How to read a WincovER energy rating: 118 rated products, four suppliers, no curtains

What the hub is

WincovER is an energy rating program created by the Window Shading Association of Australia, the industry body; its About page says it is independent of any one supplier. Its Certified Products Hub lists WincovER rated window coverings and outdoor shades, and the hub’s Search by Product read Showing 1 - 25 of 118 results on 6 October 2026.

Getting a product on the list takes several steps, which WincovER sets out on How WincovER Works. The fabric, slat or louvre is tested at an approved laboratory to EN14500:2008; the results go to Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in the United States for peer review and its Complex Glazing Database; a WincovER-qualified simulator then models the material in its most common hardware on a baseline window, and runs the result through whole-of-house simulation. The ratings are independently audited prior to being listed.

We wrongly told readers in July that this register did not work. It does, and our earlier story now carries a correction saying so. This is the buyer’s guide we should have written then.

One row, read in full

This is the first product on Luxaflex’s supplier page, exactly as the page displayed it on 6 October 2026. The stars are drawn as icons on the page; each icon’s own label gives the number shown here.

In plain terms, using WincovER’s own definitions:

• 3.0 cooling stars, 6.5 heating stars. Two separate ratings out of 10, in half stars. More stars is better. WincovER calls each one a ranking of the product against its competitors.
• Cool 51%, Heat 19%. In WincovER’s model house, this blind, operated by hand, cut the annual energy needed for cooling by 51 per cent, and for heating by 19 per cent, compared with the same house with bare windows of the baseline type.
• Stars and percentages do not line up across the two columns. This product’s 6.5 heating stars go with a 19 per cent heating figure, while its 3.0 cooling stars go with 51 per cent for cooling. Because the stars rank products against each other, compare cooling stars with cooling stars and heating with heating, never across.
• U_W 2.81. How easily heat passes through the whole window with the blind fitted, in W/m²K. Lower keeps more warmth in.
• SHGC_W 0.15. The fraction of the sun’s heat that gets through: roughly 15 per cent. Lower means less summer heat gain.
• VT_W 0.00. The fraction of visible light that gets through. Zero means none, which is what a blockout blind is for.
• Three operation rows. The same blind earns more stars when a timer or a sensor opens and closes it: 5.0 and 9.0 stars with a sensor, against 3.0 and 6.5 by hand. Your figure is the row for the way yours will actually be run.

What each number means, in WincovER’s words

The definitions sit in the Disclosure Notes printed at the foot of every supplier page, and in the hub’s FAQs and Glossary.

• Cool % and Heat %. The notes define Cool % as the percentage reduction in annual cooling energy required for a reference building when using the rated product, compared with not using it, and Heat % the same way for heating. The comparison is with a Generic Baseline Window type D, which the notes describe as 5mm clear glass in standard aluminium frame, with no window covering or outdoor shade. A negative figure would mean worse than that bare window; we found none among the 118.
• The reference building. The modelling accounts for windows facing all four cardinal directions in a mid-latitude climate (Adelaide, South Australia) in which homes have appreciable heating and cooling needs. Annual performance is calculated with EnergyPlus 9.1.0, and the window values with LBNL’s WINDOW 7 and THERM 7.
• U-value. The glossary says it measures how well a material or assembly prevents heat from passing through it, for the whole window with the shading layer, and that values generally fall between 2.0-10.0 W/m²K for Australian products.
• SHGC. The glossary calls it the fraction of incident solar radiation admitted through the covering fitted to a window, as a number between 0 and 1. The glossary adds that a higher SHGC may help heating in winter but increases the risk of overheating in summer.
• VT. How much visible light comes through, between 0 and 1. A VT of 0 (zero) means no light is admitted.
• Operation. What is WincovER? says ratings take account of the mode of operation, which can be fixed, manual, or timer/sensor automated. The certificate page says manual includes a cord, chain, wand, wall switch or remote control. The automation page says timer and sensor automation enhance the energy rating of most window coverings and external shades because automation removes the dependence on human interaction. Every one of the 118 products is rated for manual operation; 112 are also rated for timer and sensor operation, and the other six, all from The Modern Group (SA) / Bramalco, show N/A there. None carries a fixed rating.
• Which automation counts. WincovER’s list of certified automation products, as at 17/05/2022, names timer and sensor systems from four brands, and describes the qualifying kind as Professionally installed, pre-programmed Timer or Sensor driven automation.

