You have ordered what you consider to be black out shades. They came, got fixed in – and light is still finding its way in. Sound familiar?
You’re not alone. It is one of the most frequent frustrations of a homeowner who is shopping window treatments, and it is nearly always a matter of one single misunderstanding: blackout shades and room darkening shades are not similar.
Individuals including those in the window treatment business use the terms interchangeably. Yet even a 15% variation in the amount of light blocked may be the difference between a pitch darkness nursery holding your baby asleep and a room still bright at noon.
This guide is a breakdown of all the real differences between the two, light blocking, materials, UV protection, energy saving, privacy, and what one should be in each room of your house. At the end, you will be aware of what shade to purchase and why.
What Are Blackout Shades?
Blackout shades are window coverings that are designed with the main purpose of blocking out as much incoming light as possible. They are made with tight and woven or multi-layered opaque fabrics that cannot allow the sun to pass through the material.
Just imagine going to a movie theater during mid afternoon – that dark-and-envelop-you-in-darkness. That is what a well-fitted blackout shade will bring to your house.
Most blackout shades are of triple-weave polyester, vinyl-coated fabric, or layers of multi-layers with foam or foil backing. That support is literally a physical barrier to light passage, not just a heavy weave, but an opaque coating to passage of light. They prevent 99-100% of the light that penetrates through the cloth.
In addition to blackout shades, blackout shades can offer a variety of utility. They prevent as much as 100% of UV rays that cause fading of your furniture, flooring, and artwork due to the sun. Their multi-layered construction is also a thermal insulator – keeping warm in the winter and keeping the sun out in the summer – which can actually result in actual savings in heating bills. The thick material also takes in the external noise, and rooms are significantly quieter. And since you can see nothing through them they furnish maximum privacy even when you have your lights on at night in the interior.
What Are Room Darkening Shades?
Room darkening shades are meant to lower the amount of light that gets in a room by a large percentage, yet not all. As they are drawn, they produce a rather soft and dimmed effect instead of utter darkness.
Imagine the contrast between a dark room with just a single torch in at dinner-time, and a totally dark room. Darkening shades in the room provide the restaurant, small, intimate, almost blacker, but not a blackout.
The shades are made in most cases out of a single layer of highly woven fabric, usually a cotton blend or a dense synthetic one. The weave is tight to block out most light and offer high levels of privacy but light can still pass through the material resulting in a typical soft ambient glow. They absorb about 85 to 99% of the incoming light based on the brand and the fabric.
Darkening shades of the room are less expensive in general than blackout and are offered in a broader range of colors, textures, and lighter style of fabrics. They work well in getting rid of TV and monitor glare, privacy during the day and creating a comfortable ambience, but it does not make the room feel like it is entirely closed off to the outside world.
5 Key Differences That Actually Matter
1. Light Blocking Performance
This is the distinguishing characteristic between the two. Blackout fabrics are constructed with many layers, one of which is an opaque inner layer dense enough to provide almost zero light penetration through the fabric. Darkening fabrics are tight and heavy, and yet a single layer, which lets a slight glow through.
In a real life scenario: shade a room with room darkening shades at noon and you will still feel that it is bright. And so with blackout shades you won’t.
2. UV Protection
Blackout shades have a significant benefit in this case. They contain 100% opaque material that blocks all UV rays – the rays that fade hardwood floors, bleach the fabric of a sofa, and ruin artwork with time. Darkening shades in the room are able to block a large portion of UV radiation, although some gets through.
Blackout can be a more intelligent long-term investment in rooms with costly furniture, musical instruments, collections of art, or delicate equipment.
3. Energy Efficiency
The two types of shades offer similar thermal advantages, but the blackout shade presents an advantage since it is constructed using multiple layers. During winter they assist in the retention of indoor heat. During summer they reflect the sun energy prior to it entering the glass and heating your room. In the long run, blackout shades can result in significant savings of cooling expenses, particularly in rooms where the windows face south or west and receive strong afternoon sunlight.
4. Privacy Day and Night
Both alternatives offer high daytime privacy. The actual distinction occurs in the night. Having your interior lights on and outside it is dark, a little darkening fabric can give you a type of fishbowl effect, as your figure can be slightly seen by the outside. This is done away with by blackout shades. In bedrooms and bathrooms where the utmost darkness is required, black out is the final decision.
5. Noise Reduction
This advantage is usually neglected when purchasing shades. The multi-layer structure of blackout shades, which is dense and thick, absorbs part of the exterior noise – traffic, neighbors and street sounds and makes the atmosphere significantly more quiet. Room darkening shades provide a little acoustic damping as well, but the single layer construction provides less acoustic damping in general. With the blackout shades, you are not only able to block light but also to block noise as they are used in a busy street or anywhere close to an airport.
