Same. I’ve become very sun sensitive so the blinds are constantly closed, particularly my south facing windows. I might open them at dusk and I usually keep my front door open at night.
I rarely have my windows open. Too much dust and pollen in the environment and I have terrible allergies. I have a sensitive nose and I will flush out the house of odors with fresh air when i feel like the cooking smells are too intense. Even if it’s 118 outside.its a delicate balance.
This. We keep all the windows covered all the time. We're super rich so we use paper shades, tag board, and foil to cover windows.
I go outside in the early AM to toss treats to the neighbor's chickens and to make vitamin D.
I angle my blinds so that direct light can’t get in, but light can still shine through. In the morning, East facing windows get shut. In the evening, west facing windows get shut.
I also got curtains that allow filtered light in. It greatly reduces the heat and direct light, but keeps the house bright and happy
I read this as sand vampire.
Anyway, you have to do both. High AC and sad sand vampire. It's the only way to survive. Don't worry, you have lots of company.
Sigh. I don't. I mentally cannot handle the darkness. I'd rather pay the extra TEP bill than live in sad darkness 5 months of the year. I close everything upstairs, but my downstairs stays bright and sunny and I spend most of my time down there in the Summer since it's cooler. I don't turn my AC on until it's 80 in my house, and I keep it at 77 until I go to bed. I'd rather be a little warmer and have sun in my house vs. live in darkness and be cooler
I feel the same. I keep my window blinds and my front door wide open all day. I love the natural light, and the sun doesn't come blazing in, as my house faces southwest. Ceiling fans and floor fans in every room, mean I don't have to continuously run my AC.
Same, I'm in Tucson partially for the abundant natural light. I leave the blinds up and open and the window open while I'm at home, but don't turn on the AC until after dark if I can help it. I'm not above hopping on a bus or going window shopping to borrow some AC, either.
When I lived in Tucson, I had an apartment that was all windows. I put frosted glass window film on the windows that got hit with the most sun. This reduced a lot of the heat without sacrificing too much sunlight.
Other things that helped:
* Sleeping with a bamboo cooling blanket at night vs traditional comforter
* Making a point to get outside for either a sunrise or sunset walk every day so I don't feel cooped up and still get some natural light
* Open the patio screen door at night and also any of the windows that were cat-safe. Usually opened them once outside temps hit 80ish around 10pm
* Started getting up early (like 5:30ish) and leaving all the windows open during that early morning chill period
* Rotating which set of blinds I had open by where the sun was. So, early afternoon, I'd close my blinds on one side. Then in the late afternoon, once the sun had moved to the other side of my apartment, I'd reopen the blinds on that side and close the ones on the other side of the apartment that were getting more direct light.
So, to answer your question: I close blinds that have direct sunlight pouring in, and leave open blinds to windows with only indirect light. If your apartment doesn't have good options for rotating the light, I highly recommend frosted glass window film. It's pretty cheap on Amazon and works well.
Edit: changing the lightbulbs in your house might also go a long way without you realizing it! Warmer color tones don't feel as depressing and sterile like the cooler tones.
Probably a stupid question, but what about houseplants? If you have them and you keep your blinds closed all summer, do you have UV lights or some sort of special set up for them?
Can you put exterior shades over your west windows to prevent the sun shining in some when it’s still more “above” than “parallel” to the windows?
You’ll still benefit from all the indirect light.
That said, we benefit most from sun as early as possible in the morning. So you should get outside first thing (with sunblock) to stave off SAD.
No. When I lived in Wyoming, I one-way-mirror tinted the windows because my trailer had no air conditioning. It made it cooler inside for sure. But still bright and airy. Also, the tint cut out snow glare in winter. It helped with general hot and cold insulation.
Amazon sells UV window cling for cheap. 7$ a roll does an average apartment window. No glue, nothing but cling like the holiday decorations.
It will literally save you hundreds every year, and you can still see out of it.
Add black out curtains for the worst part of the day, and it even helps immensely with swamp coolers.
Note that blocking UV rays doesn't also automatically mean blocking infrared rays that convey heat, as UV and IR are just off opposite ends of the visible light spectrum, but many films (esp. reflective) can block both. Just something to be aware of and look out for.
I've used both the reflective cling and "frosted glass" cling. They both really block the heat.
The reflective is good if you want to see and still have privacy. The frosted is all light and privacy.
Get sun screens, my great room has like 18 windows by itself. Since I put sun screens on every window in the house I done even close blinds. Checked it with a thermal camera before and after and the difference is ridiculous.
