The short answer
A VELUX awning blind is an external mesh blind that hangs outside the window, over the glass. It stops the sun's heat before it reaches the pane, so a loft stays cooler in summer while daylight still comes through the weave. An inside blind shades the room but lets the heat in first. Check current VELUX data for the awning model that fits your window.
Where the heat is stopped
The whole point of an awning blind is its position. It works on the outside of the glass, and that changes what the sun can do.
Sunshine arrives as light and as heat together. Once it has passed through a pane, the heat is inside the room, and pulling a blind across the inside only hides the glare. The warmth has already arrived. It sits between the glass and the blind, and the room keeps absorbing it. An external blind catches the sun earlier. The mesh takes the heat on its own surface, and most of it stays outdoors, where the breeze carries it away.
That matters most in a loft. A roof is the surface the summer sun beats on hardest, and a room directly under the slope has little else between it and the sky. A south or west facing roof window can turn an attic into the warmest room of the house by late afternoon. A properly fitted awning blind is the answer to that particular problem, and it is why people search for how a VELUX external blind affects heat.
Our page on energy efficient rooflights covers the glass-side choices, such as solar control coatings. The awning is a different tool, and the two can work together.
What the blind is made of and how it sits
The awning is a mesh fabric on a roller, carried in a cassette above the window and guided down the sides by rails or arms.
- The mesh. A woven, open fabric that is weatherproof and stays stable in sun. You can see out through it in a soft, muted way, and daylight still reaches the room.
- The housing. A cassette fixed to the roof above the window, with the fabric rolled inside it when not in use.
- The guides. Side rails or arms that keep the fabric close to the glass yet clear of the frame, leaving a small air gap so heat can escape upward.
Because it is outside the building, the blind is fixed to the roof structure. It is fitted to a particular window size, so the same size code we use for everything else applies. See how to read a VELUX size code before choosing.
Awning, roller or inside blind: what each one does
The three blind types are easy to mix up, and they do different jobs. It helps to put them side by side.
An inside blackout is for sleep. It shuts the room dark, and it does little about heat, because heat has reached the glass by then. We cover that choice on the page about the best VELUX blind for a bedroom. A pleated or light-filtering inside blind softens glare and gives privacy. It is neat and easy to use, but it is also an inside product.
An external roller shutter is a solid outside blind. It blocks light, heat and, to a degree, the weather. An awning blind sits between these: open enough to let daylight in, and outside enough to meet the sun first. Many houses end up with two layers, an awning for the heat and an inside blind for the night. Our page on choosing genuine VELUX blinds compares them in more detail.
Operating it, and what to plan for
An awning sits outside, often out of reach. So the way it is driven deserves thought before it goes on the roof.
Manual versions are worked with a pole from inside the room, through the opened window. Electric and solar versions are controlled from a remote or a wall switch, and some can be linked to a window that opens by motor or to climate sensors. Our pages on VELUX INTEGRA electric roof windows and VELUX ACTIVE and indoor climate sensors explain how those controls link up.
Think, too, about what a motor needs. A powered blind needs a supply or a solar panel, and that is something to settle before the roof is covered in. The wiring is for a qualified electrician where mains is involved, which we discuss in the page on VELUX INTEGRA wiring.
Wind is the practical limit. Most awnings are made to be raised in strong wind so the fabric is not stressed, and a sensor can do that automatically. If you use it by hand, bring it up when a gale is forecast.
Whether you need one
Not every window does. The deciding factors are the direction of the roof, the size of the glass and how the room is used.
A north facing slope in a rarely used room seldom overheats. A large south or west window over a bedroom, a home office or a nursery is another matter. Sleep suffers in a hot loft, and screens are hard to read in glare. If the room is warm in summer even with the inside blind drawn, an external blind is the next step.
We raise this at the survey, because the glazing and the blind are best chosen together. A solar control coating on the glass reduces the heat that passes through, and an awning stops more of it arriving at all. The two choices are recorded in the quiet spec with the rest of the glazing detail. The wider VELUX window installation page shows how the whole window is planned.
Awning blind questions, answered
Will an awning blind make the room dark?
No. The mesh is open enough for daylight to pass, which is exactly the trade. For a dark room, use an inside blackout as well.
Can an awning be added to an existing window?
Often yes, if it is made for that window size and the roof will take the fixings. Confirm against current VELUX data before you order.
Does an external blind help in winter?
It is designed mainly to keep summer heat out. In winter you will usually keep it raised, so the low sun can warm the room.
Does it cut noise from rain?
Not in a way to rely on. The glass build decides that, and the page on do VELUX blinds reduce noise explains why.
If your loft is too warm in summer, get a quote and we will look at the glass and the blind together.