One of the modern architectural trends has been the opening up of our living spaces to allow in more natural light. While there are benefits, both functional and aesthetic, about letting the sun into your house, too much of any good thing is harmful. This is especially true during the sunny and cloudless summer months when the sun’s intensity is at its highest.
It is important to determine the harm that too much sun can cause in your living area. Science has established a clear link between long-term exposure to sunlight and skin cancer. When most people are indoors, they do not apply any protective sunscreen which exposes their skin cells to harmful ultraviolet rays from direct sunlight. Since most people spend the majority of their time at home within the living areas, too much sunlight in your home puts you and your family at risk of developing skin cancer.
In a more economical sense, sunlight is a known bleaching agent. The clearest indicator of someone that spends too much time in the sun is by how much their clothes have faded. The sun has the same effect on your internal house paint as well as your furniture and any other items that are exposed to direct sunlight for extended periods of time.
Plastic home appliances and electronics are also directly affected by direct plastic as they melt and deform (in the case of plastics) or malfunction (in the case of electronic devices). Too much sun in the house also increases the overall indoor temperatures which increase your energy costs due to your need for continuous air conditioning.
Having determined some of the most harmful effects that too much sunlight in your home can cause, how do you determine whether your living areas are a little too sun-drenched? Vision is the most obvious way to determine whether there is too much sun in your home. If you have been in your home for a while, then you will have an idea of how the ‘usual’ lighting conditions are during the day. If your vision is being impaired due to too much light, then this might be a sign that there is too much sunlight in your home.
Difficulty in viewing television, phone and computer screens is another sign that the sunlight intensity is extremely high. If you find that other surfaces are extremely hot, then the sun intensity in your house is too high. Items such as dark plastic and metallic surfaces are particularly good indicators since they can retain heat for a long period.
What should you do when you discover that your living spaces are exposed to too much sunlight? The first thing you, and your family, should do is to apply sunscreen even when spending the entire day indoors. Then you need to find ways to block the sun while allowing sufficient light into your home.
Roller shutters are the best option to limit the sun’s intensity in your home without blocking out all the light. Since roller shutters have individual slats that can be adjusted, they allow sufficient light through your windows, screen doors and any other exposed glass surfaces in your home. Roller shutters are also quite affordable to purchase, and you should hire a professional to install them for you.
You can also attach a reflective tint film on your windows and glass doors. This allows you to see the outdoors and let in a bit of light while reducing the intensity of the sun glare in your house by reflecting it back to the external environment. Such reflective films can be removed after the extremely sunny period ends.
Either way, you need to be wary of being exposed to too much direct sunlight, even when you are indoors. You should never put your health at risk to retain your favourite view.
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