How Do I Stop The Sun From Coming Through My Front Door?

Summer is on the way, and homeowners everywhere are preparing for the summer heat. Bright sunlight can easily find its way into your home. Is your front door protected against the sun and heat?

If you want to stop sunlight from coming through your front door and prevent your home from heating up, there are several solutions you can use to block the sun, like, awnings, blinds, curtains, shutters, black-out shades, glass paint, one-way privacy film, and vertical blinds.

Let us look at some of the options you can use to block the sunlight from your front door, and how to reduce the heat it brings into your home.

Solutions to Stop the Hot Sun Shining Through a Front Door

You can use many different solutions to block the sun from getting into your home through the front door. Let’s discuss the various products, films, curtains, blinds, and shades to sunproof your front door.

Awnings or Canopies.
One-way privacy film.
Frosted or Stained glass film.
Glass paint.
Etching cream.
Curtains.
Blinds.
Solar Shades.
Honeycomb or Cellular shades.
Shutters.
Classic Roman blinds.
Vertical Blinds and Shades.

Why Is It Important to Cover Your Front Door?

A front door is often exposed to direct sun, rain, and snow. Protecting and covering the front door is vital to protect it from the elements. Direct sunlight on a front door will also heat up a home’s interior. Covering the front door is a perfect way to minimize heat and direct sunlight entering your home.

How to Stop Sunlight Shining Through the Front Door

Install Awnings and Canopies

Installing an awning or canopy is the quickest solution to stop sunlight shining through your front door. Awnings block the sun out completely to keep your front door in the shade and cool.

Canopies and awnings fit over your home’s siding and stop direct sunlight from getting into your home.

Awnings and canopies are more costly than shades or blinds but offer shade without obstructing your view. It should extend halfway down the front door for an awning to work well. Canopies and awnings provide shade that ultimately protects the front door from direct sunlight.

Use One Way Privacy Film

A one-way privacy film is another way to block the sun from coming through the front door. One way privacy film provides privacy and helps cool down the home.

During the summer, one-way privacy film blocks UV rays and provides cool indoor temperatures. One way privacy film works without adhesive and attaches only by static. Applying one-way film is hassle-free and can be removed easily afterward.

The film is available in many different designs as well as one that allows you to see out but not in. Covering a front door with a one-way privacy film is a great way to stop the sun.

Use Glass Paint

Another option is to use glass paint that is painted directly to the glass on your front door. Glass paint permanently blocks harmful UV rays from entering a home, and glass paint is straightforward to apply. Start by thoroughly cleaning the front door window and drying it completely.

Spray or paint an even coat on the front door glass and allow it to dry. To achieve a darker shade, you can paint another coat but make sure you allow 2 hours of drying time in between coats. Glass paints are available in many colors.

Use Frosted or Stained Glass Film

Everyone loves beautiful stained glass on front doors. Frosted and stained-glass films are available in several designs and colors. From beautiful flowers to plain frosted glass, they can be used with or without adhesive on a front door.

Steps for applying stained glass films:

Make sure you thoroughly clean the front door glass.
Dry the glass completely.
Carefully measure the film to the front door glass and cut it to size.
Remove the backing to apply to the door if the film uses adhesive.
Some stained-glass film uses static cling film that may also have a backing but no adhesive.
Position the film to the door and press down to smooth it out.
Use a squeegee to press out any bubbles that remain.

Hang Curtains

If you want to cover your front door from the sun but don’t want the hassle of applying window film or glass paint, you could always hang a curtain on the inside of your front door.

A curtain allows you the freedom to open or close the front door to sunlight whenever you wish. Choose a single curtain or a pair of curtains for the front door. Curtains blocks sunlight and UV rays out perfectly. They not only keep the light out but also keep heat out.

Use Blinds

Use blinds to diffuse light coming from the front door. Blinds can enlighten any space with their designs and colors. Blinds let you control the amount of natural light you let into your home. Some blinds feature a black-out option that completely blocks the sun.

Wooden blinds are excellent at insulating and preventing heat from entering your home. Wooden blinds are a perfect option for your front door.

Blinds are available in plastic, wood, and fabric. Fabric blinds are known as Roman blinds that block out sunlight perfectly. They are easy to install and remove.

Wooden and plastic blinds are easier to clean while they are up hanging. Fabric blinds need to be washed in a washing machine or wiped down with a cloth. Blinds offer better light control when hung with the blind’s rounded side out.

Use Etching Cream on a Glass Front Door

Etching cream, also known as acid cream, can be used to create a frosted design on your front door glass. Etching cream is inexpensive. However, you might need a few bottles to cover the whole front door. Apply it to a stencil or your own design. Apply the cream with a brush, cloth, or sponge and wait thirty minutes to dry. Use a clean, dry cloth to wipe the glass clean and enjoy the result.

