At Home with Lisa: Drapes

This week I completed a project I have been trying to avoid since I moved in.

I love that my house has a lot of windows. There isn’t a room that doesn’t have at least one. There is natural light during the daylight hours, and I don’t have to turn on the lights.

The Avista Energy Guide said that window coverings are one of the easiest ways to insulate my house. On cold days I can close them to keep in the heat. On sunny days I can open them. This week, I finally decided that I needed to do this not only because I wanted to insulate my living room, but because my boyfriend has been putting up cardboard over the windows when the sunlight shines directly into the house. I really can’t have that.

Putting up my new drapes was pretty easy—it was a lot like the time I put a sunshade on the outside of the house, but without needing a ladder.

I measured the window and added a couple of inches on each side. Then I ordered a curtain rod from the hardware store and some curtains from an online retailer. Make sure that if there is a baseboard heater directly below the window that you find some drapes that don’t touch them.

I got out my trusty hand drill and drilled holes into the wall. Then, I inserted the plastic screw covers. I screwed in the hardware that held up the curtain rod. It was pretty easy.

Now I have some nice insulating drapes in my living room. I’m getting used to them. I chose some that were a pretty aqua color, and I’ve been enjoying coming down to my living room first thing and opening the curtains on a new day.

Lisa, an Avista customer, bought her 1910 house because she loved the old-world character, some of which doesn’t make her house very energy efficient. Lisa is sharing her experience on taking some simple do-it-yourself improvements to inspire others to do the same. You’ll find her stories right here every Tuesday.