Window shade automation is more accessible and beneficial than ever. Whether you’re tired of wrestling with hard-to-reach blinds or you want to protect your home from the sun’s harmful rays, automation offers convenience, efficiency, and style.
Here’s everything you need to know about automating your window shades, from the benefits and options to the process and costs.
Why Automate Your Shades?
Automated shades make life easier by allowing you to control light and privacy effortlessly. They protect your home and protect you. And they can give you a real ROI with better durability and energy efficiency.
Convenience and Functionality
Imagine washing dishes at your sink while sunlights blasts into your eyes. Instead of awkwardly reaching over the counter, you can simply tap on a wand or your phone to lower your shades to just the right height.
Protection for Your Home
People often don’t realize how much UV light will fade your walls, art, floors, and furniture. It’s only when you move your rug or your furniture that you notice fading.
Automated shades protect your interiors by blocking harmful UV rays. This will help your interior design stay looking new for much longer. Plus, you don’t have to consciously think about it!
You can schedule your east-facing shades to lower automatically before sunrise, and you can schedule your west-facing shades to lower automatically in the evening. This automation will protect your space from direct light without requiring any mental or manual effort.
Protection for You
Automating your shades doesn’t just protect your furniture. Shades can also protect your skin by minimizing your UV exposure indoors.
While not many people think about it, you should technically be wearing sunscreen any time you’re receiving direct light, whether you’re outdoors or indoors. Your dermatologist will confirm that reducing your indoor exposure is an excellent protective step to keep your skin youthful. 😊
Durability
Manual operation leads to uneven wear on shades, especially for larger or taller windows. Think about the strain you put on your shades or drapes when you pull, push, or tug. If you manually operate your shades 300 days a year, often multiple times a day, year after year, that little bit of strain gets multiplied over time.
With automation, you’re pulling the window shade up or down evenly from both sides, and you’re pulling it slowly and smoothly. This careful operation extends the life of your window treatments.
Energy Efficiency
Automated shades help regulate indoor temperatures. This reduces heat gain in the summer and retains warmth in the winter.
Especially combined with energy efficient solutions like double cellular shades, you can notice real savings on your energy bills.
They’re Just Nice!
If you’re buying something new, you may want to have the best.
Now that motorization and automation has become affordable, a lot of people tell us that they see their neighbors’ new shades and they want something similar.
How to Automate Your Shades
We’re lucky to live in a time when automation is both user-friendly and affordable.
Motorization
Automation starts with motorizing your shades. Hunter Douglas uses Somfy for motors. These motors are quiet, intuitive, reliable, and durable. The use rechargeable batteries, and there’s also a solar option.
PowerWand: Our Favorite Affordable Accessory
The PowerWand™ from Alta is one of our favorite accessible solutions. It starts at just $10–50 more than manual shades.
The wand reaches down to where you can easily hold it to control your windows. From here, you simply push the up or down buttons. Plus, it’s easy to charge, thanks to a USB port.
PowerView: Best For Full Automation
90% of the time, our customers choose to use Hunter Douglas’s PowerView® app. For full automation, this app connects your shades to your smart devices via Bluetooth. Plus it integrates with Alexa, Google Home, Apple HomeKit, Control4, and others.
With PowerView, you have nearly unlimited options: You can add shades to shade groups, program your favorite positions, set up routines, and coordinate them to different times of day.
These features enhance convenience, privacy, and energy efficiency.
Wi-Fi and Hub
Most automation systems require Wi-Fi coverage throughout your home. Fortunately, we’ve found that most customers don’t need additional equipment to achieve seamless connectivity.
In the past, you needed a PowerView hub that connects to your router. Today, you don’t need a hub for a scheduled routine. However, you will need a hub if you want a way to communicate with your shades while you’re not at home. If you need this feature, it’s reliable and easy to use.
Pre-Wiring for New Homes
If you’re building a new home, we recommend pre-wiring during construction. This will barely add to your costs and will allow you to directly power multiple shades.
Simply have your electrician pull low voltage wiring to your windows. Then, we will install a 16-shade direct current power box.
