The hottest room of the house (how much, houses, cost)

[cocobell]

We have one bedroom of the house that is much hotter than the rest. It is south-facing with south and west exterior walls. We are looking at possibly replacing the existing window and sunscreen. I don't know how old they are (the house was built in '94, so they could be original to the house).
Do you think this would make a difference?
Are there specific products/features to look for?
Sunscreen vs. a window film?
What has worked for you?
Thanks!

[Hal Roach]

Start with a nice builder grade ceiling fan...film won't stop radiant heat..the glass will still be hot enough to burn your hand. Low E glass is great, but will cost more.

[hikernut]

Darker sunscreens on the windows might help. Are they double-pane windows?

Also, if there's attic space above that room, go up and see how much insulation you have there.

[cocobell]

Originally Posted by Hal Roach

Start with a nice builder grade ceiling fan...film won't stop radiant heat..the glass will still be hot enough to burn your hand. Low E glass is great, but will cost more.

We do have a ceiling fan.

Originally Posted by hikernut

Darker sunscreens on the windows might help. Are they double-pane windows?

Also, if there's attic space above that room, go up and see how much insulation you have there.

I don't think there is attic space, and I think they are double-pane, but I will check. Do darker sunscreens make a difference (vs. neutral colored)?

[hikernut]

Originally Posted by cocobell

I don't think there is attic space, and I think they are double-pane, but I will check. Do darker sunscreens make a difference (vs. neutral colored)?

I was referring not to the actual color of the screen, but rather the amount of sunlight that is blocked. Of course the room will be darker with a screen that blocks more sunlight.

[AZJoeD]

Originally Posted by cocobell

We have one bedroom of the house that is much hotter than the rest. It is south-facing with south and west exterior walls. We are looking at possibly replacing the existing window and sunscreen. I don't know how old they are (the house was built in '94, so they could be original to the house).
Do you think this would make a difference?
Are there specific products/features to look for?
Sunscreen vs. a window film?
What has worked for you?
Thanks!

There could be many reasons why this room is hotter. As you said it is on the south side, so that does have an effect.

There is always the chance that sunscreens, shades or other insulation may help, but I don't think they can solve all your problems.

However, the place I would look is at airflow. Is the room being adequately cooled? You may need to have an HVAC company come out and make sure your system is adequately balanced. Also look into the possibility that you have a duct leak or inadequate air return.

If the simple solutions don't work, you may have to go with a window air conditioner or even better a ductless mini unit. Ductless Mini Split

[Ponderosa]

Dual panes are not going to make much difference unless they are low e. Radiant heat is the thing of concern here in the desert and it is largely not attenuated by plain glass - whether one or two panes. The best thing you can do is get 90% sun shades installed. You could put foil on the window, that works too, but the disadvantages are obvious. Even with this stuff, it is still gonna be hotter there because of the wall space exposed to the sun.

I have the same problem with my master br. I got a window ac and keep it below 70 for sleeping in summer for pennies on off peak night rates. It's an 8K btu unit. The kids are gone and we use only the one br now, so I can also keep the rest of the house warmer than would be comfortable for sleeping saving money which probably offsets the window unit by quite a bit.

[hikernut]

Originally Posted by AZJoeD

However, the place I would look is at airflow. Is the room being adequately cooled? You may need to have an HVAC company come out and make sure your system is adequately balanced. Also look into the possibility that you have a duct leak or inadequate air return.

Those are good points. It's surprising how few returns most houses have. The builder went crazy with our current house... every bedroom has it's own return, and then there are four additional returns on top of that!

[Storm27m]

We have decent windows in our house but our south facing master bedroom was considerably hotter than the rest of the house. The window had faux wood blinds when we moved in. We added room darkening curtains with minimal effect. We changed those out for thermal curtains and had a very slight reduction in the temp. We added a 90% sun shade screen next and noticed a HUGE reduction in the temperature. In the summertime we add a layer of 1/4" foam insulation board between the blinds and the window (for that room only...to the hell with the view). That room will now stay the same temperature as the rest of the upstairs. From outside to in...90% sunshade, dual pane glass (no clue if it's low-e), 1/4" foam board, faux wood blinds, thermal blackout curtains. A cool bedroom is a happy bedroom. It's also nice and dark if we want to sleep in.

[hikernut]

Originally Posted by Storm27m

We have decent windows in our house but our south facing master bedroom was considerably hotter than the rest of the house. The window had faux wood blinds when we moved in. We added room darkening curtains with minimal effect. We changed those out for thermal curtains and had a very slight reduction in the temp. We added a 90% sun shade screen next and noticed a HUGE reduction in the temperature.

Yup, that what we should expect. It's better to stop the sunlight before it gets through the window. Anything that the sunlight hits is going to absorb energy, even those curtains that are inside the house.