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How To Help Black Out your Hartford Windows

April 02, 2018

There are many reasons you may want to block light from coming through windows in Hartford. Say you need to block ambient street light, constant traffic going by, or regular sunlight, blocking the light coming from your windows is important for relaxing and getting quality sleep.

For those in dire need of better sleep, here are a few ways Hartford homeowners can best block light through their windows.

What Window Coverings Control Light The Best?

Lots of Hartford window treatments claim to block light, and you can basically divide them into three groups: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Here’s how they stack up.

Light Blocking Window Treatments – The Good

The best window treatments to darken your windows should do a few things:

  • Effectively prevent light from coming in.

  • Adjust easily depending on your preferences throughout the day.

  • Look great.

The window covering that best fits all these criteria is Hartford plantation shutters. When the louvers are completely shut, shutters create a kind of seal on your windows, letting almost no light in. Our patented Polywood shutters also come with built-in weatherstripping that fills in the gaps along your window frame, blocking even more light. And unlike vinyl shutters, Polywood is guaranteed to split or crack, which can result in gaps in between the louvers and frame.

And unlike some gaudy DIY blackout solutions, shutters look beautiful in your home. Rather than looking like a piece of hardware, they’re as pretty as they are functional.

A second option in the “good” category is room-darkening roller shades. These are made with thick and layered material to keep out most light, and extend past your window opening. There can be some small spaces around the edges of the shade where light may seep inside. But for a window treatment that isn’t shutters, light-blocking shades make the cut.

Light Blocking Window Treatments – The Bad

In the “bad” category we have window coverings that don’t quite cut it when it comes to blacking out a window. Any fabric window treatment, from drapes to curtains, will allow some light in unless they’re both incredibly thick and extend beyond the edges of your window.

Hartford blackout shades bedroom
 
Even heavy-duty blinds don’t get the job done, because the slats on blinds are always going to let slivers of light in. That means light is going to come in, even if it’s at a very slight angle.

Light Blocking Window Treatments – The Ugly

Search for “Hartford window blackouts” online and you’re likely to find some do it yourself sheets that you hang in your window to block light. Most of them are customizable to your window size and shape, and stick to the window frame with velcro or something similar. And for the most part, they work fairly well.

But there are a few drawbacks with these products. First off, they don’t exactly look good. Most of these products sacrifice fashion for effectiveness. So if you put in of these blackout sheets, do it in a place that you don’t mind looking unstylish.

blackout curtain ugly

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Second, for being easy to install, you’d better hope that you don’t have to take them up and down much. The adhesive that keeps them adhered to the wall can wear off fairly quickly, which means you’ve got no choice but to try another one.

Let Sunburst Shutters Connecticut Help You See

To learn more about plantation shutters and other window treatments to help black out your windows, get in touch with your Hartford shutter team. Complete the form below or give us a call at 860-266-5459 today to get a free, no strings attached consultation.