SOLAR TODAY - July/August 2009

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Get Rid of Glare; Open Windows for Air

By KEN SHEINKOPF

QWe recently moved to a new house, and now i cannot sit in my favorite chair and read anymore because of the glare on the paper. i don’t know if it’s because i’m getting older or if it’s the fault of that shiny paper so many magazines use, but this didn’t happen in our old home. Any way i can fix this horribly annoying problem? — M.B., Buda, Texas

AIt could be because your eyesight isn’t what it used to be, and it could also be because of the shiny paper, but I’ll bet it’s the result of light coming into that room from a different angle than you had in your previous home. I get a lot of questions about glare, many from younger people, so the problem isn’t necessarily caused by age. Many people have this problem and don’t realize they can fix it.

There are generally two kinds of glare problems in buildings. Disability glare occurs when a light source reflects and essentially obscures the thing you’re looking at, reducing

its contrast. For example, you might be sitting under a skylight on a bright sunny day, or under a bright ceiling light, and that light reflects from the book you’re reading into your eyes. The low contrast makes it difficult to see the black ink on the bright white page.

Discomfort glare happens when you have light coming onto your task from the side that is much brighter than the light coming from your task. If the task is a book you’re reading, for example,

your eyes will try to focus on the words on the pages, but there is so much light coming from the side, your visual processes get confused and you have trouble concentrating on what you are doing. This often happens when you are sitting next to a window, and though you have enough light to read, this extra light can give you a headache or eye fatigue and reduce your ability to do the task.

Look around the room where you like to read and see if any of these conditions exist. Direct or reflected sunlight, a powerful electric lighting system, bright windows located in dark walls and other situations can all cause glare problems.

So what do you do about this? You can plant a tree outside the window next to your chair to block the direct sun, or just use blinds or drapes to cut down on the amount of light coming in from the side. You might get a shade to fit inside the skylight well to help you regulate the amount of light. Maybe a different overhead light fixture could

Ken Sheinkopf has been working in renewable energy for 25 years and knows where to find the answers to your questions.

iStOcKphOtO.cOm

Glare often comes from uneven lighting, when the window is much brighter than the rest of the room.

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better direct light to where it is needed and away from where it causes the glare problem. Or you can take some steps to directly address the uneven lighting. Make the window less bright using window film or an interior shade on the window glass, or make the room brighter with better electric lighting or by painting the walls a brighter, more reflective color.

Because visibility can be affected any time there are big differences in lighting in a room, designers often bring light in by bouncing it off the ceiling or bringing it in through a high space, rather than letting it pour in from one side of the room. Light from a television, glossy magazine paper or even the colors of your walls and furniture can all produce light directly in your eyes. Control this light and you’ll be a lot more comfortable.

Qi really like the end of summer, when we can open up our house and enjoy the cooling outdoor breezes. however, i’m concerned about this flow of air since i have read often about the need to control outdoor air. is it bad for us to open the windows when the weather is mild? — J.S., Troy, Ala.

AActually, opening your windows to enjoy the natural ventilation is one of the best things you can do to both control the indoor air quality of your home and to stay comfortable without relying on your heating or cooling system.

Ventilation is the controlled use of air flow into and out of a house, as opposed to air infiltration, which is unwanted air flowing through holes, cracks and other openings.

From a health standpoint, just think about all the potentially harmful contaminants you have in your home right now: cleaning supplies under the kitchen cabinet, paints and solvents in your workroom, bags of garbage sitting in the can by the kitchen door, various perfumes and products in your medicine cabinet, the candles and incense you sometimes light, fumes from your fireplace, cooking or tobacco, and perhaps radon from the basement.

Opening up your home to ventilation means that fresh air will flush out stale air. While mechanical ventilation systems can help increase the flow of air through your home, opening screened windows for cross-ventilation can help keep air moving without using energy.

If you’re constantly bothered by a runny nose or itchy eyes, talk to a contractor about a ventilation system to keep the air clean. This can involve exhaust fans to draw the stale air out of the home, or supply-ventilation strategies to have fresh air blown inside, perhaps through a filter.