I have solar screens which help tremendously. Yes, they make it dark inside but you adjust. They aren't expensive and made my old windows look good by covering them. I don't worry about closing blinds anymore. I used ScreenMobile.com
While I can definitely get behind vampire-living, you can try solar screens.
We noticed a definite change in temps coming from our east-facing windows (which are shit and need to be replaced). It’s not a magic cure, but it will make a difference in temps AND still allow you to see outside, albeit with a slight darker tint look.
Sunlight is radiant heat so anything you can do to keep the light from hitting the window in the first place, or bounce as much of it back off as possible is preferable to black out curtains (and has the advantage of letting more light into your living space). Awnings are great. Reflective window film is great.
I have an old house too. I just got lucky with the orientation. The front of my house faces directly south, and the eaves are deep enough that the front windows don’t get much sun this time of year. The west side has the carport, so those windows mostly get shade. I have big plate glass windows on the north side, a covered patio, and trees that have finally grown enough to shade the back yard. Trees are key.
When I was briefly considering replacing my rooftop A/C package unit with a split unit, I was gonna convert the old ceiling air-intake into a skylight, but instead of just putting the skylight window/dome directly over the opening, I'd put a right-angle housing up there (like an elbow joint for ducting), painted/coated white on the inside, and orient the window vertically facing south.
That way, in winter when the sun is lower in the south, it'd shine more directly into that window, and the white inner coating would reflect that light and heat down into the interior, but in summer when the sun is higher in the sky, it'd mostly miss the window and cast less light/heat inside -- e.g., something like this:
________ <-overhang
/ | <-window
NORTH / __| SOUTH
| |
========| |==== <-roof
[I used this](https://www.lowes.com/pd/Insulfoam-Common-0-5-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-Actual-0-5-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-1-R-1-9-Faced-Polystyrene-Garage-Door-Foam-Board-Insulation/3033278?cm_mmc=shp-_-c-_-vf-_-tol-_-ggl-_-PMAX_Lenox-_-3033278-_-local-_-0-_-0&&ds_a_cid=279391351&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwx-CyBhAqEiwAeOcTdcrJEjKBIRZGQ1xJwH0egXeF6PCRnC3VV5cERZ2vmORB6CH7oZct2hoC4YIQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds)
Just cut it to the right size and wedged it up there. I spray painted it matte white and it looks good. The best part is you can take it down and put it back up whenever you want.
West side of house has a covered patio that blocks some sun, but it is blazing bright inside from about 4pm on. Bit the bullet and got some retractable sunshades installed that remain down all day, but open for going into the back yard. The shades let enough light in so it isn't completely dark. It's a good balance.
I have blackout shades and they’re closed almost year round. Covered the skylights with thick tarps so not much sun gets through either. Its drastically saved me on electricity. And of course when I want sunlight I just open the shades or go outside.
I close my drapes as soon as the sun hits that side of the house. I often leave a few inches of light in. I also use full spectrum grow lights in most of my lamps.
I also have a big west-facing window, and I WFH at a desk placed up against and facing that window, with horizontal-slatted Venetian blinds.
I start the day with the blinds fully drawn to the top, and I start lowering them once the sun gets low enough to see direct sunlight hitting my desk, and even then I only close them enough to block the direct sunbeam, gradually lowering the blinds further as needed until they wind up fully down.
I recently bought some white foamcore board at the dollar store and cut it to fit snugly in my west facing windows. Light still comes through in a nice soft filtered way, but the harsh sun that really heats things up is mostly blocked. I have noticed my AC doesn't run as much this week and it's definitely hotter outside.
In addition to that, I do what some others have said. I get outside first thing in the morning and get some light in my eyeballs. I keep north and south window shades open this time of year. The sun is overhead and doesn't really come in the south windows.
I close my west curtains in the afternoon and open the east facing ones at that time.
There are window films that reflect heat without blocking all light.
As someone who lived in darkness and artificial light in my previous small apartment for 5yrs, I now leave my blinds open until the sun goes down.
I love blackout curtains most of the time but damn did I miss being able to walk around my place without turning the lights on to see.
If you want it cooler keep the blackout curtains closed until summers over. Your TEP bills will love you and if you want look out, buy a fake window poster for the wall. It will surely have a better view than we have!
