One of the simplest things that we did to save energy on lighting in our new house was to include small transom windows over our bedroom doors and a bathroom door in the ‘sleeping wing’ of our ICF bungalow. We intentionally kept bedrooms on the smaller side and access to them is off a fairly small L-shaped hallway. When we did one of our many walk-throughs after the main floor interior walls had been framed, my husband and I had an almost simultaneous ‘a-ha’ moment, and realized that transoms would ensure that some daylight would get into an otherwise dark hall space; the inclusion of a transom in the tiny but very efficient internal bathroom (ie no external windows) we carved out for our two boys, also means that during the day it isn’t usually necessary to switch a light on in order to use this room.
The very best thing about these transom windows didn’t happen until several weeks after we moved in however; a chance visit to the hardware store turned up a stained glass effect roll-on paper that transformed these windows. At night, when electric lights are turned on, the glowing colours are really lovely.
