Exterior Radiant Screen for South Facing Brick Wall?

9 years ago

Hey Everyone,

I wasn't sure what forum to post this to, please move my post if there is a more appropriate forum.

My house has a large surface area south facing brick wall with no tree cover at all. There is a single door and a kitchen window at the center of this wall.

This wall endures a tremendous amount of thermal load during the day. We are up on a hill and the sun hits the wall directly for 10 hours per day. The kitchen and dining room share this wall. The attic mounted condenser fan is located on the far side of the house.

The result is a very hot kitchen and dining room in the summer months, and a cozy dining room in the winter months.

I was thinking about mitigating the summer thermal load by hanging a screen along the wall at a slight angle to allow air to move between the screen and the brick. Perhaps anchored by hooks near the ground and top.

My questions are:

- is this a bad idea?
- has anyone seen this done, if so, was it successful?
- does anyone have a suggestion for the choice of screen/shield material that would work well and look good? (my house is an earth-tone color light beige)

Thanks,
PW

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Comments (8)

dovetonsils
9 years ago
You would be creating an awning which would keep the wall cooler, but I'd be concerned how well it would hold up in wind, rain (snow), and the very strong sun conditions you have. Have you looked at getting more insulation into the wall? I would think that is a better bang for the buck with no long term maintenance issues.

This post was edited by Dovetonsils on Fri, Jul 4, 14 at 22:27
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PecanWaffle
Original Author
9 years ago
Dovetonsils, yes those are valid concerns. I am considering this solution only during the peak summer months (I'm in Alabama) perhaps June through September. Therefore, I would have this shield up during those times with a series of anchor hooks for easy removal.

The shield material would ideally be semi-air permeable to reduce wind loads during summer storms. If I could get an 80% or better reduction in solar radiant load, I would consider it a smashing success.
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Tmnca
9 years ago
Is an awaning like Sunsetter not an option? You can retract in windy or cooler weather and they are designed for this purpose.

If not due to horizontal clearance, maybe you could purchase exterior window shades (the screen-like solar shades type) and hang from the eaves instead of a window, and use a hook-eye latch at the bottom to secure. They could be retracted up during wind or cooler weather too, and are designed to endure UV.
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over40
9 years ago
I would do it for sure. They sell roll up exterior sun shades, as well as just the fabric. Do a Google search.
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over40
9 years ago
I would do it for sure. They sell roll up exterior sun shades, as well as just the fabric. Do a Google search.
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PecanWaffle
Original Author
9 years ago
I don't know how much a Sunsetter would cost, but since I'm not shielding windows, I don't really care about the material's visibility over windows. I worked up a solution that doesn't require anchoring on the eaves.

I could anchor at the top, middle, and bottom of the brick wall, with the middle anchor set with a 4" or so stand-off to create air gaps and fabric tension.
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energy_rater_la
9 years ago
whats a radiant screen?

do you mean a solar screen
or some type of radiant barrier material?

??
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ionized_gw
9 years ago
How some fast-growing, tall, deciduous shrubbery? Plant some suitable lawn trees to supplant them over time if you prefer. This is Gardenweb, after all.
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Exterior Radiant Screen for South Facing Brick Wall?

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dovetonsils

PecanWaffle
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Exterior Radiant Screen for South Facing Brick Wall?

Comments (8)

dovetonsils

PecanWaffleOriginal Author

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over40

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