Hear from Our Customers
Right now, your west-facing patio is probably unbearable between 2 and 7 PM. The furniture’s too hot to touch. The glare makes it impossible to see your phone or have a conversation without squinting. And your AC is working overtime trying to cool rooms that are getting baked through the glass.
Exterior roller shades stop that heat before it ever reaches your windows. You’re blocking up to 90% of UV rays on the outside, which means your indoor spaces stay cooler without cranking the thermostat. Your patio becomes comfortable enough to use during peak sun hours, not just at sunset.
The difference is immediate. Outdoor furniture stops fading. Indoor rooms facing the patio drop several degrees. And you’re not burning through electricity trying to compensate for poor sun control. You’re controlling the environment instead of reacting to it.
A Plus Shutters & Shades comes from a construction background, not a sales background. We’re part of A Plus Home Remodel, which has been working on homes across the Austin area for over a decade. That means we understand how buildings work, how Texas weather affects materials, and what actually holds up long-term.
We’re based in Arlington and serve the Pflugerville area with the same approach we use everywhere: measure twice, install once, and use products that are built here in Texas for Texas conditions. No national chain scripts. No pushy sales tactics. Just straightforward consultation, honest pricing, and installation done by people who’ve been doing this for years.
Pflugerville homeowners deal with the same challenges as the rest of Central Texas—intense sun, sudden storms, and energy bills that spike every summer. We’re not here to oversell you. We’re here to show you what works and let you decide what makes sense for your home.
It starts with a free consultation at your home. We measure your windows or patio openings, look at sun exposure throughout the day, and talk through what you’re trying to accomplish. You’ll see fabric samples in different openness factors—1% to 10%—so you can understand the trade-off between visibility and heat blocking. Most Pflugerville homes go with 1-3% openness to maximize UV protection without completely losing the view.
Once you choose your fabric, color, and operating system—manual, motorized, or smart-home integrated—we place the order. Everything is custom-made to your exact measurements. There’s no “close enough” with exterior shades. A quarter-inch gap means heat and light get through.
Installation typically takes a few hours depending on how many shades you’re adding. Our installers mount the hardware, hang the shades, test the operation, and walk you through how to use and maintain them. If you went with motorized outdoor shades, we’ll program your remote or integrate it with your existing smart home system. Then we clean up and you’re done. The shades are ready to use immediately, and you’ll notice the temperature difference that same afternoon.
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Every exterior roller shade system includes custom measurement, professional installation, and weather-resistant materials designed for the Texas climate. The fabrics are UV-stabilized, meaning they won’t break down or fade after a few seasons of brutal sun exposure. The hardware is corrosion-resistant because Pflugerville gets enough humidity and rain to rust out cheap components within a year or two.
You’re also getting options that matter. Motorization isn’t just a luxury—it’s practical when you have multiple large patio shades that would be a pain to raise and lower manually. Blackout roller shades are available if you need complete light control for a sunroom or outdoor entertainment area. And if you want outdoor shade blinds that still let you see out, we’ll show you exactly what each openness factor looks like in real conditions, not just in a brochure.
The consultation process is built around your specific situation. If your patio faces west and gets hammered every afternoon, that’s a different setup than a north-facing covered porch. If you’re trying to create an outdoor office space, you need glare control and temperature stability. If you’re just tired of your furniture getting destroyed, we’ll focus on UV protection and durability. It’s not one-size-fits-all, and we don’t pretend it is.
The real answer depends on how much glass you have, which direction it faces, and how much sun hits it during peak hours. But exterior shades are significantly more effective than interior blinds because they block heat before it enters your home. Interior blinds trap heat between the glass and the fabric, which means your AC is still fighting that heat load.
Most homeowners see a noticeable drop in indoor temperature—anywhere from 5 to 15 degrees in rooms with direct sun exposure. That translates to your AC running less frequently and your energy bills dropping during summer months. The exact savings vary, but if you’re currently avoiding certain rooms during the afternoon because they’re too hot, exterior roller shades will make those spaces comfortable again without adjusting your thermostat.
In Pflugerville, where summer temps regularly hit the high 90s and low 100s, that difference matters. You’re not just saving money. You’re making your home livable during the hottest part of the day.
The openness factor refers to how much light and air can pass through the fabric weave. A 1% openness fabric blocks about 99% of UV rays and gives you maximum heat protection, but you’ll have limited outward visibility—it’s almost like looking through a dark screen. A 5% openness fabric blocks around 95% of UV rays, gives you better visibility, but lets in more light and slightly more heat.
