Hear from Our Customers
Your patio stops being a furnace. That’s the first thing you’ll notice.
The glare disappears. The heat drops. You can sit outside without squinting or sweating through your shirt in under five minutes. Your furniture stops fading. Your AC stops running nonstop trying to cool rooms that face west.
Exterior roller shades block up to 90% of the sun’s heat before it even hits your windows. That means your home stays cooler without cranking the thermostat. Most Edgecliff Village homeowners see their cooling costs drop by over 40% during summer months.
You also get your view back. These aren’t blackout blinds that turn your patio into a cave. You choose the openness factor based on how much light and visibility you want. Some fabrics let you see out while blocking UV and heat. Others offer more privacy while still letting air flow through.
And if bugs are making your outdoor space miserable, outdoor patio blinds with integrated screens keep mosquitoes and flies out while you’re trying to relax. No more choosing between fresh air and getting eaten alive.
We’ve been working in Edgecliff Village and the surrounding Fort Worth area for over 10 years. We’re a branch of A Plus Home Remodel, so we come from a construction background, not just window treatments.
That matters because exterior roller shade installation isn’t just about hanging fabric. It’s about understanding how your home is built, how Texas weather affects materials, and how to mount hardware that won’t fail when the wind picks up.
We know Edgecliff Village homes. Most were built between the 1960s and 70s, brick ranch style with patios that face west or south. That means you’re dealing with intense afternoon sun and heat that makes those outdoor spaces unusable for half the year. We’ve solved this exact problem for hundreds of homeowners in Tarrant County, and we use Texas-made products that are built to handle the climate here.
First, we come to your home and measure. We look at your patio or window setup, talk about what you’re trying to solve, and show you fabric samples so you can see the difference between 5% openness and 10% openness in real light.
You pick the fabric, color, and control system. Motorized options let you raise and lower shades with your phone or voice commands through Alexa or Google Assistant. Manual systems use a crank or pull cord. Both work well, it just depends on your budget and preference.
We order your custom outdoor roller shades. Everything is made to your exact measurements. Most orders take two to three weeks.
Then we install. Our team mounts the hardware, hangs the shades, and tests everything to make sure it operates smoothly. If you went with motorized shades, we sync them to your smart home system and show you how to use the controls.
The whole installation usually takes a few hours depending on how many shades you’re adding. We clean up, haul away packaging, and walk you through maintenance, which is minimal. You’re left with outdoor shade blinds that work exactly how you need them to.
Ready to get started?
You’re getting custom-measured roller shades made from exterior-grade solar fabric. This isn’t indoor material. It’s designed to resist mold, mildew, fading, and the kind of UV exposure that destroys cheaper fabrics in one Texas summer.
The fabric blocks up to 99% of UV rays and up to 90% of heat, depending on which openness factor you choose. You still get airflow. You still get a view. You just don’t get the blinding glare and oppressive heat.
For homes in Edgecliff Village, we typically recommend side channel guides. These keep the fabric stable when the wind picks up, which happens often in North Texas. Without guides, shades can flap around or pull away from the sides, letting light and heat leak through.
Motorization is popular here because most people are covering large patio areas with multiple shades. Raising and lowering four or five manual shades every day gets old fast. With motorized outdoor roller shades, you control everything from one app or voice command. You can even set schedules so your shades lower automatically when the sun hits a certain angle.
We also integrate with smart home systems if you’re already using Samsung SmartThings, Google Home, or Alexa. That means your shades can work with your other devices, like lowering automatically when your thermostat hits a certain temperature.
Cost depends on the size of your openings, the fabric you choose, and whether you go manual or motorized. For a standard patio door opening around 8 feet wide, you’re typically looking at $600 to $1,200 per shade for a quality motorized system.
Manual systems run less, usually $300 to $700 per shade depending on size and fabric. Larger openings or commercial-grade installations cost more because they require heavier-duty hardware and reinforced mounting.
