Influence of the window roller shutters on the room temperature in residential buildings in Serbia

Abstract The roller shutters are an important factor for improving the energy efficiency of buildings, since their application could contribute to direct economic and environmental benefits. Their proper use allows for a significant reduction of heat loss in winter and excessive heat accumulation in summer, which is associated with a reduction in costs related to heating and air conditioning. The ability to adjust the degree of shading, allows the external shutters to control the sunlight, as well as the heat inside the room, which is especially important on hot summer days. As a result of shading regulation, rooms do not overheat, which reduces the need for air conditioning and makes everyday life more comfortable. In this article are presented results of an experiment conducted on the two rooms in a residential building in the city of Kragujevac, Central Serbia. The two rooms are placed on the East building’s façade; the first being the so-called test room, which had the roller shutters installed on a window and lowered during the test period, while the second room – the reference one – had no shutters lowered. The objective of the experiment was to investigate the influence of the lowered roller shutters on the room’s interior temperature, and consequently the energy consumption for the room’s heating and cooling. It was established that the lowered blinds significantly contributed to the comfort of staying in the room, as well as to savings of the energy consumed for the room’s heating in the winter and cooling in the summer.