The Convenience, Energy and Efficiency of Motorized Screens

If you live in central Texas, you probably don’t spend much time outside in the summer. The combination of heat, pests and summer storms can make it challenging to enjoy the great outdoors during this season. However, retreating into your home reduces your livable square footage until the weather cools down.

What if you could still enjoy your outdoor spaces during the summer? Enter motorized screens. This patio solution allows you to easily close off or open up outdoor spaces at your preference. With a motorized screen, you can improve your home’s energy efficiency and enjoy your patio or porch even in the heat of summer.

Why Install Motorized Screens?

Does your patio have too much direct sunlight? Maybe there’s no privacy from your neighbors, or the mosquitoes make it impossible to enjoy your outdoor living space. In central Texas, the top three reasons to install a motorized screen are:

  • To manage heat
  • To enjoy natural light
  • To block pests

When you use a motorized screen to keep your patio shaded, you’re in control of when to raise it and enjoy natural light. You can also invest in a pest-blocking screen to handle insects like mosquitoes that make it a challenge to enjoy outdoor spaces in the summer.

The Benefits of Motorized Screens

 

There are many types of shades and screens you could use to shade your patio. However, motorized screens offer unique benefits you won’t find with other shading options. Here are the top benefits of using a motorized screen to shade your outdoor area in the summer.

Convenience

Motorized screens work with a remote, so you don’t have to manually open and close them. Large screens can be heavy, and it takes time to personally move them. With a motorized option, you can quickly adjust them to your preferred size to block the sun or let in more natural light.

Read  Tips for Shading Your Deck

Modern motorized screens can be integrated into smart home systems, making them even easier to use. Once you’ve connected screens and shades to a smart device, you can use voice commands to make adjustments. You can also use your phone to adjust the settings — even when you’re not home.

Energy Savings

You can also improve your home’s energy efficiency with motorized screens. When the sun hits the side of your house or comes directly into your windows, it can heat up your home. A screen system can help to keep direct sunlight away, cooling your space naturally.

Motorized screens can also help you reduce cooling costs for patio areas. Because they keep the patio cooler, you won’t need to run as many fans or use outdoor air conditioning to achieve a reasonably cool temperature. You can also open and close your screens to block the wind and sun or let them in as you prefer.

Design Flexibility

One of the fun benefits of motorized screens is how they can change your home’s appearance and patio design. When shades are down, the exterior of your home will look different, and your outdoor spaces will become an extension of your indoor rooms. Your patio will become a functional part of your space again.

Your interior design will also benefit, since the open patio walls will now have a neutral background you can incorporate into your existing patio design. When the weather permits, you can easily open the screens to let in natural light and enjoy cool breezes. Because motorized screens aren’t permanent structures, you can have the best of both an open and closed patio space.

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Improved Privacy

Living near your neighbors can create wonderful opportunities for community. However, you may also lose a sense of privacy if your home is close to a neighbor’s house. A motorized screen system can help you block your outdoor spaces from the surrounding properties so you can enjoy them in peace.

These screens can work together or independently. You can put one side down at a time, depending on the orientation of your home to your neighbors’ properties. Whether you want to block the sun or your neighbors from seeing your outdoor space, a motorized screen can help.

What Are the Cons of Motorized Screens?

Here are some factors to consider if you’re unsure whether motorized screens and shades are the best option for your home:

  • High initial cost
  • Maintenance
  • Power usage

Because they require mechanical parts, motorized screens are more expensive to purchase and install than traditional screens. However, they are well worth the initial cost for their convenience and upscale aesthetic.

If a screen is damaged, you might need to cover repair and maintenance costs. Thankfully, many motorized screens are built with strong frames for durability. Some companies offer a warranty on their screens so you can easily repair any damage that may occur during a storm.

Unlike traditional patio screens, motorized screens require power to run. If you’re concerned about additional energy costs or have limited access to power, motorized screens may not be the best option for your home — though lower cooling costs can help to make up the difference.

How Do Motorized Screens Work in a Storm?

In central Texas, summer storms can cause damage to your home. Thankfully, motorized screens are retractable to prevent punctures or the effects of strong winds. Because they’re compatible with smart technology, you can even retract some screens from your phone when you’re not at home.

Read  6 Tips for Keeping Mosquitoes Out of Your Outdoor Living Space

While you can’t control the weather, motorized screens give you options so you can make the best decision for your property when there’s a storm. They’re much faster to retract than traditional screens, which can be very useful when you need to act quickly.

Enjoy Your Summers With Screens From Shading Texas

At Shading Texas, we want to help you enjoy the outdoors even during hot Texas summers. We design patio shades, screens and retractable awnings to extend your living space, giving you control over how much sun or shade you experience. Our products are motorized for your highest convenience, and they can be integrated into your smart home system.

Do you have too many mosquitoes? Does the afternoon sun shine directly on your patio area? Shading Texas has solutions for your home to expand the square footage you can enjoy during the hottest part of the year. We also guarantee all our products, including a lifetime warranty on all our frames, so you can face the Texas storm season with confidence.

Contact us today to learn more about our products or request a quote. We look forward to hearing from you!

 

 

Resources linked: 

https://www.shadingtexas.com/can-sceens-offer-adequate-protection-against-insects/

https://www.shadingtexas.com/how-do-i-shade-my-patio/

https://www.shadingtexas.com/do-retractable-screens-block-wind/

https://www.shadingtexas.com/how-to-make-the-most-out-of-your-outdoor-space/

https://www.shadingtexas.com/how-a-retractable-awning-will-improve-your-life/

https://www.shadingtexas.com/how-to-prepare-your-home-for-hurricane-season-in-texas/

https://www.shadingtexas.com/about-us/