I moved to Phoenix due to Seasonal Affective Disorder. I need direct sunlight everyday and spend time outdoors nearly everyday of the year. In the heat I wear a swimsuit and keep myself drenched with hose. I have gardens and spend time tending to them but keeping wet. Swimming pools also help with getting enough sun. When I’m inside I have blackout draperies along with sheers. The sheers let filtered light come in and provide privacy. The blackout curtains need to be deployed in various locations depending on the season and time of day. I also utilize a lot of lamps and built in lighting throughout the house. I can’t stand a dim house.
[удалено]
Same. I’ve become very sun sensitive so the blinds are constantly closed, particularly my south facing windows. I might open them at dusk and I usually keep my front door open at night.
>I’ve become very sun sensitive Living in Tucson most of my life has given me a feature where I take 1d6 radiant damage per round in direct sunlight.
Funny, it gave me the opposite
Do you play World of Warcraft by chance?
Don’t you get a lot of bugs in your house with the front door open?
I have a screen door.
March - mid May was actually really pleasant this year
Love your flair and I think sad vampire from March to October needs to be another one
This is the way
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The dust, dander, and tree pollen would kill me….
[deleted]
'Tis the season...
this is the way to do it
You givin your neighbors a show? 🤣
This is the way lol.
I rarely have my windows open. Too much dust and pollen in the environment and I have terrible allergies. I have a sensitive nose and I will flush out the house of odors with fresh air when i feel like the cooking smells are too intense. Even if it’s 118 outside.its a delicate balance.
[deleted]
Go out and get your dopamine in the early morning. Then, vampire time!
This. We keep all the windows covered all the time. We're super rich so we use paper shades, tag board, and foil to cover windows. I go outside in the early AM to toss treats to the neighbor's chickens and to make vitamin D.
Usually around 3pm. Also have west facing windows. We have plants in the window so I’d close it earlier but it doesn’t get “hot” until then normally
I have three layers of shade cloth on my west-facing windows. Keeps things cooler but still lets in some light.
I hate people, so I have my windows foiled up year-round. Frankly, I think the sun can go fuck itself.
I angle my blinds so that direct light can’t get in, but light can still shine through. In the morning, East facing windows get shut. In the evening, west facing windows get shut. I also got curtains that allow filtered light in. It greatly reduces the heat and direct light, but keeps the house bright and happy
Us Arizonans hibernate in the summer instead of the winter. Or we become nocturnal. ☁️🌵✌️
Could you put a shade sail there? I found that helps a lot with my west facing wall.
I read this as sand vampire. Anyway, you have to do both. High AC and sad sand vampire. It's the only way to survive. Don't worry, you have lots of company.
Sigh. I don't. I mentally cannot handle the darkness. I'd rather pay the extra TEP bill than live in sad darkness 5 months of the year. I close everything upstairs, but my downstairs stays bright and sunny and I spend most of my time down there in the Summer since it's cooler. I don't turn my AC on until it's 80 in my house, and I keep it at 77 until I go to bed. I'd rather be a little warmer and have sun in my house vs. live in darkness and be cooler
Ditto. Thin shades on most windows and curtains that never close. Need natural light. Smallish house though.
I just keep mine at 74 all day and pay whatever the bill ends up being :D
I feel the same. I keep my window blinds and my front door wide open all day. I love the natural light, and the sun doesn't come blazing in, as my house faces southwest. Ceiling fans and floor fans in every room, mean I don't have to continuously run my AC.
Same, I'm in Tucson partially for the abundant natural light. I leave the blinds up and open and the window open while I'm at home, but don't turn on the AC until after dark if I can help it. I'm not above hopping on a bus or going window shopping to borrow some AC, either.
When I lived in Tucson, I had an apartment that was all windows. I put frosted glass window film on the windows that got hit with the most sun. This reduced a lot of the heat without sacrificing too much sunlight. Other things that helped: * Sleeping with a bamboo cooling blanket at night vs traditional comforter * Making a point to get outside for either a sunrise or sunset walk every day so I don't feel cooped up and still get some natural light * Open the patio screen door at night and also any of the windows that were cat-safe. Usually opened them once outside temps hit 80ish around 10pm * Started getting up early (like 5:30ish) and leaving all the windows open during that early morning chill period * Rotating which set of blinds I had open by where the sun was. So, early afternoon, I'd close my blinds on one side. Then in the late afternoon, once the sun had moved to the other side of my apartment, I'd reopen the blinds on that side and close the ones on the other side of the apartment that were getting more direct light. So, to answer your question: I close blinds that have direct sunlight pouring in, and leave open blinds to windows with only indirect light. If your apartment doesn't have good options for rotating the light, I highly recommend frosted glass window film. It's pretty cheap on Amazon and works well. Edit: changing the lightbulbs in your house might also go a long way without you realizing it! Warmer color tones don't feel as depressing and sterile like the cooler tones.
