.
For mounting the curtain as close to the ceiling as possible, the best solution will be to use the KS rail. An additional advantage of the KS System is that the folds of drapes are evenly arranged, which means that our “insulating” wall decoration will be both very elegant and aesthetically pleasing. You can see more about the KS solution in our video: “Disassembly and assembly of drapes on the KS system.”
To achieve a good thermal insulation effect, it is also important to correctly measure the height of sewn-to-size drapes, so that it would come low above the floor, at a height of about 2 cm. For more on how to measure custom sewn drapes, see the short instructional video: “How to correctly determine the dimensions of custom-sewn drapes.”
For such a selected and sewn drapes, you only need to roll them down at night and unroll during the day, and you can already enjoy both a beautiful visual effect and improve the thermal insulation of the room.
However, in case of a radiator mounted directly under the window, the use of a drape on the entirety (or a large part) of the wall is not advisable. This is because the heat radiated by the radiator would remain enclosed in our air void and we would achieve the opposite effect.
In such a situation, an aesthetically pleasing and very convenient solution – the Roman blind – comes to our aid with invaluable help. The Roman blind is installed in the plane of window (optimally, for the warming effect – to the ceiling), and the drapes are installed on its sides. During the day, both the drapes and roller blind remain closed and make a beautiful decoration for the wall and window. For the evening and night – we unroll both of these arrangements, and our room will change the mood to that accented by the drapes and blind. Importantly, at the same time we will reduce heat loss and heating fees. More about Roman blinds in the short instructional videos “How to measure a window for Roman blinds,” “Removing the Roman blind” and a blog post: “Roman blinds, installation without drilling.”
Window drape - Home budget relief from rising gas, electricity or coal prices
The year 2022 will certainly go down in history as a special year, certainly for many reasons. One of its defining features is the drastic prices of energy sources and concerns about reheating homes and apartments in winter. Energy sources are not only expensive, but in addition – there are shortages and interruptions in their supply. Saving energy has become a direct necessity, the problem of reheating rooms in winter affects basically all households.
Well-known to all, the quiet drape comes to the rescue here like Bruce turning into Batman, spreading his wings at night and protecting us from the cold…
Don't have curtains? We recommend our app for quick visualization and purchase of curtains and blinds
We are pleased to announce that our iDESCU app is now posted for download for both Android and iOS phones. It allows you to quickly create visualizations of curtains, draperies, Roman blinds or panels against a photo of your own window. More about the app in the APP IDESCU tab and a short video demonstrating its capabilities: "How to use the iDESCU app, design and order curtains, drapes, blinds".
Download the FREE iDESCU app and create a unique window decoration by using your smartphone screen.
It's very easy, you take a photo of your window, the app will overlay curtains, drapes, blinds... on it. And you can immediately see if a particular color matches the rest of the room, or if a particular material pattern blends well with other elements of the interior.
You can easily visualize your creation, but that's not all - you can also order you decorations from us. We will sew them to measure and deliver to you by courier.
The choice is yours - try it out now and make your windows a unique eye-catcher!
Download the FREE iDESCU app and create a unique window decoration by using your smartphone screen.
It's very easy, you take a photo of your window, the app will overlay curtains, drapes, blinds... on it. And you can immediately see if a particular color matches the rest of the room, or if a particular material pattern blends well with other elements of the interior.
You can easily visualize your creation, but that's not all - you can also order you decorations from us. We will sew them to measure and deliver to you by courier.
The choice is yours - try it out now and make your windows a unique eye-catcher!