I live in a house built in 1953, can't afford to replace the windows. I measured my entire window, I used packing tape to connect the bubble wrap together ( because it didn't come in a wide enough width), I then covered the entire window, trim to trim, not against the window, used wide blue painters tape to tape it to the trim. it makes an unbelievable difference!
@@hackingtheenvironment I take it down every summer and I save the bubble wrap for the winter. I've been doing this for about 4 yrs, it's amazing what difference it makes!
i have done it a few years ago when we had a much colder winter here in Belgium, and it really helps. A simple trick to know it works, is to touch your window glass with bare hand, and it feels cold in the winter. If you do the same and touch the bubble wrap, you feel immediately the difference. Bubble wrap works best with the largest bubbles (30mm), but the 20mm and normal 10mm will also works. It's also best to apply 1 piece that cover the entire window. And as last and most important note, bubblewrap has much more effect when you place the bubbles pointing to the glass, and the flat side pointing to the room. With the bubbles pointing to the glass, you have the air layer of the bubbles itself, but also the space between the bubbles that forms a second layer. When using the bubblewrap with the flat side towards the glass, you have straight contact with the plastic between the bubbles and the glass, and that space is not isolated with air. When using the bubblewrap with bubbles towards the glass, you can tape it to the window frame with transparant box sealing tape. Also if your piece of bubblewrap is not 1 big piece, the flat sides of the multiple pieces will stick much better with the tape then the bubble side. Also at the bottom, it's best to not use tape, so that condensation water can drip out and not get trapped between the wrap and glass like a envelop, because this will eventually create black mold.
I was skeptical about this but the room was so cold I was willing to try anything. I am as astonished with the immediate and dramatic results. Thanks for this tip. I’m passing it along!!
This worked , all I used was water in a spray bottle to put up bubble wrap!!! It really did work!! This was in a house with no heat whatsoever!!! I was blown away!!! This was in below zero temps! The difference it made was mind blowing!!!!
Looking at 3.26 you can see that the bubbles throw the light around giving you more light. I bought a large roll of wide bubble wrap 50 mtrs and 175cm wide which was the widest window ie patio door and so did every window in 1 piece. the roll cost me £12 and I used half ( trade roll large bubbles). One other side effect is the reduction of noise,we have school kids passing every day and when working nights it used to wake me during the day, but no more. I have done my shed, garage and the glass in my glazed internal doors and on the windows of my motorhome during winter layup. use a perm marker and mark each panel of bubble wrap so you can put them up again next year
Thank you for sharing Tyler!! I just did this earlier today and I immediately felt the difference in that my house felt much warmer!! I'm hoping to see a lower electric bill next month!! Happy Holidays!!🙏🏼🙏🏼
Thank you especially for how to do the math calculations to know how much bubble wrap to buy! Thank you for this great idea that makes more sense than most ideas I've seen. My house was built in 1960, and still has the original windows, with gaps and falling apart frames. I've already subscribed before seeing the entire video.
I did it to a bathroom window that the cold just seem to come through the glass. I just washed the glass with plain water and adhere the bubble wrap to the glass bubble side in. Cut excess wrap with exacto knife. If I needed to overlap it I did about an inch.it stuck together for the 10 years. I lived there. It kept cold air out and in the summer it kept the bathroom cooler. Also block people from seeing anything but shadows when lights on.. I've put a little on a window in my new home because I have a beta fish in a bowl sitting on a window sill and it cuts the cold window from becoming too cold for the unheated bowl. It work.
Sounds perfect. I'm having 0 degree temps now like many others and it's a great time to feel for cold air leaks coming in. Motivates me to make another video!
I live in South Florida and our biggest issue is cooling during spring-summer-fall months in a tropical climate. We have single pane windows and I wonder if this window insulation will work for keeping the cool/AC air in the house…what do you think? thanks!😊
Any insulation helps, and that would include the bubble wrap. However, if you are in a high humidity area and keep the bubble wrap up in the summer you could end up with problems such as black mold -- so I would not recommend using this method for summer.
@@WholeBibleBelieverWoman Thanks! However, generally mold is not a problem if you keep the space cool as this actually lowers our humidity to a range of 45 to 55 pct at about 75* indoor temperature. This is what we normally do via using our AC system. Mold needs both heat and moisture to proliferate. I am just looking for ways to reduce the electric load by keeping the air cooler longer instead of gaining warmer air via the single pane windows.
Everything i've came across so far says flat side to window. I think its because the heat from inside your house could convect through the spaces inbetween the bubbles and be cooled down by your window. Also, the water is just barely enough to make the flat side sitck.
