Cellular Shades Conserve Energy

Cellular Shades Conserve Energy

Cellular shades are available in a range of designs and styles. For a modern look, they will give your windows a clean, stylish touch. Or, if your home decor is more old world or Victorian, cellular shades can be accented with a valance, cornice or curtains to complete your window treatment for privacy, style and flexible light control.

Also known as honeycomb blinds, cellular shades were invented in the seventies by Hunter Douglas, which developed the original concept during the energy crisis. Cellular shades are now among the most popular window treatments, with hundreds of styles, textures, colors and options available.The name honeycomb comes from its resemblance to a bees hive; cells trap air, which makes these blinds quite energy efficient.

Each type of cellular shade will use different lifting mechanisms and can even be motorized for added convenience, with an Infrared control that can be operated up to 50 feet away from the receiver. You can typically operate motorized shades in groups or separately. A satellite eye is used in cases when a valance or cornice covers the infrared eye.

Look for cellular shades with a limited lifetime warranty, which will not cover abuse, improper installation, or normal wear and tear. If your cellular shade needs replacement or warranty repair, you will normally pay to send the shade back to your manufacturer.

Many different cell or pleat sizes are available, with the most popular sizes being 3/8" single pleat, 3/4" single pleat or 3/8" double pleat. Double pleat blinds save energy since they use two cells fused together, which traps more air than single pleat versions. Other sizes available are 1/2" single cell, 1/2" double cell, and extra large 1 1/4" cell. Triple honeycomb shades offers the most energy efficiency.

Honeycomb blinds can also incorporate light filtering, room darkening or blackout materials. They are typically made of polyester or cotton in some cases nowadays. Proper construction of the Cells is an important part of product quality.

Available options are typically top down, bottom up, cordless, continuous cord loop or motorized.
The most common cellular blind or honeycomb shades go up and down simply; pulling the string down makes the blind go up. Pulling the string to the side locks the blind in place. Pulling the string to the middle of the blind releases it.

Top down, bottom up models let you lower the top of the blind while leaving the bottom closed. These use two head rails; one on top and another floating up and down, with two sets of strings, operating similarly to a standard blind. One string is used to lift the blind up and down, while the string on the other side lowers the blind from the top down.

The cordless option uses a handle at the bottom to lift the blind. This option works well in cases for window where you don’t want a visible string.

The continuous cord loop version is often used with very large windows. You pull a roller on the side of the shade to raise or lower it so that the string doesn’t get longer as you raise it. This also stabilizes the blind, which is necessary for very wide windows. With this option, blinds up to 144 inches can be made from a single piece of fabric.

Cellular Shades Conserve Energy