Which Room Needs Which Shade?
Bedroom: This is determined by the sensitivity to light when sleeping. Blackout should be used by light-sensitive sleepers, people working at shifts, and those with east-facing windows where the early morning sun rays reach them. Room darkening shades will be just adequate to heavy sleepers in rooms that have indirect light, and less expensive.
Nursery: Blackout Shades, no need to ask. Toddlers and babies sleep during the day, and their sleep is much more light sensitive than that of adults. One of the most viable investments a new parent can make is a darkened nursery that will indicate the sleep time whether it is 2pm or 2am.
Living Room and Dining Room: Room darkening would be the superior choice. They are social areas in which you desire atmosphere and ambiance – not an enclosed cave. Darkening shades in the rooms minimize glare, provide privacy, and a comfortable atmosphere without losing the feeling of being connected to the outside world.
Home Theater: Blackout is the clear winner. The slightest percentage of ambient light significantly lowers the screen contrast when viewing in the day. The viewing experience is changed completely with a duly darkened media room.
Home Office: Room darkening shades can work well in this situation – this does not create the effect of the room being totally closed off. It is usually advisable to have some ambient light to ease concentration and mood as opposed to complete darkness during working hours.
The “True Blackout” Problem Nobody Mentions
And this is one of the things that most product descriptions will not tell you: even blackout shades do not make the room completely dark.
The fabric itself might absorb 99 -100% of the light, yet light still manages to penetrate at the edges – the top, bottom, and sides of the shade – particularly with conventional inside-mount installations. This gives us the so-called halo effect, the light strip at the edge of the shade even when it is completely closed.
To obtain absolute darkness, the shade is not sufficient. By fixing the shade bracket to the exterior and above the window frame in such a way that it projects over the wall on all sides, the leakage of light at the edge is dramatically decreased. The edges are entirely sealed by adding side channel tracks – U-shaped rails around which the shade slides. Covering the shade with blackout curtains helps to seal any remaining holes as well as provide additional insulation and decoration.
In case you require a pitch-dark room in a newborn nursery, home theater or light sensitive sleep, you must consider installation which is as important as the shade.
The Bottom Line
Most rooms in your house have room darkening shades as their practical yet fashionable option. They darken, shield privacy, glare and do it without sealing your living spaces and rendering them airless.
The performance option is blackout shades. In rooms where sleep counts and in nursery rooms, home theaters and any room where the enemy is light, there is no other option.
It has the aesthetic versatility of curtains and the functionality of blackout shades, the fact that you can be fully open to fully dark at any time you require.
FAQ About Blackout Shades vs Room Darkening Shades
Q1: Are blackout shades and room darkening shades the same thing?
No. Room darkening shades minimize the light by 85-99 percent leaving a subdued ambient light. Blackout shades block 99-100% of the light passing through the material and they are designed to be almost completely dark.
Q2: Do blackout shades block 100% of all light?
With the cloth, yes. However, light is still able to penetrate on the periphery with installation. In order to get a room to be pitch-black, combine blackout shades with side channels or install outside the window and cover all of the window frame.
Q3: Which is better for sleep?
For light-sensitive sleepers and shift workers, blackout shades make a significant difference. For heavy sleepers in rooms with indirect light, room darkening shades are usually sufficient and more affordable.
Q4: Are blackout shades worth the extra cost?
Yes, in the correct rooms. Their high insulation will save on energy bills and their UV-blocking properties will help to shield furniture and flooring against fading hence they are a good long-term investment in bedrooms, nurseries, and rooms that face the sun.
Q5: Can I use room darkening shades in a nursery?
You can but blackout shades are highly recommended. Infants sleep in broad daylight and their sleeping pattern is fragile to even the slightest light. The most sleep-friendly environment is achieved with blackout shades that are fitted with an outside mount or side channels.
Q6: What is the halo effect?
The strip of light which shows around the edges of a shade of blackout when it is completely closed is called the halo effect. The light penetrates the space that exists between the edge of the shade and the window frame. It is possible to remove it using side channel tracks, outside mount brackets or layered curtains.
Q7: Can I combine both types?
Definitely – and it is among the cleverest ones in bedrooms. A room darkening roller shade combined with blackout curtain panels provides you with a flexible control of the light, provides you with superior edge coverage, provides you with superior insulation and it also provides you with a more polished look.
Q8: Do room darkening shades provide enough night-time privacy?
Yes, in most of the inhabited rooms. But with interior lights on in the dark exterior, certain room darkening fabrics can be seen through to a slight silhouette through outside. The blackout shades are more thorough in the bedrooms and bathrooms.