Why You Need Skylight Shades
Skylights are great for letting in natural sunlight and cutting down your electricity bills by decreasing your dependence on electric lights during the day. Although it's important to take advantage of natural light, sometimes you need to diffuse or block the light that enters through your skylights. This is especially important for areas where you may not want direct sunlight, for rooms where you want total light control, or for warmer months when sunlight might heat up areas of your home and cost you more in cooling bills.
Having light control is important and homeowners take great care to choose window blinds and shades that give them maximum control over direct and indirect sunlight. Since most skylights are designed to maximize direct overhead light, you may want skylight shades that help you better control the light entering your home through these types of windows. Since most skylights come with clear glass, most of the light is considered direct and, although this may be nice at different times of day, skylight shades give you greater control over the kind of light you let in through your skylights. While you might enjoy the natural light coming through your skylight, you may choose to purchase a skylight blind with diffusing properties. When pulled closed, light diffusing cellular shades filter and diffuse the light, providing you with the ambiance of natural light without the direct glare and brightness associated with most skylights.
Although diffusing incoming light is soft and provides a warm ambiance, some homeowners require even greater control over the sunlight coming in through their skylights. Complete blackout cellular skylight shades are perfect for bedrooms or media rooms where direct or even diffused light can cause problems. Although blackout shades are fully retractable to allow sunlight through at any moment, you have the option of blocking all light from entering the room with these blackout skylight shades. Whether you need them for sleeping or movies, room-darkening blackout shades can provide even greater light control than their light-diffusing alternatives.
Warmer months bring longer days and hotter weather. Skylights can help create natural light throughout the day, but they also let in more light that can heat up your home. Cellular skylight shades not only block incoming light, they also provide an insulating barrier between your room and the window. Tiny pockets of air are trapped in the cellular blind and prevent excess heating to your room. Although you may want to take advantage of more light during summer months, cellular skylight shades can help decrease your air conditioning bill by blocking light and heat from entering your home.