Living in SoCal means a lot of sunshine through the year. That’s good but it also brings some problems during the summer when you want to hang out on your patio. Because in our case starting about 2PM, the sun starts moving across our patio, beating down and delivering too much sun and too much heat — making sitting outside pretty uncomfortable. Add to that the added 4-5 degrees baking through the back glass door into the houseand it makes sitting inside just as uncomfortable as out.

So we’ve tried placing shading sheets against the two columns of our alumiwood canopy, but between it being blown by wind and having to put it up and then take it back down when we want to enjoy some light, it wasn’t good. The best solution would be a blind that could be mounted and which would stay in position

all year round and which could be raised/lowered with ease — meaning not having to turn some crank or pull on some rope. Plus blanking out some of that darn Sun and UV would be ideal.

With that in mind the SmartWings Motorized Outdoor Shade seems to have all the thumbs up we could want.

A Modular System

The SmartWings Motorized Outdoor Shade is a modular system that you receive ready to mount with the blind and motor already installed. We started by measuring the length across the alumiwood canopy as well as from the ground to its roof. We then made the following choices on their website:

The Width: 113” (no fractional amount)

The Height: 100” (no fractional amount)

Fabric color: Beige (wife’s choice – could also have chosen white, light grey or black)

Fabric openness: 1% (least amount of light through, could also have chosen 3% or 5%)

Mount type: Outside

Motor Type: Homekit Motor over Thread (could also have chosen Standard, ZigBee, Alexa, Matter or Z-Wave Plus)

Valance: White Oversized Valance

Remote Controller: 15-Channels Remote

Solar Panel: Yes

Extension Cable: Yes (for the solar panel as needed extra length)

Motor Side: Right (could also have gone with Left)

Room Label: Outdoor Shade

We then waited a few weeks for the finished product to arrive, but since SmartWings was providing this to us at no cost it would have been churlish to complain.

Solar Power Does The Trick

There is also a connection for attaching a solar panel so as to not have to charge the battery manually with the included power plug. In our case we placed the solar panel on top of the canopy using its sticky 3M adhesive backing that eliminates the need for attaching screws. Since the motor isn’t being used for hours on end, the solar panel provides more than enough power for lowering it in the late afternoon and then raising it back up the next morning. Or doing it a few times more just for the enjoyment of watching it go. The motor, by the way, is not loud at all and certainly didn’t disturb our neighbors or their dogs

Installation

The SmartWings Motorized Outdoor Shade arrived in one very, very long box. The Instructions were easy to read and understand, helped by sensible diagrams. After having everything ready, we discovered that the Shade’s weight made mounting it to the ceiling more sensible. But since the alumiwood is so thin, we placed weather treated wood blocks on top of the canopy so that the screws going through the brackets had something stable to grip onto. Once all the brackets were in place and the blind attached to them, the Valance was then placed on. Also mounted to the left and right sides and running down the length of the blind were guide wires whose purpose was to help keep the blind, when descending, from flapping in the wind. This added a bit of time to the overall installation, as a wire catcher needed to be attached to the top/bottom of the canopy, with a guide wire running through each side of the blind. SmartWings provided plenty of wire, FYI.

Remote Control

On the top right side of the blind is where the antenna and a series of connections are found for turning on the motor (best keep the plastic tab over the button for weatehr protection) nd also for receiving the signal from the handheld remote control. It’s needed initially to activate the motor battery and is simple to use in that it has an Up and Down button with a center button stopping movement — the guide wires making the blind move smoothly, especially when there’s a breeze.

Besides programming the maximum distance the blind will travel up or down, you can set the transmission signal of the remote so as to avoid interfering with other blinds you might have set up. In addition you can, as was true in our case, set up the motor to accept commands from Apple’s HomeKit — this must be chosen during the initial purchase with options for choosing other systems instead (for example Alexa, Google Assistant). This allows for greater distance control and no one loses their phones like they do remotes anyway.

Taming The Outdoors

We found the SmartWings Motorized Outdoor Shade to be efficient, effective and a pleasure to use. And for those who say why go to all this trouble when you can just hang a sheet or use an oversized umbrella, we say “Yeah we tried that but,” not counting its less attractive nature, having to put up sheets and take them down all the time or deal with having to angle a tipping umbrella as the heat of the day beats down — no thanks. Not to mention the added discomfort of all that heat magnified by the glass door and going into the house.

All we have to do now is use the remote or our phone to block out oppressive heat and make sitting outside more pleasant. And in case it wasn’t obvious, the SmartWings Motorized Outdoor Shade is weather resistant.

For more details on the indoor and outdoor shades offered, go to https://www.smartwingshome.com/