Advice on reflective window coverings/blinds/whatever

[Swampyseifer]

Hi all,


The back of my house is south-facing and we literally have sun on it from sunrise to sunset, it is absolute murder at this time of year, my office upstairs was still 28c at 830pm so you can imagine what its like to sit in it all day when I'm working from home! Also my 6yo's bedroom is at the back as well and it causes him to be very unsettled and have trouble sleeping. We put an awning over the living room doors out to the garden and it made a massive difference but its not really as viable an option for the upstairs bedroom. No problem we thought, there's bound to be something we can do to reduce the heat buildup during the day....

My wife and I have been googling and googling this and we just cant seem to find anything solid to go on, there are so many options and opinions - blinds, curtains, films, foil etc and then you you've got types of each like whether to get black out or not, is the film internal or external, is it better to hand the curtain/blind inside the window recess or outside.

Can anyone advise or say what they've done?

 

[Swampyseifer]

A brise soleil would be more effective but that obviously has more of a visual impact.

Another choice to add to the list

A black out roller blind might help stop the warming.

Might being the key word - unfortunately google has provided lots of mights, but not many wills

Are you in the UK or in a country where the sun is a problem?

e: ignore, your location literally says UK.

You sound like you're overthinking a common problem and you've stated the very common solutions already (" blinds, curtains, films, foil etc "). Choose one that you think will work best for you and modify if you need to.

Apologies for being an arse earlier.

This is my point though, how do I know which to choose? And even then, each of the main choices (blinds, curtains, films, foil etc) then breaks down into a load of sub-decisions that seem to make or break it.

 

[Swampyseifer]

See! I've had suggestions already for blinds, shutters and film on the inside of the window or putting something outside the window to physically block the sun. Plus then a discussion on whether the windows should be open or not!

Why is it so complex!?