I live in a rented apartment with aluminum window frames and double-pane windows. Now that it is heating season, I am noticing that my window frames are incredibly cold to the touch when it is cold outside. They appear to not have a thermal barrier, which is allowing them to conduct heat from inside to outside. The panes themselves are cool to the touch, but not nearly as cold as the frames, so it seems like most of the heat loss is occurring through the frames.
As a result of this heat conduction, parts of my apartment that are near windows (or my sliding glass door which also has aluminum frames) are much colder and more uncomfortable than parts of the apartment that are farther away from the windows.
I am trying to come up with a solution to fix this problem. I have done some online research, and come up with the following options:
- Use a window insulating film kit, the kind that you adhere to the area around the window that provides an air barrier. Like https://www.energystar.gov/campaign/seal_insulate/plastic_over_windows. I would have to be sure to secure this to the wall area around the window, not the frame itself, because it seems like the heat loss is occurring mostly through the frame, not the pane.
- Insulate just the frames of the windows by applying closed-cell foam tape to provide a thermal barrier. I assume I would apply the tape to the inside of the frames, because I don't have access to the outside (I live on the third floor).
I would like a solution that can easily be removed/cleaned up when I move out of the apartment, because I am not allowed to make any permanent modifications. I'm intrigued by the closed-cell foam tape on the frames solution, because I don't have a hairdryer to use for the window film solution and I would rather not film over all the windows in my apartment (they all have Venetian blinds on them and so I'd have to cut holes in the film to be able to operate the blinds). However, I am worried that the foam tape solution may leave a nasty residue of some kind on the window frames.
Will the foam tape solution work, or should I bite the bullet, buy a hairdryer, and go for the window film solution?
