Paint Color and Room Temperature

name         Joel
status       student
grade        6-8
location     IL

Question -   Does paint color affect the room's temperature?
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In principle, it might, but there are many other factors that 
are likely to be more important --
heat, insulation, drafts, and so on. The paint color more often 
lends the "mood" of a room. Light and bright colors tending to be 
more "energizing". Dark colors tending to be more "tranquilizing". 
But these are psychological more than physical effects.

Vince Calder
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Joel,

You undoubtedly have heard or experienced that, especially during 
the summer months, dark painted cars are warmer than light colored 
ones. This is because - all things being equal - white reflects more 
sunlight (energy) than black.

The same could be said about a house, BUT the effect is not quite so 
observable since there are so many other factors in a house that 
have a much greater effect than the internally reflected energy: 
insulation, air circulation, heat sources and their locations, etc. 
Still - all things being equal - the color (and the amount of energy 
reflected), in principle should have an effect.

Greg (Roberto Gregorius)
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