What is actually listed

The supplier list read Showing 1 - 6 of 6 results on 6 October 2026. We opened every one of the six pages it links. Two of them, Blinds by Peter Meyer and Vertilux Corporation Pty Limited, read Showing 0 results and No products found., in a plain fetch and again in a browser. The other four list 118 products between them, the same total as the hub’s Search by Product.

• No curtains. None of the 13 product types on the hub’s product types page is a curtain or drape, and the word “curtain” did not appear on any hub, supplier or WincovER explainer page we read on 6 October 2026. A curtain sold with an energy claim cannot be checked here.
• Awnings are in, under another name. No type is called an awning. WincovER’s guide to coverings and shades says roller blinds fitted outside a window are commonly known as straight-drop awnings. All 19 products in the hub’s two outdoor roller blind types sit in product lines called Straight Drop Awning, Drop Awning or Fully Enclosed Straight Drop Awning, and five of them are named System 2000 Awning. Four louvre panels are named Trinidad Awning.
• Some types WincovER describes have nothing listed. The same guide describes fixed screens and external venetian blinds. Neither appears among the 13 hub types, and no product of either kind is listed. Window film is not a WincovER product at all; it is rated under WERS, as our earlier story sets out.
• Two of the four lists mostly repeat each other. Every one of Luxaflex’s 36 listings carries a supplier model number that also appears in a Hunter Douglas Limited listing, and 34 of them match a Hunter Douglas listing of the same product type on every published star, percentage and window value. Comparing those two pages is mostly reading the same ratings twice.

The spread of ratings is narrower than a 10-star scale suggests. Under manual operation, cooling stars across the 118 run from 0 to 4.5 and heating stars from 0 to 6.5. The top heating figure, 6.5 stars, belongs to four listings, all Architella Elan cellular blinds, two under each of Hunter Douglas Limited and Luxaflex. The top cooling figure, 4.5 stars, belongs to six: two PolySatin indoor shutters (one under each of those two names) and four outdoor louvres and shutters from Ozroll and The Modern Group (SA) / Bramalco, at 62 per cent for the outdoor four. 55 of the 118 carry 0 heating stars when operated by hand, outdoor and indoor alike; 10 carry 0 cooling stars. That is a reading of the published ratings, which differ by colour and fabric within a single product name, not a verdict on any supplier.

What the disclosure notes caveat

The same Disclosure Notes appear, word for word, at the foot of the supplier list, the product types page and all six supplier pages; we compared the eight copies on 6 October 2026. They say five things a buyer should know.

• The results are intended only as a guide to help compare the relative energy performance of window coverings and outdoor shades.
• They must be used in conjunction with product information provided by the accredited WincovER product supplier.
• WincovER ratings are specific to a material and end product combination; the same material in a different end product may rate differently. A fabric rated as a roller blind is not rated as a roman blind unless that row exists.
• WincovER ratings and the data published in this website are not intended to provide information about possible reductions in energy bills. The FAQ says the same: WincovER does not measure exactly how much energy can be saved.
• The WSAA and the suppliers make no claims as to the availability of those products and control options at any point in time, and the notes tell readers to check with their retailer.

That last caveat matters more than it would on a busier register. The certification dates in the hub’s exported data run from 3 November 2021 to 17 November 2022, the automation list is dated May 2022, and the scheme’s news page still carries one item, dated 11/04/2021. A rated fabric or colour may no longer be sold.

What to ask a retailer who quotes an energy benefit

• Ask for the WincovER ID. Every rated product has one, such as LUXA-CEL-10481. Look it up on the hub yourself and check the product type, colour and light control match what you are being quoted.
• Ask which operation row the figure comes from. For all 112 products rated both ways, the sensor row carries more stars than the manual row, for cooling, heating or both. If you are buying a corded or hand-operated blind, the manual row is yours. If you are paying for automation, ask whether it is on WincovER’s certified automation list.
• Ask for the WincovER Certificate. The certificate page tells buyers to ask your retailer for your WincovER Certificate, which states the installation address, the rooms and the mode of operation, and says it is only valid when completed in full by a WincovER Accredited Retailer.
• Do not read the percentage as a bill saving. WincovER says its ratings are not intended to tell you that. A Cool % or Heat % is a result for one model house in Adelaide against a bare single-glazed aluminium window.
• Ask whether the exact product is still made. The ratings were certified in 2021 and 2022, and WincovER itself makes no claim about availability.
• For anything not on the hub, curtains included: ask what test or rating the energy claim rests on, and treat the answer as the seller’s own.

Our read

This section is opinion, built on the pages above.

