If you are redecorating your home and you want to know how to pick skylight blinds, you aren’t alone. Picking the right blinds for your skylight is an important choice, because it affects the light you will get as well as the aesthetics of the window. Skylight blinds are also important for heat management.
The first thing you need to think about is how much light you want to pass through the skylight, and how much control you want over the light. A bare skylight will let in any sunlight that passes through. This can be a problem if it is located in certain areas: for example, a bare skylight in a bedroom can wake up sleeping people early in the morning when the sun rises. Adding a blind will permit you to control when the skylight will let light through and how much light will come through.
Skylight Location
The best level of light depends on the location of the skylight, as well as its size and angle. Some rooms want as much light as they can get, while others don’t need it. It also depends on whether you like to use the skylight at night to see the stars. This affects your choice of blind.
If you want to see the night sky, and you also want control over the light levels, you probably want blinds you can adjust easily. These can be electric or manual, but interior blinds are a useful way to regulate light coming in.
Heat Retention
Blinds are also important for heat retention. Skylights can let heat out of your house, especially on on cold nights, according to Home Tips. This is uncomfortable and annoying, so you want a blind that can help you keep heat where you want it. The opposite effect also occurs- lots of sunlight will heat up a room rather quickly. A thicker and darker blind will do better at heat control, like a fabric blind. These block out a lot of light and act like insulation to keep heat in.
The extreme solution to light control and heat retention is an external awning. These can be built so that you can retract them with motors, but they are so heavy and thick that they essentially shut off the skylight completely when they are in use. This can be a good thing in places that get a lot of direct sunlight, so it’s a choice dictated by geography. Most people will find it too constricting for their needs.
Pleated Blinds
Pleated blinds are a good compromise. They generally do not block as much light as an awning or fabric blind, but they are adjustable. One important role of blinds is to protect fabric and other surfaces that might fade in too much light. Think about the various furniture pieces you own and how the light from a skylight falls on them. Picking a good skylight is as much a matter of regulating the light you want as it is decorative.
Related Resource: How to Install Window Flashing
Conclusion
Hopefully this article has helped you learn about why you might want skylight blinds and what they can do for you. Skylight blinds can be beautiful as well as functional, so learn more about them before deciding which one is right for you. Now that you have more information, you will be able to pick skylight blinds for you home.