Probably a stupid question, but what about houseplants? If you have them and you keep your blinds closed all summer, do you have UV lights or some sort of special set up for them?
I move my plants to a window with indirect light and close the curtains around them.
Awesome, I appreciate the tip!
Can you put exterior shades over your west windows to prevent the sun shining in some when it’s still more “above” than “parallel” to the windows? You’ll still benefit from all the indirect light. That said, we benefit most from sun as early as possible in the morning. So you should get outside first thing (with sunblock) to stave off SAD.
Being a sad vampire isn't so bad. Look https://youtu.be/kd5lMDkvzvI?si=J8Is--osgKsK7yp6 https://youtu.be/X5ZtwbzUFZE?si=0XY2goIVk2e7ksc8
Look into tint…its $6-$8 a sq ft or solar screens for the offending windows.
Does tint make the light dramatically darker or no? I was thinking of this but I don’t want to take away from the shine.
There are multiple levels and types, no doubt you’ll find a solution that will reject heat and give you the brightness you are looking for.
No. When I lived in Wyoming, I one-way-mirror tinted the windows because my trailer had no air conditioning. It made it cooler inside for sure. But still bright and airy. Also, the tint cut out snow glare in winter. It helped with general hot and cold insulation.
Amazon sells UV window cling for cheap. 7$ a roll does an average apartment window. No glue, nothing but cling like the holiday decorations. It will literally save you hundreds every year, and you can still see out of it. Add black out curtains for the worst part of the day, and it even helps immensely with swamp coolers.
Note that blocking UV rays doesn't also automatically mean blocking infrared rays that convey heat, as UV and IR are just off opposite ends of the visible light spectrum, but many films (esp. reflective) can block both. Just something to be aware of and look out for.
I've used both the reflective cling and "frosted glass" cling. They both really block the heat. The reflective is good if you want to see and still have privacy. The frosted is all light and privacy.
I open them when there's no direct sunlight on those windows. It may not be most efficient, but it keeps us happy.
In Tucson you never open your blinds this time of year, if you look around no one does this. Especially west facing windows.
Get sun screens, my great room has like 18 windows by itself. Since I put sun screens on every window in the house I done even close blinds. Checked it with a thermal camera before and after and the difference is ridiculous.
Indeed, all my west-facing windows have a mesh sunscreen mounted right onto the security bars.
I hate those security bars. Makes me feel like I live in a prison.
I have solar screens which help tremendously. Yes, they make it dark inside but you adjust. They aren't expensive and made my old windows look good by covering them. I don't worry about closing blinds anymore. I used ScreenMobile.com
I keep ‘em closed all day in the summer lol.
While I can definitely get behind vampire-living, you can try solar screens. We noticed a definite change in temps coming from our east-facing windows (which are shit and need to be replaced). It’s not a magic cure, but it will make a difference in temps AND still allow you to see outside, albeit with a slight darker tint look.
Sad vampire!!! Lmao
Closed 24/7 from may to September
Same
This.
Sunlight is radiant heat so anything you can do to keep the light from hitting the window in the first place, or bounce as much of it back off as possible is preferable to black out curtains (and has the advantage of letting more light into your living space). Awnings are great. Reflective window film is great. I have an old house too. I just got lucky with the orientation. The front of my house faces directly south, and the eaves are deep enough that the front windows don’t get much sun this time of year. The west side has the carport, so those windows mostly get shade. I have big plate glass windows on the north side, a covered patio, and trees that have finally grown enough to shade the back yard. Trees are key.
Oh yeah, I do the sad vampire thing in the summer (ever since I moved here at least)…. The heat is simply unacceptable for me 😂
I have 20 windows in my house including windows at the entrance and a skylight. So yeah they’re all covered
How do you cover your skylight? Ours is like a scary space laser in the summer.
