One of the greatest parts of owning an RV is that you can have an a/c unit and a heater! This means that no matter what the weather decides to do outside, you can stay comfortable inside! Whether you’re heating or cooling the rig it is going to take some energy to do it, and that energy is usually propane. We all know that propane isn’t free so doing what you can to keep the heat/cold from escaping is a money saver! Insulating your windows can help trap that desirable temp inside so you’re not paying for it to just escape into the outdoors. DIY projects to insulate the windows work very well and are cost effective. Here’s how to make insulated RV window covers.
Bubble Wrap
Using bubble wrap is a cheap (or free if you saved it from packaging) way to insulate the windows in your rig. First, make sure to cut the bubble wrap to the size of the window. Fill a spray bottle with water and spray the window and the bubble side of the wrap. Press the wrap, bubble side against the window. That’s it! It’ll stick there for as long as you want. The nice thing about this method is that you can still get some natural light through the window if you use clear bubble wrap. Even the stuff that’s tinted will let a little light in and could make some fun colors in your rig.
Reflectix
Reflectix is two reflective layers with heavy-duty polyethylene bubbles in between! This is can be installed by cutting it to fit the window and then adding adhesive Velcro to the outer edge of the reflectix sheet and around the window. This way it’s easy to put up and take down when you need to! The main downfall to this type of insulation is that no light will make it through. You will need to rely on just your interior lights. If you need to take a nap during the day however, this feature may actually come in handy, as it will make the inside very dark.
3M Window Insulator
This isn’t exactly something you make yourself but you put it up yourself and it’s pretty cost effective. The 3M Window Insulator Kit comes with plastic sheeting and double sided tape. All you have to do is run the tape around the widow and then stick the plastic to it. With a hair dryer you can shrink the plastic sheet to be tight. Once it’s taut it’s actually quite invisible to the eye so your views out of the windows won’t be obstructed.
Styrofoam
If you don’t care how it looks or how much light comes in, Styrofoam sheeting may be the way to go! You can get it in different thicknesses so you can vary the amount of insulation you get depending on what you need. You can tape or Velcro this over the window and it will do an amazing job of keeping the temp in your rig stable. Once again though, this option will not let light through which can be a major downfall.
Mix and Match
You can use different mixes of each of these until you find exactly what works for you. There are some great tutorials out there for different insulation projects. This one found on Do it Yourself RV involves a pillow, pillowcase, cardboard, and reflectix. This is a very thick insulator that’s sure to keep the temp stable, but the aesthetics of it aren’t quite there. There’s another DIY project found on Roadtrek Life that looks amazing but will require some sewing skills. The thing we like the most about these is how easily you can roll them up and store them.
If you’re not up to making something to cover your windows, there are always after-market items you can purchase online. There are plenty of companies out there where you can send them your RV’s dimensions and they’ll whip them up for you. These are going to be pricier than doing it yourself, but if you don’t have the time or desire to make them, it may be worth it to you!