For most Pflugerville homes, 1-3% openness is the sweet spot. You’re dealing with intense Texas sun, so heat blocking is usually the priority. You’ll still be able to see general shapes and movement outside, but you won’t have a crystal-clear view. If visibility matters more than maximum heat control—say, you have a patio overlooking a lake or golf course—then 5% might make sense.
There’s no universal right answer. It depends on what you’re trying to solve. During your consultation, we’ll show you samples of each openness factor so you can see the actual difference in real light conditions, not just read about it in a spec sheet.
Yes, but with a caveat: you need to retract them during severe weather. Exterior roller shades are built to handle normal wind, rain, and sun exposure. The fabrics are weather-resistant and UV-stabilized, and the hardware is designed to withstand typical outdoor conditions in Central Texas. They’re not going to fall apart after one thunderstorm.
That said, if you see a severe storm coming with high winds, you should raise the shades. They’re durable, not indestructible. Sustained winds above 30-40 mph can damage any exterior shade system, especially if the fabric is fully extended and acting like a sail. Motorized outdoor roller shades make this easy—you hit a button and they’re up in seconds.
Most Pflugerville homeowners don’t find this to be an issue. You’re not constantly babysitting your shades. You lower them during the day for sun control, raise them when you don’t need them, and bring them up if a storm rolls in. It’s the same common-sense approach you’d use with patio furniture or umbrellas. The difference is these shades are designed to stay outside year-round, not get stored in a garage every few months.
For a standard patio with two to four shade openings, installation usually takes two to four hours. That includes mounting the brackets, hanging the shades, making sure everything operates smoothly, and programming any motorized controls. Larger projects with multiple windows or complex configurations take longer, but we’re not talking about a multi-day job.
The key is that everything is custom-measured before we start, so there’s no guessing or adjusting on-site. The shades arrive ready to install. Our installers mount the hardware securely—this matters more than people realize, because improperly mounted exterior shades can sag or fail under wind load—and then test the full range of motion to make sure the fabric rolls evenly and the stops are set correctly.
You don’t need to clear your schedule or plan around a major disruption. Most homeowners are surprised by how quick and clean the process is. We’re in, we’re out, and your shades are ready to use immediately. If there’s any programming or smart home integration involved, that adds a bit of time, but it’s still a same-day project.
Manual exterior roller shades work fine if you have one or two smaller openings and don’t mind using a crank or pull cord. They’re less expensive upfront and there’s no wiring or battery maintenance to worry about. But if you have large patio shades covering wide openings, or if you have multiple shades you’d need to adjust throughout the day, motorized makes a lot more sense.
The real advantage of motorization isn’t luxury—it’s convenience and consistency. You’re more likely to actually use your shades if they’re easy to operate. If it takes five minutes of cranking to lower three large outdoor shade blinds, you’ll probably skip it on days when you’re busy. If it’s one button press, you’ll use them every time. That means better heat control, better UV protection, and better energy savings.
Motorized systems also let you integrate with smart home controls or set schedules. You can program your shades to lower automatically during peak sun hours and raise in the evening. Or control them from your phone if you’re away and want to protect your furniture during an unexpectedly sunny afternoon. For most Pflugerville homeowners dealing with all-day sun exposure, motorized outdoor roller shades end up being worth the upfront investment.
You’ll still be able to see outside, but the clarity depends on the fabric openness factor you choose. With a 1% openness fabric, you’re looking through a tight weave that blocks most light—you’ll see shapes, movement, and general outlines, but not fine details. With a 5% openness, you get a clearer view but less heat blocking. It’s a trade-off.
Most people adjust quickly. The view isn’t as sharp as looking through clear glass, but it’s also not like staring at a solid wall. You can still tell if someone’s walking up to your door, see your yard, and enjoy the general scenery. The bigger benefit is that you’re not squinting from glare, and your patio or indoor space is actually comfortable enough to use.
If maintaining a pristine view is your top priority, exterior shades might not be the right solution—or you’d want to go with a higher openness factor and accept slightly less heat control. But for most Pflugerville homes where the goal is blocking brutal afternoon sun and making outdoor spaces usable, the slight reduction in view clarity is a non-issue compared to the comfort and energy savings you gain.
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