How to block the sun and still allow a breeze through a window.

[Mabeline]

Our bedroom window faces the east. So at 5am or so we get the sun directly in our faces. We have mini blinds, but with the summer heat we need to keep them open at night to let in the breeze.

 

I am almost sure I got sunburned this morning. 😳 I'm not sure how to block the sunshine but still let in the air. I was thinking about get black out curtains for the rest of the year, but without AC we need to keep the windows open in the summer. Thanks for any ideas.

[nmoira]

Outdoor shades (usually bamboo) are pretty common here, but you need a place to mount them away from the window. You usually seem them around porches.

[Mabeline]

We are renting and we live on the third floor. I wish I could put up some outdoor shades that would solve my problem.

[readinmom]

We just finished putting "foil" emergency blankets (1.99 at walmart) on our windows.  The difference is amazing!  For our sliding door, I clipped the blanket to the back of our existing drapes.  The house is so much better now. 

 

Hope this helps!

[KungFuPanda]

Can't you flip the mini blinds up the other direction so that the direct sun is blocked but they're still open for air?

[Mabeline]

Can't you flip the mini blinds up the other direction so that the direct sun is blocked but they're still open for air?

No, the sun is so bright and comes in at an agle in the morning that if the blinds are left open for air the sun shines in.

 

Edited to add that we are not used to direct sunshine in the PNW. I think that might be my problem too. 😎

[KungFuPanda]

No, the sun is so bright and comes in at an agle in the morning that if the blinds are left open for air the sun shines in.

 

Edited to add that we are not used to direct sunshine in the PNW. I think that might be my problem too. 😎

But the blinds are designed to take care of this. If you are looking at your blinds and they are opened at an angle, and you can see the sky, the sun will shine directly in. If you are looking at your blinds, and they are opened at an angle, and you can see the ground, they'll let in air but block direct sun. It should be impossible for direct sunlight to come up from the ground. If the diffused light is too bright, you might need thicker blinds. Alternatively, you could put one of those strip fans on the bottom six inches of your window and close the blinds above it.

[redsquirrel]

Well, we don't have a/c but if I keep the windows open at night but closed during the day I can keep the house about 20 degrees cooler inside than out.

 

For that early morning sun I bought a sleep mask. It works like a charm. I can keep the windows up and the blinds open all night to let in the fresh night air, but not have the sun wake me at 4:30am. Then I can close the windows and draw the blinds around 9 or 10 or whenever it begins to heat up outside.

[Cosmos]

Can't you flip the mini blinds up the other direction so that the direct sun is blocked but they're still open for air?

 

That's what we do, and it works fine for us. On sunny mornings, I put the blinds down on the east side of the house and rotate them so that they're angled upward toward me. It lets a breeze through but no sun.

[Seasider]

You could mount outdoor shutters Caribbean style.

 

http://www.hooksandlattice.com/bahama-exterior-shutters.html