furniture refinishing kits

Your Home Interior Needs Sunscreen, Too

When temperatures rise, people reach for sunscreen to protect their skin. Yet most people forget to protect their home interiors from serious sun damage that can cost thousands of dollars.

This includes damage to hardwood floors, window treatments, tables, upholstery and even rugs. Overexposure to the sun can discolor almost anything in the house.

To prevent sun damage, reduce exposure by adding layers of protection to windows. Start by tinting the windows. Window tint, often called solar window film, protects you and your furniture from harmful sun damage. Although kits are sold online and at home improvement stores, this job is best handled by a professional installer. Nothing ruins a home’s interior worse than cracking or pealing tint all over the place. 

Don’t worry about the neighbors wondering if you’ve gone undercover -- You can buy tints that look so sheer no one will even know you have your windows covered.   

Purchase window treatments that filter ultraviolet rays. According to Hunter Douglas , the nation’s leading blinds manufacturer, nearly all of their blinds, shutters and shades filter out at least 75 percent of the sun's harmful UV rays when installed over double-glazed glass windows. Some products, like the Sunterra line, provide up to 99 percent protection, according to their website.

Don't forget transoms and palladium windows above primary windows. Often people bypass covering these hard-to-reach windows to cut costs on treatments. But not covering them allows the sun to beam through unfiltered and, worse, because some of the windows are covered, it will be easy to see exactly where the damage is done -- that odd light part of the carpet or faded section on the sofa.

Fabric window treatments can take a beating from the sun, especially if not lined properly. Try to purchase sun-resistant fabrics, such as those made by Sunbrella . Often sold under designer labels, Sunbrella has been recommend by the Skin Cancer Foundation as an aid in the prevention of sun-induced damage to the skin.

Furniture

Furniture, World Styles from Classical to Contemporary

Furniture

Furniture designing and draughting, notes on the elementary forms, methods of construction and dimensions of common articles of furniture

Furniture, a concise history