When it comes to protection from UV rays, besides having harmful effects on people, they can also damage furniture and other things in your home. When the sun enters through your windows regularly, your furniture, wood floors, rugs, bed linens, and similar things, can lose their original look and start aging prematurely. Therefore, can curtains block UV rays and that way protect the things in your home?
Curtains and drapes can block UV rays, but you need to select the proper fabrics and materials. Curtains made of polyester, nylon, silk, and wool, are proven to block UV rays effectively. Using curtains as protection from UV rays is the simplest solution for your home, as well as affordable.
Below, I have discussed how you can protect your furniture and other things in your home from UV rays. According to my findings, curtains are proven to be the simplest and the most affordable solution that you can find in relation to this issue. In the article, I have also listed some types of fabrics and materials of curtains that act as a direct physical block between UV rays, and the inside of your home.
What Kind Of Curtains Block Sunlight?
The drapery lining, which is part of the drapery and is positioned right behind the drapes, plays an essential role in the protection of UV rays. We tend to forget this element in our window coverage because drapes and the lining usually go together. However, this is the most important part of your window coverings since it stands as a block for UV rays.
The drapery linings are usually made of polyester, which is a material known for blocking UV rays and sunlight effectively. Therefore, if you have a drapery lining, you can use whatever curtains and drapes you want because you have already provided your UV protection.
As long as you are using drapes, you are fully blocking the sunlight and the UV rays. However, if you do not want a complete block of the sunlight, but you want to provide UV protection, then you can use sheer curtains since they are translucent but an effective block for UV rays.
Other types of curtains that block the sunlight, as well as the UV rays, are blackout curtains, light filtering curtains, and thermal curtains. Some of these curtains are made of lighter materials, while the others are made of thicker fabrics. Below, I have given a clear explanation of these curtains along with the benefits they provide, so you could make a decision in an easier way.
Curtains That Block UV Rays
As I mentioned above, the UV protection that curtains might offer depends on their materials and fabrics. Therefore, there are different types of curtains that can act as a block for UV rays, but at the same match the style and design of your room.
Light Filtering Curtains
Light filtering curtains are a little bit heavyweight, but they do not fully block the sunlight from entering the room. This means that they do not leave your room in complete darkness once they are put on. However, they are very efficient when it comes to UV protection since they use multiple layers, and act as a block towards UV rays.
Blackout Curtains
Blackout curtains are one of the best UV protective coverings for your windows. Besides fully blocking the sunlight, they are great protection from UV rays. This type of curtains can also reduce the cost of your electricity bill since they keep the rooms cool in summer, and you do not need to have your AC turned on the whole day.
Net Curtains
Net curtains are also known as sheer curtains and they can be used as protection from UV rays. Even though they are very thin and translucent, they can still block the UV, however offering minimal protection. People choose net curtains because they do not want to block the sunlight, but still want to stay protected from the UV light.
Thermal Curtains
Thermal curtains include acrylic foam in their fabrics and materials, therefore they are considered great protection from UV rays. They can also fully block the sunlight in your home, so along with protection, you can be sure that you can always keep your room dark whenever it is needed. In addition, since they are made of multiple layers, they can keep your home cool in summer, so you can reduce your electricity bill a little bit.
What Colors Can Block UV Rays?
Although it is a fact that darker colors attract the sun more, when it comes to blocking the UV rays, they have some surprising features. You probably think that you will need lighter colors as protection from UV light. However, according to some scientists and research, darker colors are regarded as better absorbers of UV light and radiation than lighter ones.
Therefore, colors like red and blue can absorb a significant amount of UV rays, and curtains in this color can offer you the best protection from UV light. In other words, if you pick the colors of your curtains depending on the UV protection features, then you should always go for darker colors.
The Impact Of UV Light
As you already know, UV rays are quite harmful to people, and they can cause some real damages to human skin. However, your home furniture and other decorations can also suffer from UV light.
A lot of your furniture can fade and lose its original colors. Therefore, your furniture might start looking older than it actually is, and you will be forced to do replacements. To avoid that, you must keep everything in your house as less exposed to sunlight as possible, and keep your furniture and decor in a good shape.
As you could see, UV light can be harmful to inanimate objects as well, not only humans. For that purpose, you should use curtains and drapes, as this is the simplest solution, and protect your furniture as much as possible.
