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Shading with sunscreens:
An inexpensive way to keep your home cool

Sunscreens

Sunscreens, also called solar screens, are made of specially woven fiberglass, designed to block up to 70 percent of the incoming sunlight while still permitting a view out the window. Like regular insect screening, sunscreens let breezes in and keep insects out.

Mounted in wood or aluminum frames, sunscreens should be installed on the outside of the windows, and, for maximum benefit, should cover the whole window. By stopping most of the heat before it reaches the windows, interior heat is diminished, thereby substantially reducing the amount of air conditioning needed. Most people living in the South spend more money for cooling than they do for heating. Based on a 165-day cooling season, sunscreens placed over east and west windows save about one dollar for every square foot of glass covered during the cooling season.

Other advantages of sunscreens include:

  • Increased privacy. The special weave of the sunscreen allows more daytime privacy from the outside; you can see out, but others cannot see in.
  • Reduced fading of curtains and furniture. The amount of light that enters the room is reduced; consequently, ultraviolet radiation damage is decreased.
  • Works with windows opened or closed. The open mesh allows cool breezes to flow through, yet keeps insects out.
  • Works in winter, too. Independent tests show a 15 percent improvement in thermal performance of the sunscreen-window combination during the winter.
  • Long lasting. Life expectancy is 10-20 years.

Measuring to make screens

General rules

  • Select window(s) in a room most frequently used and which receives direct sunlight in the summer (particularly on the east and/or west side of the house).
  • Decide how you will attach the finished sunscreen to cover the entire glass area of the window. It is best to have a flat surface area (minimum 1/4-inch wide) around the window so that the screen can be mounted with screws. Be sure to include this area as part of your sunscreen measurement.

Measure the height and width of your window, just outside the blind stop.

When measuring sunscreens to fit storm windows, measure the glass inside the storm window frame and then add 1 1/8 inch to both measurements.

Height 1 ____________
Width 1 ____________

Option 1. Replacing existing screen on a wooden frame

  1. Remove molding from old screen (do this carefully if you plan to use the molding again) and remove old screen and staples. Clean the edge of the frame with a paint scraper or steel wool brush.
  2. Cut a piece of sunscreen 1 inch larger than the outside dimensions of the old screen.
  3. Place the screen on the frame, and staple the screen to the top of the frame using 1/4-inch staples and a staple gun.
  4. Stretch the screen to the bottom and staple.
  5. Staple one side down; stretch the other side and staple.
  6. Trim with a utility knife any excess screen.
  7. Cover the staples with the old screen molding (or new screen molding if the old is too rotten). Use 3/4- or 1-inch brads hammered in place to attach the molding to the frame. (Note: The screen molding may be mitered for a more professional look.) The screen is now ready for your window.

Materials and tools needed:

  • Staple
  • Pry bar or nail puller
  • 1/4-inch staples
  • Sunscreen
  • 3/4-inch or 1-inch brads
  • Hammer
  • Mitre box with hacksaw (if new molding is required)
  • Paint scraper or steel wool brush
  • Utility knife or scissors
  • Measuring tape
  • Pencil or chalk

Option 2. Replacing a screen on an existing frame

  1. Remove old screen by removing the old spline (carefully, if you plan to reuse it). Cut a piece of sunscreen 1 inch larger than outside dimensions of old screen.
  2. Place the sunscreen over the frame. Start at the top left-hand corner, and lay the rubber spline on top of the screen directly over the groove. Using a screen-spline roller, roll in a clockwise direction to press the spline and screen into the groove. Continue around the frame until you reach your starting point.
  3. Trim any excess sunscreen from the spline. You are now ready to install the screen on your window.

Materials and tools needed:

  • Rubber spline
  • Sunscreen
  • Screen-spline roller
  • Screwdriver
  • Utility knife
  • Scissors
  • Measuring tape
  • Pencil or chalk

Option 3. Installing sunscreen on a new metal frame

  1. Measure the outside frame of your window.
  2. Cut two pieces of screen frame to match the top and bottom measurements. Cut two more pieces to match the side measurements. Miter each corner by cutting the end at a 45 degree angle. Fasten frame together with a corner clip at each corner.
  3. Cut a piece of sunscreen 1 inch larger than the outside dimensions of the frame. Place the sunscreen over the frame. Start at the top left-hand corner, and lay the rubber spline on top of the screen directly over the groove. Using a screen-spline roller, roll in a clockwise direction to press the spline and screen into the groove. Continue around the frame until you reach your starting point.
  4. Trim any excess sunscreen from the spline. You are now ready to install the screen on your window.

Materials and tools needed:

  • Rubber spline
  • Sunscreen
  • Aluminum screen stock
  • Screen-spline roller
  • Mitre box and hacksaw
  • Screwdriver
  • Drill and bit
  • Utility knife
  • Scissors
  • Measuring tape
  • Pencil or chalk
  • Corner clip (fastener)

Attaching Sunscreen

Securely attach new screens to window frames with screws. Note: If window frames are wooden, you may want to drill a hole in the frame and install a screw-threaded device (wall fastener or sheetrock fastener) to allow for easy removal.

This material was prepared with the support of the U.S. Department of Energy, Grant #DE-FG44-80CS69106, through a contract with the Mississippi Department of Energy and Transportation. However, any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Energy.

Adapted from a TVA publication, "Sunscreen Shading Plans," and distributed in Mississippi by Dr. Jack Carroll, coordinator for the Mississippi Energy Extension Center.

Mississippi State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, or veteran status.

Publication 1677
Extension Service of Mississippi State University, cooperating with U.S. Department of Agriculture. Published in furtherance of Acts of Congress, May 8 and June 30, 1914. Ronald A. Brown, Director

Copyright by Mississippi State University. All rights reserved.

This document may be copied and distributed for nonprofit educational purposes provided that credit is given to the Mississippi State University Extension Service.