One of the best things you can do to protect your windows is to purchase awnings. An awning is a fabric cover that stretches over an aluminum frame to put a canopy over the top of exterior windows. This blocks out some of the sun from various rooms in the home, and it also keeps the sun from beating down on the window framing. Some of most easy to install awnings come from the coolaroo company. Their line of products have proved to be simple to set up and take down every season. Try a coolaroo pop up and see if it is right for you.