Hang Solar Shades or Blinds

Solar shades and blinds provide full sun- and light-blocking benefits for your front door. Front doors with excessive sunlight coming through will benefit from solar shades.

Besides blocking the sunlight, solar blinds also stop the glare and protect against UV rays. Stopping harmful UV rays from entering your home prevents the sun from damaging furniture and carpets.

Solar shades also stop your home from overheating, so the air-conditioner works overtime. Solar shades and blinds are available in various materials, shades, and designs. Installing a solar shade on your front door is an effective way to block the sun.

Cellular or Honeycomb Shades

Cellular or honeycomb shades are manufactured to create air pockets between the layers of the fabric lining to enhance the heat insulation. Cellular and honeycomb shades are perfect for light control on a front door.

Horizontal shades are excellent front door coverings thanks to their durability and sleek design. Their excellent insulating and light control properties make them one of the most popular front door treatments.

Install Shutters

Shutters work great indoors as well as outdoors. Shutters are durable and provide great insulation and complete light control. Install a shutter on your front door to keep heat and sunlight out. Most shutters are manufactured from composite wood, faux wood, or natural wood. They are easily customizable; even if you have a custom front door, they can be easily made to fit perfectly.

It is good to hire a professional installer to correctly measure and install the shutter to your front door instead of doing it yourself. Customized designs of shutters can be made to fit and match your home décor.

Hang Classic Roman blinds

Roman blinds are elegant and preferred by most homeowners. They offer excellent light control and will reduce heat but might not be enough to block out heat completely. A solution to this is to use them along with external shades. External shades will significantly reduce heat while the Roman blinds block the light coming through the front door.

Vertical Blinds and Shades

If your front door is large vertical blinds are a great choice. Vertical blinds are perfect for front doors because they are broader and their slats open sideways. They are excellent at blocking heat and sunlight. Vertical blinds are very easy to maintain and keep clean.

Black Out Cellular Shade

Black-out cellular shades are customizable with designer fabrics and colors and entirely block the sun. They also add insulation to your home. Black-out shades are excellent for bedrooms, front doors, and media rooms.

Black-out shades protect against extreme heat with air-trapping honeycomb cells that repel summer heat. They drastically reduce energy bills through their insulation properties.

Whether you decide on double or single-cell thickness, black-out cellular shades will offer the best light control.

Black-out cellular shades are available in several cell sizes, colors, and customization options. Customized black-out shades are cordless to top/down/bottom-up varieties that offer flexible light control for a front door. Black-out cellular shades feature a neutral color on the streetside.

What Product to Use on Your Front Door so You Can Look Out, but No One Can Look in?

To block anyone from seeing into your home through your front door, you can use a one-way privacy film that allows you to see out, but no one can see in. It is available as a static or adhesive film and has several densities. Carefully measure to size, cut, and apply to your front door for instant privacy.

What Kind of Coverings Works Best for Glass Sliding Doors?

To block the sun from your glass sliding doors, the best option is to install vertical blinds that can be moved the same way as the door. Vertical blinds are easy to install and work great for glass sliding doors.

Why it is Essential to Keep Direct Sun Out of Your Home

There are several reasons homeowners want to keep the sun out of their homes. Direct sunlight shining through your front door creates heat that can cause your home to heat up.

Keeping a home cool in the summer by blocking direct sunlight reduces energy bills. Protecting your home from the sun requires some investment but will save you hundreds of dollars in energy costs in the long term.

The most critical areas to protect from the sun are your home’s front door and east and west-facing windows. Blocking sunlight from entering your front door and windows is an environmentally friendly option to keep your cooling costs low.

Shading your home is one way to keep it cool. The western and eastern sides of the home should be protected the most because they are exposed to the most sun. The heat can penetrate through the walls; the most direct route into the home is through the windows and front door.

Harmful UV rays can damage furniture, floors, and interior décor; keeping the sun at bay lowers maintenance costs. However, during winter, the blinds, shades, awnings, or curtains should be opened to allow the sun’s heat to warm your home.

Conclusion

It is easy to stop the sun from coming through your front door by installing blinds, one-way privacy film, vertical blinds, an awning, shutters, curtains, solar shades, or glass paint. A glazed front door will reflect the sunlight, block UV rays, and keep your home cool. Canopies and awnings mounted on the outside of your home over the front door help block the sun and add a decorative finish.

Blinds, curtains, and shades are the most popular because they are easy to install and inexpensive. Their outer facing should be neutral colored to reflect the rays and heat away from the front door.

Another popular choice is a tinted plastic film that can directly be applied to the front door and is available in different densities to block the sunlight completely.

We hope you enjoyed this article and that you chose one of the options we listed above to block the sun’s rays from shining through your front door.

Sources:

Chrissie Smuts

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