When summer hits in southern California, you probably have a hard time keeping your house a comfortable temperature. As the mercury rises, your energy bills do too. You might think that there is nothing you can do about this, but you are mistaken. You have probably heard people say something like “It’s not the heat; it’s the humidity,” and have thought they were completely wrong. Well, they are not entirely wrong; the heat is the reason you are uncomfortable, but the humidity is the reason you have such a hard time getting comfortable. As you sweat, the sweat evaporates, taking body heat with it to cool you off. If the air is already very humid, the sweat does not evaporate readily.
Also, if the air is humid, you will experience warm temperatures at night because the air traps the heat better. However, if the nighttime is not very humid, it might actually be quite cool. The walls of your house might be trapping that midday heat and blocking you off from the cool nighttime breezes. You spend all day trying to keep the hot air out, how do you then let the cool air in? The answer is phantom screens.
Retractable Screens
With a retractable screen on your porch door or back door, you can keep it closed during the day. This will help block out the bright sun and harmful UV rays. However, once night falls and the temperature drops to a comfortable level, you can open the door and keep the screen closed. That way, you can let the warm air out and the cool air in without also letting the bugs in too. You will not have to run your air conditioner to keep your house comfortable, which will greatly reduce your cooling costs.
A retractable screen is also desirable because you can use it as a door. On windows with fixed screens, they block out some UV rays and keep bugs out, but you cannot remove them. A retractable screen operates as a door. Also, they can be easily removed for cleaning.
Blocking the Sun
Phantom screens in San Diego and other sunny locations do double duty. At night, they allow you to open your doors to the cool nighttime air, but during the day, they work to block out some of the sun’s light. By blocking some of the UV rays of the sun, your carpet and furniture will not fade as quickly.
In addition to blocking UV rays, blocking the light itself will prevent that light from heating up the air inside your home and causing you to run your air conditioner more than you normally would. Phantom screens are the perfect addition to sliding glass doors that tend to heat up during the day. Find more information.