The motor costs the same regardless of how many windows you set up. So, the more shades you install, the more cost effective your installation will be.
Battery or Solar Power for Existing Homes
If you have an existing home, you can use battery-powered options. Today, there are batteries that are rechargeable and even solar-powered, so you don’t have to worry about constantly rebuying and throwing away batteries.
Recommended Rooms for Automation
We recommend automating every window for maximum convenience and protection. If budget is an issue, we suggest prioritize these key areas.
Master Bedroom
Everyone loves not having to get out of bed to close their shades. When you’re cozy in bed, it’s super convenient to close your bedroom shades with the touch of a button.
Living Room
After the bedroom, prioritize the room where you spend the most amount of time. For most of people, that’s your living room. You can imagine how convenient it is to lower your living room shades before a movie or when the sun starts getting in your eyes, all without leaving your couch.
Where Not to Automate
Costs for automation can add up, so it can be useful to save on rooms where you won’t see much benefit.
Small Windows
You likely won’t notice much difference in having automation for small windows. Think about the small windows in your bathrooms or the side lights next to your front door.
These windows don’t let in a lot of light to begin with. Additionally, for windows under 24″ inches” wide, automation is generally not feasible.
Guest Rooms (Optional)
A guest room is not always a great place to automate unless you show your guests how to operate the window. We recommend wall mounting a battery controlled switch right next to your light switch. This makes it easy for guests to remember and use.
(We’ve had a couple calls from people who say that their guests pulled their shades down trying to operate them, and we’ve had to order new motors for them. So, if you automate your guest room, show your guests how to open and close their shades safely!)
Shades and Blinds That Can Be Automated
Automation isn’t limited to a specific type of window treatment. Here are some popular options.
- Fabric Shades: Any fabric is nice to automate because it will keep your fabric neat and tidy. This is especially useful for Roman shades, where perfectly presented fabric is crucial for the best aesthetic.
- Shutters: Many people are surprised when we tell them that you can automate shutters! This provides effortless control of light and privacy.
- Wood Blinds: Automation tilts the slats rather than lifting the blinds. This allows you to craft light perfectly throughout the day without straining your motorization system.
- Drapery: Automated drapery adds elegance while maintaining ease of use.
Enhance Your Shades with Aura Lighting
Did you know you can backlight your fabrics? You’ve probably seen this stunning look in commercials or social media ads.
The best way to create this effect is with Hunter Douglas’s Aura Lighting.
This lighting effect is beautiful on the inside and outside.
From the inside, you’ll enjoy a sophisticated ambiance. From the outside, people will see a luxurious, inviting glow in your windows.
Backlighting is also functional. It creates a privacy barrier, making it harder for people to see in.
What to Expect in the Automation Process
We like to start by meeting with you to understand what you envision and what is most important to you.
Design and Planning
If you’re building a home, involve us early in the design stage. We’ll review blueprints, provide quotes, and recommend where to put the wiring so that you have a seamless experience.
If your home is already built, we can show you battery-operated options, recommend where to put them, and make them easy for you to use.
During a consultation, we’ll discuss your needs, from individual rooms to whole-home systems.
Timeline
From order to installation, the automation process typically takes 3–4 weeks.
Installation
During installation, we’ll ensure everything looks seamless so you don’t have any bulky equipment or visible wires. Once installed, we’ll help you set up a basic automation schedule, so your shades are functional from day one.
Costs and Considerations
Automation costs about $200–250 per window.
Whether you’re working with a small or large window, you’ll still only need one motor, so your motor price will remain consistent. However, with a top-down-bottom-up configuration, you will need two motors per window.
Start Automating Today
Automation makes your home more comfortable, efficient, and beautiful. Whether it’s a simple upgrade like a PowerWand for a hard-to-reach window or a fully automated system integrated with your smart home, there’s a solution to fit your needs and budget.
Ready to make your windows work smarter?
Contact us today to explore your options and schedule a consultation. Let’s make your life easier and your home more beautiful!
