Can Wooden Shutters Keep Your Home Warmer In Winter?

As we enter the bitter chill of winter, homeowners are more mindful than ever of any ways they can find to lower their energy bills and keep warm for less.

One of the best ways to do this is to ensure your home is well insulated and is not losing too much heat through window frames, and one of the easiest ways to help with this is through the use of some of the most beautiful window coverings money can buy.

Whilst most people opt for wooden shutters for their aesthetic benefits, their solid construction, inherently insulating material and the way in which they fit the entire window means that they can also help to reduce energy bills.

According to a study by English Heritage, well-fitting shutters cut the amount of heat loss from a window frame by 58 per cent, not only potentially cutting energy bills in half but also beating blinds and blackout curtains as the most effective way to beat the winter chill.

Making the most of this is a simple matter of keeping the louvres open during the day. This allows light and heat from the sun to get in and warm up the room naturally, and then when the sun starts to set, simply close the louvres and keep the room’s accumulated heat.

This barrier means that the central heating system needs to work less hard to warm up the rest of the house, using less energy and less fuel, which translates to a smaller bill to pay to your power company, as well as more reliable boilers that do not need to work as hard.

Unlike other window covers, the opposite is also true in summer. Closing the louvres or leaving them closed will keep heat out during especially oppressive hot days.

This means that a beautiful, aesthetically pleasing choice for your windows can also be a practical energy-saving tool as well.