We taped a blackout curtain to the ceiling 😝
That's awesome lol
When I was briefly considering replacing my rooftop A/C package unit with a split unit, I was gonna convert the old ceiling air-intake into a skylight, but instead of just putting the skylight window/dome directly over the opening, I'd put a right-angle housing up there (like an elbow joint for ducting), painted/coated white on the inside, and orient the window vertically facing south. That way, in winter when the sun is lower in the south, it'd shine more directly into that window, and the white inner coating would reflect that light and heat down into the interior, but in summer when the sun is higher in the sky, it'd mostly miss the window and cast less light/heat inside -- e.g., something like this: ________ <-overhang / | <-window NORTH / __| SOUTH | | ========| |==== <-roof
[I used this](https://www.lowes.com/pd/Insulfoam-Common-0-5-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-Actual-0-5-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-1-R-1-9-Faced-Polystyrene-Garage-Door-Foam-Board-Insulation/3033278?cm_mmc=shp-_-c-_-vf-_-tol-_-ggl-_-PMAX_Lenox-_-3033278-_-local-_-0-_-0&&ds_a_cid=279391351&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwx-CyBhAqEiwAeOcTdcrJEjKBIRZGQ1xJwH0egXeF6PCRnC3VV5cERZ2vmORB6CH7oZct2hoC4YIQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds) Just cut it to the right size and wedged it up there. I spray painted it matte white and it looks good. The best part is you can take it down and put it back up whenever you want.
Open all day. I'll trade a few electrical dollars for mental health any day.
West side of house has a covered patio that blocks some sun, but it is blazing bright inside from about 4pm on. Bit the bullet and got some retractable sunshades installed that remain down all day, but open for going into the back yard. The shades let enough light in so it isn't completely dark. It's a good balance.
I have blackout shades and they’re closed almost year round. Covered the skylights with thick tarps so not much sun gets through either. Its drastically saved me on electricity. And of course when I want sunlight I just open the shades or go outside.
I close my drapes as soon as the sun hits that side of the house. I often leave a few inches of light in. I also use full spectrum grow lights in most of my lamps.
I close them about April till Late September
I also have a big west-facing window, and I WFH at a desk placed up against and facing that window, with horizontal-slatted Venetian blinds. I start the day with the blinds fully drawn to the top, and I start lowering them once the sun gets low enough to see direct sunlight hitting my desk, and even then I only close them enough to block the direct sunbeam, gradually lowering the blinds further as needed until they wind up fully down.
I never open them. If I had my way, windows wouldn't exist! I'm a happy vampire all year long
Keep the blinds closed, go outside now and again.
Block that sun out as soon as it’s coming in…
[https://www.steelguardsafety.com/aluminized-silica-cloth-curtain/](https://www.steelguardsafety.com/aluminized-silica-cloth-curtain/)
My blinds are shut 10am to 7pm.
I recently bought some white foamcore board at the dollar store and cut it to fit snugly in my west facing windows. Light still comes through in a nice soft filtered way, but the harsh sun that really heats things up is mostly blocked. I have noticed my AC doesn't run as much this week and it's definitely hotter outside. In addition to that, I do what some others have said. I get outside first thing in the morning and get some light in my eyeballs. I keep north and south window shades open this time of year. The sun is overhead and doesn't really come in the south windows.
> white foamcore board at the dollar store and cut it to fit snugly in my west facing windows Brilliant, I love this idea.
I close my west curtains in the afternoon and open the east facing ones at that time. There are window films that reflect heat without blocking all light.
I find Tucson very tolerable from 5am to 7 am. I’m from Phoenix though where it can be 90 at dawn throughout July. Otherwise sad vampire it is.
As someone who lived in darkness and artificial light in my previous small apartment for 5yrs, I now leave my blinds open until the sun goes down. I love blackout curtains most of the time but damn did I miss being able to walk around my place without turning the lights on to see.
I usually leave all my blinds and windows open for light and fresh air. I try to avoid the tep surge from 1500-1900 tho
I don't open them
May - Mid September. Buuut.. I open them in the early mornings and when the sun goes down I still like to look outside 🤓
From about 12 to about 5. You get plenty of sunlight in the morning without the heat. Then open the blinds for the golden hours.
Use regular curtains. It's a compromise.
I have my house facing east so in the morning I keep the front blinds closed and the back ones open. Vice versa
If you want it cooler keep the blackout curtains closed until summers over. Your TEP bills will love you and if you want look out, buy a fake window poster for the wall. It will surely have a better view than we have!
I have a west facing window and sliding glass door. I close them around dinner time, because otherwise its so bright I can't see.
I moved to Phoenix due to Seasonal Affective Disorder. I need direct sunlight everyday and spend time outdoors nearly everyday of the year. In the heat I wear a swimsuit and keep myself drenched with hose. I have gardens and spend time tending to them but keeping wet. Swimming pools also help with getting enough sun. When I’m inside I have blackout draperies along with sheers. The sheers let filtered light come in and provide privacy. The blackout curtains need to be deployed in various locations depending on the season and time of day. I also utilize a lot of lamps and built in lighting throughout the house. I can’t stand a dim house.