when i purchased my house i unfortunately picked a spec home that faced the "wrong" way, as a result i get full blown sun shine blasts into my house and in the spring/summer/fall time my electric bill goes up dramatically as my house gets super hot. i've thought about getting my home windows tinted (quote is like $1200 ) and i've thought of getting additional insulation. the windows are already double pane so technically they're pretty good at insulation vs. traditional windows.

any suggestions? and a side question: will any of this help keep my house warm in the cold winter months?

 

maybe plant some big trees to provide some shade?

 

Check to see how much heat is getting in through the seam of your attic door. You might be able to find a huge styro icechest that would encapsulate the door inside the attic. Otherwise there are products specifically for this, but you'll pay for them.

I'll second the tree idea. I think you'd regret the tint, and $1200 is a lot.

Maybe get into leasing billboards; make the first one right in front of your house.

 

I made my own. Take a big piece of cardboard (like a refrigerator box or something) and cut it to size, then glue roll-insulation to the back of it. I also put weather stripping around the attic door, since mine didn't have it originally.

I'd second the vote for trees if you have room to plant them there. My lot sucks because I have a two story and the house to the west of me is a one-story so it doesn't block any sun. Plus, there's not enough room on the west side of my house for me to plant trees.

My windows have some sort of coating on them that makes a huge difference in the amount of heat that gets through them. It makes a huge difference, but I'd be hard pressed to justify paying $1200 to get it done after the fact.

 

you own a home and you're complaining about a $1200 upgrade?

 

I own a mortgage. The bank owns the home.

If I thought that I'd recoup $1200 in utility payments (in a reasonable amount of time) by investing $1200 in window upgrades, I'd do it. Otherwise, I don't see the value.

 

that was directed more at the OP

tint still seems like a better option than planting tree's and waiting a decade for them to grow large enough to block the sun.

or curtains might help.

 

Put some shades or shutters on the windows. That will significantly reduce the heat coming in. $1200 to have reflective film put on the windows sounds like a lot but how much will you save in utilities? It's about what you'll pay for good quality shutters (cali style).

 

Focus only on the South/West face of your home. Or consider adding outdoor window awning to block out some of the sunlight.

 

The honeycomb window shades are supposed to be good insulators. I think some energy efficiency upgrades to your house are also tax deductible so take a look at that and you can knock off part of the upgrade costs that way.