Bubble against the window works best. With the flat side, the space between the bubbles is not isolated and is only a layer of thin plastic that touch the cold glass. With the bubbles against the window, the flat foil covers the space between the bubbles and forms a another air gap. It's the air that insulates, not the plastic. Also, when the bubbles touch the window, the bubbles are not complete flat, so the contact surface that the cold can gets through, is much smaller then you place the flat side to the window where the space between the bubbles has no cover, and transfer the cold. If you place the flat side to the window, the space between the bubbles feels cold when you touch it, with the bubbles towards the glass, you don't feel cold spots.
I have single pane leaded windows in the hallway of my house. For years we’ve had condensation on the glass resulting in puddles of water. I used bubble wrap this year and Hey Presto no condensation. No more puddles of water to wipe up. This really works and is so cheap. I should have done it years ago.
Can this be used in summer to block out heat? I have several windows that have direct sun light and the room is very warm during summer. We want something that can let light filter through. I read a lot about this but always about blocking the cold.
Would you recommend using bubble wrap on windows that are very large and get a lot of sunlight that heats up the house for 2 hours a day? Will this cause the bubble wrap to stick and degrade ?
I saw a different video that said best to have smooth side towards the inside of the home and the bubble side cling to the glass. I'm assuming the smaller bubbles are better at clinging to glass????
I was soooo nervous about this, sure it would not work for me somehow -- but I bit the bullet and it worked GREAT (and I got over my fear of the bubble wrap). Now our house feels like it's got a sweater on, haha.
@@WholeBibleBelieverWoman a" fear of bubble wrap" get real for Christ sake I've heard it all now the fears are always so pathetic I know someone who fears banana peel and orange peel so I make sure to put some. In her porch door she still hasn't worked out who's doing it so funny
@@kymclinton3140 You're right about fears being pathetic -- at least most of them. You seem to enjoy being unkind, or enjoy watching people who are afraid. I cannot relate to that and don't want to. I find that trying to help people is what is greatly satisfying. For me it was not the fear of bubble wrap so much as a fear of failing, as I have no other affordable alternative at this point. The fear I think is GOOD is the fear of the real, actual honest-to-goodness God, the Creator. If anyone should fear something, it is His wrath toward those who choose evill over good and call evil good. It will all come out on the Judgment Day.
The caulking around the installation of the window- Does The caulking need to be Applied inside or outside or both? Also wondered if the bubble wrap falls off the window after a while?
I'm going to make a leap and say that the caulking between the outside installation of the windows and the siding would be more important. Honestly I was just thinking of the inside though. Right now if it's under 40 degrees most caulking won't set properly. Stay warm!
Which side of the bubble wrap is applied to the window? Does the side with the bubbles face in to the interior of the house or do they face the window pane?
@@shirleybalinski4535 No, it should be the bubble side to the glass. You are creating a sandwich with the bubbles in the middle. If you place the flat side to the glass then there will be no insulation around the bubbles.
I’ve used small bubble wrap and saved 50 bucks a month for two winters now. Bumpy side touching the window and all else, plus no soap, just clean and mist the window, and the small bubble wrap clings fine I’ve left mine up for three years.
@@hackingtheenvironment Oh well. I just got all the windows bubble-wrapped yesterday and today and we feel a difference already! There was no time to wait as we're expecting the temperature to go down to 15°F in Austin, Texas -- and we just ain't down with that, no way no how! The good news for me was that my math was WAY off and I thought I had bought only enough bubble wrap for two windows and wanted to do four (two of which are in my bedroom, the least insulated room in the house). But it turned out I had enough to do the two really tall living room windows and my fairly big windows AND the sliding glass door off the kitchen leading to the deck and STILL have some left. YAHOOOO! (smile)
Just curious how your cats reacted to the bubble wrap on the windows. I'm concerned that my cats will try to tear it off and start chewing on it, and possibly choking on the plastic.
My cats love to chew inappropriate things and they have left it alone thankfully. This is partially because i had blinds down over these areas. So its not been that different they had chewed through the blinds to make peepholes already so i left those areas uncovered. This demonstrates a prinicple (realizing it now) called desire lines. So my cats havnt messed with it and i cant gareentee it wouldnt be a choking hazard but i sont think the big lengths would be. I want to come up with a little curtain on the open areas they can pop up and look out the window but people cant see in. New video!
I found another video on using cling wrap and a putty knife, helps with air flow from the loose wiggly old windows. I finally just tried this, and it has helped a ton. Gonna try this with that technique.