The upfront cost usually pays for itself within a few years through energy savings. Most Edgecliff Village homeowners see their cooling bills drop by 40% or more in summer, which adds up fast when you’re running AC from May through September. You’re also protecting furniture, flooring, and outdoor cushions from UV damage, which saves you replacement costs down the road.
Yes, if they’re installed correctly with side channel guides. The guides lock the fabric into a track on both sides, so the shade can’t flap or pull away when wind hits.
Standard roller shades without guides can handle light breezes, but they’re not ideal for exposed patios in North Texas where wind gusts are common. We’ve seen poorly installed shades get damaged or torn during storms because they weren’t secured properly.
The fabric itself is built for outdoor use. It resists tearing, won’t rot or mildew, and handles rain without issue. That said, if you know a severe storm is coming, it’s smart to retract your shades. Motorized systems make that easy since you can raise them all with one button press. Most of the outdoor shade blinds we install in Edgecliff Village have been up for years without needing repairs, as long as homeowners retract them during extreme weather.
Yes, depending on the fabric openness you choose. Openness refers to how tightly the fabric is woven. A 5% openness fabric blocks more light and heat but still lets you see outside during the day. A 10% openness lets in more light and gives you a clearer view, but it doesn’t block quite as much heat.
Most people in Edgecliff Village go with 5% or 7% openness for patios because it strikes a good balance. You can see your yard, but the sun isn’t blinding you or heating up the space.
If you want full privacy or complete darkness, blackout roller shades are an option, but those are more common for bedrooms or media rooms. For outdoor spaces, solar shades with some openness make more sense because you still get airflow and visibility while blocking the worst of the heat and glare.
Not usually. Most motorized outdoor roller shades run on battery-powered motors or plug into a standard outlet. Battery-operated motors last 1 to 3 years depending on how often you use the shades, and replacing the battery pack takes about five minutes.
If you want hardwired motors, we can do that, but it requires running electrical to each shade location. That makes sense if you’re building new construction or doing a major remodel, but for most retrofit installations in existing Edgecliff Village homes, battery or plug-in motors are simpler and less expensive.
The motors connect to your Wi-Fi network so you can control them through an app on your phone. You can also integrate them with Alexa, Google Assistant, or your existing smart home system. Setup takes a few minutes, and once it’s done, you can control your shades from anywhere. Some homeowners set schedules so their shades lower automatically in the afternoon when the sun is strongest, then raise again in the evening.
Cleaning is simple. Use a soft cloth or sponge with mild soap and water. Wipe down the fabric, rinse with a hose if needed, and let it air dry. Don’t use harsh chemicals or pressure washers because they can damage the fabric coating.
Most exterior shade fabric is treated to resist dirt and mildew, so it doesn’t need frequent cleaning. A quick wipe-down once or twice a year is usually enough unless you’re in a particularly dusty area or near construction.
For the hardware and motor, just check occasionally to make sure nothing is loose or obstructed. If you have motorized shades, keep the battery charged or replace it when you notice the motor slowing down. Side channel guides should be cleared of debris like leaves or dirt so the fabric can move smoothly. That’s about it. These outdoor patio blinds are designed to be low-maintenance, and most homeowners spend less than an hour a year on upkeep.
Exterior roller shades block heat before it enters your home. Interior shades block heat after it’s already come through the glass. That’s a huge difference in effectiveness.
When sun hits a window, the glass heats up and radiates that heat into your room even if you have interior blinds or shades down. You’ve probably felt this if you’ve ever stood near a window with the blinds closed on a hot day. The room still gets warm because the heat is already inside.
Exterior shades stop that heat outside. The fabric absorbs or reflects the sun’s energy before it reaches the glass, so your windows stay cooler and your AC doesn’t have to work as hard. Studies show exterior shading can reduce heat gain by up to 80%, compared to 40-50% for interior treatments.
For Edgecliff Village homes with west-facing patios or large windows, exterior roller shades make a noticeable difference in comfort and energy bills. Interior blackout blinds for windows are great for bedrooms where you want darkness, but for heat control, exterior is the way to go.
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