The hub is better than we said in July, and in one way better than most product labels: it publishes the test basis, the baseline, the climate, the software and the caveats on every page, and it rates the same blind three ways depending on how it is run. For a buyer comparing two blockout rollers in the showroom, the cooling and heating stars are a fair, like-for-like comparison, which is exactly what WincovER says they are for.

Its limits are just as plain. It covers four suppliers, two of whose lists largely duplicate each other, no curtains, and no certification after 2022. The percentages are measured against a bare, single-glazed aluminium window; our inference, not WincovER’s claim, is that a home with better windows already will see a smaller gap close. And because the stars rank products against each other rather than measure energy, a 6.5 next to a 3.0 on the same row tells you about the competition, not about which season the blind helps more.

So use it as a comparison tool, the way it asks to be used. A retailer who can give you a WincovER ID, the operation row, and a certificate is quoting something you can check. One who turns a Cool % into a dollar saving is going further than the scheme does.

Sources

1. WincovER, Certified Products Hub (read 6 October 2026): what the hub lists, and its Search by Product and Search by Supplier routes.
2. WincovER, Product Suppliers (read 6 October 2026): “Showing 1 - 6 of 6 results”, the six supplier names and IDs, and the Disclosure Notes.
3. WincovER, Blinds by Peter Meyer supplier page (read 6 October 2026, plain fetch and browser): “Showing 0 results”, “No products found.”, and the Disclosure Notes.
4. WincovER, Hunter Douglas Limited supplier page and its Export CSV (read 6 October 2026): 48 products, their types, positions, stars, percentages, window values and certification dates.
5. WincovER, Luxaflex supplier page and its Export CSV (read 6 October 2026): 36 products, including the LUXA-CEL-10481 row quoted above.
6. WincovER, Ozroll Pty Limited supplier page and its Export CSV (read 6 October 2026): 19 products.
7. WincovER, The Modern Group (SA), Bramalco Pty Limited supplier page and its Export CSV (read 6 October 2026): 15 products, six of them with N/A for timer and sensor operation.
8. WincovER, Vertilux Corporation Pty Limited supplier page (read 6 October 2026, plain fetch and browser): “Showing 0 results” and “No products found.”
9. WincovER, Search by Product (read 6 October 2026): “Showing 1 - 25 of 118 results”, and the per-type counts, which sum to 118.
10. WincovER, product types (read 6 October 2026): the 13 indoor and outdoor types, and the Disclosure Notes.
11. WincovER, Architella Elan, LUXA-CEL-10481 product page (read 6 October 2026): light control, description and the certification date of November 3, 2021.
12. WincovER, What is WincovER? (read 6 October 2026): the 10-star heating and cooling system and the modes of operation.
13. WincovER, How WincovER Works (read 6 October 2026): the testing, simulation and audit steps, half-star increments, and stars as a ranking against competitors.
14. WincovER, FAQs and Glossary (read 6 October 2026): the definitions of U-value, SHGC and VT, and the answer on how much energy WincovER can say you will save.
15. WincovER, What is the WincovER Certificate (read 6 October 2026): what the certificate states, the four modes of operation, red and blue stars, the baseline window, and validity only when completed by an Accredited Retailer.
16. WincovER, Automation for Enhanced Energy Efficiency (read 6 October 2026): how timer and sensor automation affect ratings.
17. WincovER, WincovER Certified Automation Products (PDF, v1.1, published 17 May 2022, read in full 6 October 2026): the timer and sensor systems listed, and the professionally installed, pre-programmed requirement.
18. WincovER, Which blinds, shutters, louvres or awnings are best for your home? (read 6 October 2026): outside roller blinds as straight-drop awnings, and the descriptions of fixed screens and external venetian blinds.
19. WincovER, About Us (read 6 October 2026): created by the WSAA, independent of any one supplier.
20. WincovER, News (read 6 October 2026): one item, dated 11/04/2021.

How we did this. Every page above was fetched on 6 October 2026 and saved. The two supplier pages with no products were opened again in a browser, beside the Luxaflex page as a control, and read the same. Counts were taken three ways that agree: rows on each supplier page, each page’s Export CSV, and the hub’s per-type search; the star labels and figures on the pages match the CSV for all 118 products. Certification dates come from the Export CSV. The absence of curtains is a search of every page listed here for the word, on 6 October 2026. Overlap between suppliers was found by matching supplier model numbers, product type and every published value. We have no commercial relationship with WincovER, the WSAA or any supplier named here, and we have not contacted them.

Seen a WincovER rating quoted, a product that is no longer made, or a curtain on the hub? Tell us and we will check it at the source and log the outcome here.