I want to emphasize to use a good amount of water spray with each strip that you put up. My windows open good and I think yours will too if there is more than 3/4" of clearance from the back window pane to the front sliding sash.
In this video he sprays the window lightly with a water bottle and then the bubble wrap sticks to the window. Did you use the water to stick the bubble wrap to the window and then Blow dry it?
This is an interesting way to recycle bubble wrap. Yet our old house with wood frames you really need something that covers all the way around entirely. Also direct sunlight is great for added heat and I'd see bubble wrap as deterrent to the heat the sun would provide through clear wrap. Not to mention winter is drab enough and people lack vitamin D from lack of UV so you would likely be further limiting your mental health as indoor sunlight is restricted almost entirely. It's a cool idea but I'd recommend allowing as much light in as possible in the winter when it's available. I get the cats shredding the plastic wrap would attract people to bubble wrap since you're constantly patching where they scratch at birds. Yet it's a small price for having a view and better mental health due to more sun exposure even if indirect.
I have three big cats that lie on thst and tight to tbd window it’s like tv for the cats because I have so many birds and feeders I love it and the cats love it
@@WholeBibleBelieverWoman good to know.I never knew uvb didn't penetrate glass. All the same it's still good for UVA to come through for heat and increase of nitric oxide that increases mood and stamina and strength that we also lack from less exposure to the sun during cold months.
@@scott6588 Yes. I LOVE to have LOTS of light come in, but finally had to admit that where I am living now that insulation on the windows gives a LOT more warmth than sunlight, especially on cold days with no sunlight but gray skies. We're here in Austin, Texas and NOT used to or at all comfortable with cold weather and in another day the temperature is predicted to go down to 15°F -- YIKES...! What's nice about this bubble wrap -- (I just put it on our living room windows today) -- is that it DOES let in a NICE amount of light. And left about 4 inches height of no bubble wrap on both windows just to be able to see out clearly (plus it saved bubble wrap to put on more windows, haha).
I looked it up in consumer reports and window glass blocks UVB which is the type of UV light you need to synthesize vitamin D. So it does not matter if you put plastic on the window glass in regards to UVB. The window glass is already blocked to UVB. Window glass does not block UV a which is a type of UV light that gives you sunburns. To get vitamin D from sunlight in the winter you must go outside most days of the week and spend at least 20 or 30 minutes outdoors. When I took human physiology a long time ago, they told us that if you took a shower within 12 or 13 hours of your sunlight exposure that you would wash all the vitamin D off that you had made before it could be absorbed. I recently looked it up again to see if people thought it was still true and I couldn’t find anything about it at all.
I think you said that I needed to measure the height and the width of the window and add them to no how much bubble wrap I need. The area of a window is found by multiplying the height times width. If you just add the height and width together you get half of the circumference. I don’t see how that that would be a useful measure for this project.
Survey says..... Total BS. I checked this out with a Flir camera and the bubble wrapped window is actually colder. The plastic skin on the bubbles are thermally connected to the glass which increases the glass surface area making it colder. It's like increasing the window size
Not BS, but I admire your empirical leaning! so I fact checked it. Bubble wrap does work. It's such a simple test that has been replicated many times such as this: www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Conservation/bubblewrapperformance.htm I'm surprised by the Flir camera and aspire to get one. This is my best leaning currently why you got your result: www.fluke.com/en-us/learn/blog/thermal-imaging/fixing-thermography-reflectivity
@@hackingtheenvironment It's actually fact checking rather than learning. I was surprised myself with the results. It makes sense that it should provide insulation, but it doesn't look like it. Possibly the camera was looking "through" to the bubble wrap and still reading the glass temp.
@@hackingtheenvironment BTW. I'm very familiar with variations due to different surfaces when using those hand held infrared devices. I've got 2 of them, an expensive one and a cheap knockoff and got too frustrated trying to measure temps on different surfaces, like walls, flue on the furnace, windows, etc... That's the reason I bought a real Flir camera
@@ericrose2366 Yep, I think he did a pretty good approximation and so I'm going to go with that to say about a 25% reduction of heat loss, which would be through the surface of the glass!
So easy to put up and remove and it certainly makes a difference to keeping the warmth in as I live in a flat with an almost direct windows opposite I'm not too bothered about seeing out and my bedroom window looks out out to someone s side wall and during the colder months I very rarely open my curtains and as I don't like bright lights in my lounge, kitchen, diner and also my bedroom I use the colour changing bulbs
