Hear from Our Customers
Your AC is fighting a losing battle. Heat pours through your windows and glass doors all day, and your system runs overtime trying to compensate. By the time you get your energy bill, you’re looking at another $200+ month just to keep your home livable during Texas summers.
Exterior roller shades stop solar heat gain before it enters your home. That means your AC isn’t working against 100+ degree surface temperatures radiating through your glass. You’re blocking up to 99% of UV rays at the source, which can cut cooling costs by 15% or more depending on your home’s sun exposure.
The difference is immediate. Walk onto your patio without that wall of heat hitting you. Sit in your sunroom without squinting or sweating. Keep your furniture from fading and your energy bills from spiking every time the temperature climbs into triple digits.
A Plus Shutters & Shades started as a branch of A Plus Home Remodel, which means we came from construction first. We understand how homes are built, how heat moves through them, and what actually works in North Texas climate conditions.
We’ve spent ten years serving Arlington, Fort Worth, and surrounding communities including Viridian. That’s a decade of learning what holds up against Texas weather, what homeowners actually need versus what sounds good in a brochure, and how to install exterior shading systems that perform year after year.
Viridian homes are newer builds with modern architecture, covered porches, and outdoor living spaces that should be usable more than three months a year. We work with homeowners here who want to protect their investment without sacrificing the views or natural light that made them choose this community in the first place.
We start with a consultation at your home. We’ll look at your sun exposure throughout the day, measure your spaces, and talk through what you’re trying to solve—whether that’s heat reduction, privacy, glare control, or all three.
From there, we’ll show you fabric options that match your needs. Solar shades come in different openness factors, which affects how much light filters through and how much visibility you maintain. Tighter weaves block more heat and UV but reduce your view. We’ll help you find the right balance for each space.
Once you approve the design, we custom-build your shades and schedule installation. Our team mounts the system to your exterior walls or overhead structures, runs any necessary wiring for motorized options, and tests everything to make sure it operates smoothly. You’ll get a walkthrough on how to use your new shades, whether that’s manual controls or integrated smart home commands.
The whole process typically takes two to three weeks from consultation to installation, depending on the size of your project and customization level.
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You’re getting custom-measured and custom-built exterior shading designed specifically for your home’s dimensions and sun exposure. We don’t install pre-made sizes and hope they fit—everything is built to your exact specifications.
The shades themselves use UV-resistant fabrics engineered to withstand wind, rain, and intense sunlight without breaking down. You can choose manual operation with a crank system, or motorized controls that integrate with Alexa, Google Home, or your existing smart home setup.
In Viridian, most homeowners opt for motorized systems on larger patios and covered outdoor living areas. It makes sense when you’re dealing with multiple shades or hard-to-reach installations. You can program them to lower automatically when temperatures hit a certain point, or control everything from your phone when you’re not home.
We also handle any structural considerations during installation. If we’re mounting to brick, stucco, or specific architectural features common in Viridian’s newer construction, we use the right anchoring systems to ensure your shades stay secure through storms and high winds.
Exterior roller shades can reduce surface temperatures on your patio or near windows by 15-20 degrees, and they block up to 99% of UV rays depending on the fabric you choose. That translates to real energy savings because you’re stopping heat before it enters your home, which is far more effective than trying to block it with interior blinds after it’s already radiating through your glass.
Most homeowners see cooling cost reductions of 10-15% during peak summer months. The exact savings depend on how much glass you have, your sun exposure, and how much of your home you’re shading. South and west-facing windows get the most benefit because that’s where afternoon heat is most intense.
The ROI typically pays for itself within 3-5 years just from energy savings alone. That doesn’t account for the extended life of your outdoor furniture, reduced fading on interior rugs and artwork, or the added usability of your outdoor spaces during summer months.
Yes, when they’re installed correctly with proper mounting hardware. We use wind-rated fabrics and commercial-grade mounting systems designed for exterior applications. That said, we do recommend retracting your shades during severe weather warnings if you have motorized controls that make it easy to do so.
The fabrics themselves are engineered to resist moisture, mildew, and UV degradation. They won’t rot, fade quickly, or break down the way cheaper outdoor fabrics do. Most manufacturers warranty their exterior shade fabrics for 5-10 years, which tells you how confident they are in the material’s durability.
For Viridian specifically, we account for the wind patterns common in this area when we’re determining mounting locations and hardware specifications. Your shades aren’t going anywhere if we install them right, but we’ll also walk you through best practices for maintenance and when to retract them for protection.
Yes, depending on the fabric openness you choose. Solar shades are rated by their openness factor—typically ranging from 1% to 14%. A 5% openness shade blocks 95% of UV rays while still allowing you to see outside clearly, especially during daytime hours. The tighter the weave (lower openness percentage), the more heat and UV you block, but the less visibility you maintain.
Most homeowners in Viridian choose 3-5% openness for primary living areas because it gives you the best balance of heat reduction and visibility. You can still watch your kids play in the yard, see who’s at the door, or enjoy your view of the community’s green spaces without feeling like you’re sitting behind a dark curtain.
At night, the visibility equation flips. If your interior lights are on, people outside can see in more easily through solar shades. If privacy after dark is important, you’ll want to pair your exterior shades with interior treatments, or choose a blackout option for specific areas like bedrooms.
Motorized exterior roller shades connect to your home’s Wi-Fi and integrate with most major smart home platforms including Alexa, Google Home, and Apple HomeKit. You control them through voice commands, smartphone apps, or programmed schedules that automatically raise and lower shades based on time of day or temperature.
The installation requires running power to each shade motor, which we handle during the installation process. Most systems use low-voltage wiring that’s safe and relatively simple to integrate into your existing electrical setup. If running wiring isn’t feasible for your situation, battery-powered motors are available, though they require periodic recharging or battery replacement.
The real advantage of motorization in Texas is automation. You can program your shades to lower automatically when outdoor temperatures hit 85 degrees, or when the sun reaches a certain position that creates glare in your living room. You can also control everything remotely, which means you can lower your shades before you get home to keep your house cooler, or raise them while you’re away to make it look like someone’s home.
Exterior roller shades stop heat before it enters your home, while interior shades try to block heat that’s already radiating through your glass. That’s the fundamental difference, and it’s why exterior shading is significantly more effective for temperature control.
When sunlight hits your window, the glass heats up and radiates that warmth into your home even if you have interior blinds closed. You’re essentially trapping heat between your window and your interior shade, which still warms your room and forces your AC to work harder. Exterior shades create a barrier outside your glass, preventing that heat transfer from ever starting.
Interior shades are still useful for privacy, light control, and aesthetics. But if your primary goal is reducing cooling costs and making your home more comfortable during Texas summers, exterior roller shades deliver measurably better results. Many Viridian homeowners use both—exterior shades for heat and UV control, paired with interior treatments for privacy and style.
Installation typically takes one day for most residential projects, though larger homes with multiple outdoor areas might require two days. The timeline depends on how many shades you’re installing, whether you’re adding motorization, and the complexity of mounting locations.
The longer part of the process is the lead time before installation. After your consultation, we’ll need 2-3 weeks to custom-build your shades to your exact measurements and specifications. This isn’t an off-the-shelf product—everything is made to order based on your home’s dimensions and your fabric choices.
Once your shades arrive, we’ll schedule installation at a time that works for you. Our installers will mount the hardware, hang the shades, run any necessary wiring for motorized systems, and test everything to ensure smooth operation. We’ll also walk you through how to use your new shades and answer any questions before we leave. You’ll be able to use your exterior roller shades the same day we install them.
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