Thermal Curtains?

I'm trying to decide if these really work. We have older aluminum windows in our house and are not going to be able to replace them anytime soon. Someone told me that thermal curtains will keep wind and drafts down and help with energy costs, but I'm not sold yet.

Due to having 7 cats, I would most likely be buying the ones you get from Walmart, since expensive curtains + cats =\\= good idea.

So who has them and what do you think about them. Do you have the cheaper versions, ie. $14 a panel, and do they work just as well.

I don't want to have to suffer through another winter in a drafty bedroom and since the insulating plastic lasted a whole day in our house, I need to find something that will work.

I bought ours from JCPenney during a sale. It didn't block 100% but it was so worth the money. The windows at the apartment were drafty and we noticed a HUGE change in our bedroom. At least 10 degrees from what the space heater showed.

I bought these thermal curtains for my picture window in my trailer.
Cold I do not have to worry about, but heat.

They do block much more heat than my old non-thermal blackout curtains did.
My average daytime temps inside dropped about 8 degrees , which is a lot out here.
The price though is the awesome thing, that's per set, not per panel.

Originally Posted by Mai_kitties

...since the insulating plastic lasted a whole day in our house, I need to find something that will work.

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I was just going to suggest plastic!

It does work quite well but I guess not if kitties decide to climb on it...

I have some in the living room. We mostly got them because we needed something to block out light from the southern exposure window so we'd be able to even see the tv during the day. They do keep the room a little cooler in summer, but I haven't noticed them doing anything in winter. Then again I have storm windows.

ETA:

Originally Posted by Mai_kitties

I
Due to having 7 cats, I would most likely be buying the ones you get from Walmart, since expensive curtains + cats =\\= good idea.

Click to expand...

It's a heavier fabric, so hopefully the curtains should hold up. I have 7, too, but no curtain climbers. You may want to check Target online and see if they have them a little cheaper.

In the past we have used the 3M plastic window cover stuff..it works wonders and not expensive at all!

Sounds like I might be having to try them! I might just buy some for the bedroom and if I like them I will have to get more. If I could get an 8 to 10 degree difference, I would be happy. Actually I would be happy if they just block the drafts.

And yup... the plastic ended up being a $3 toy for the cats. It started with a small rip that I tried to patch up and ended up with Jack running through the house with the plastic and two of the others ones chasing him . We took down the rest to avoid anyone accidentally eating it.

Plastic and cats rarely works. I don't know how my parents managed it when I was little.

You might try getting some velcro to hold two panels together for your larger windows so the drafts don't just blow through the middle.