How Do Solar Screens Work?
In their very basic form, solar
screens block the sun's heat before it reaches the glass thereby reducing the
heat entering your home or building's living space. By eliminating the
heat before it affects the cooling system, comfort is increased and energy
usage can be decreased. A very simple experiment that explains the phenomenon
is to stand in the sun for a few minutes then step into the shade of a tree.
The ambient air temperature did not change. However, the act of stepping
into the shade instantly provided improved comfort. The same thing
happens in your building or home. By eliminating the direct sun and
providing shade, comfort is improved appreciably and in most cases the
thermostat on the cooling system can be turned up a few degrees. When
the "air conditioning" or cooling can be operated less frequently there is
less energy used and this is when you see reduced energy bills.
WARNING
There are some specific ways that solar screens can
be installed to get the full benefit of their heat blocking and energy saving
capabilities and these techniques are not often explained to you. Most
companies install solar screens in the existing screen tracks which seems very
efficient and very convenient. What happens in most cases is this; The
screen cloth ,which is the tool doing the heat absorbing and heat blocking
work, is touching or almost touching the glass. Solar Screen performance
values are based on the screen cloth residing 3/4" to 1" from the surface of
the glass. If the solar screening material is touching the glass you are
losing a good 40 to 50% of the effectiveness of the solar screen. This
is because the heat is transferring from the solar screen cloth to the glass
and then transmitting into the building space.
Good News
The good news is that The Solar Shade Screen Company, with
over 30 years experience in the Solar Screen business, developed a way to
utilize the full benefits of installing your solar screens. We use a
method that separates the screen frame from the window frame so that the
cloth is well away from the window glass. Our method also ends the flow
of heat from screen frame to window frame. This is the type of
innovation you can expect from a professional solar screen company.
At Solar Shade Screen we offer the most effective and
energy efficient solar screens on the market. Nobody even comes close to
our product because nobody else understands solar screening like we do.
We were installing solar screens when solar screens were not even known about.
The owner of our company pioneered solar screening in the Dallas - Fort Worth,
TX area and expanded this product around the state and country. The
roots of the business trace back to the mid 1950s prior to cooling being
installed in every building as a standard and solar screens were used to keep
heat out of buildings and homes. As energy costs increased beginning in
the 70s, solar screening once again became important to the increase of
comfort while reducing energy costs. Ceiling fans followed the same
pattern as they were eliminated when buildings started installing cooling.
Almost every home built now installs ceiling fans to help increase comfort and
reduce energy costs. Solar screens are beginning to be found on most
every home.
How to Buy Solar Screens |
Solar Screen Framing Systems
 Consider the framing system of the insect screens on your
existing windows. Typically, these are 5/16" X 5/8" and made of .020
aluminum. This is not much more than the aluminum foil found in your
kitchen drawers. In fact, most people have the strength to easily bend and
damage an insect screen frame.
Most
companies will take that same framing system and spline a fabric which is 10 to
15 times heavier. Then they will give you a lifetime warranty on their
product. Does this seem like an honest warranty? Do you think they
are really going to be around in a few years when you begin to have problems
with your solar screens? The low price you received when purchasing a
product like this will end up costing you 3 times more by the time you waste
your days calling for warranty, ultimately not receiving a warranty because the
company cannot afford to service their work, and then contracting with a
reputable company providing the correct type of system to be able to properly
offer a serviceable and affordable warranty.
Solar Shade Screen, Inc
has developed a 1"
aluminum framing system with a spline groove to accept the heavier
solar screen fabric. No plastic corners are used in our manufacturing process.
All corners are mitred and receive internal hidden aluminum reinforced corners. The framing has a wall thickness of 030
and we have not found a person strong enough to crush the framing with their
bare hands like one can with the typical insect screen framing.
Our goal is to provide
the most effective and efficient solar screening system for your windows.
Depending on the circumstance, we might use thumb clips or barrell clips which can rotate
to allow access to the glass for cleaning. Our entire system is engineered to guarantee maximum
efficiency and easy accessibility.
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