With summer here, you’re likely running the air conditioning whenever possible to beat the Texas sun. In fact, we know that the heat never truly leaves Texas no matter the time of year. As such, you may be looking for an energy-saving solution for your Dallas-Fort Worth area home. We’ve seen how efficient motorized shades can be in not just darkening a room, but also effectively cooling it down so that your climate control system doesn’t have to work so hard to cool down the space.

In this blog, we will look at a few design solutions that show how motorized shades can conserve energy in your home. Just keep reading to learn more.

See Also: Can Smart Home Technology Lead to Energy-Savings?

A common misconception about motorized shades is that homeowners will be forced to choose from one of five generic patterns if they want their window treatments to be part of a smart home automation system. This couldn’t be further from the truth! Below, we outline the different possibilities to make motorized shades fit the style and décor of your Westlake, Texas home. 

SEE ALSO: 3 Reasons to Invest in Motorized Shades for Your Home

Fabrics

The type of material used for motorized shades is entirely dependent on which room you’re planning on installing the window treatment. You wouldn’t have the same shades in a media room that you would have in a bedroom, for example. Here are some of the most common types of fabric to consider:

• Blackout: This type of fabric is ideal for home theaters, media rooms, or bedrooms because it completely blocks sunlight from entering through the windows. Particularly useful during Texas’ scorching summers, blackout shades also help to reduce solar heat gain.
• View Preservation: If you have a room with a gorgeous view, you obviously don’t want to hide it away behind curtains. By choosing a fabric style that allows you to see through it while closed, you get the benefits of reduced sunlight glare without compromising on your view.
• Thermal Management: You don’t have to go straight to blackout shades if you want to reduce solar heat gain. There are plenty of fabric types specifically engineered to have a high reflectance value, turning the sun’s heat away while still allowing some daylight into the room.
• Eco-Friendly Materials: For the environmentally conscious homeowner, choose from a strong selection of sustainable fabrics designed to keep your ecological footprint small.

Styles                                       

• Roller: When you want your motorized shades to be a subtle addition to the room, roller shades are a good option. The shades are practically unnoticeable when raised, but still provide complete window coverage whenever you want it.
• Drapery: The perfect shading choice for bedrooms and formal living rooms, traditional drapery can make a big statement. The great thing about motorized drapery rods is that you can add your own draperies to the room for a truly customized design while also taking advantage of the automation technology. Of course, you can still go with drapery fabrics specifically designed for motorized use.
• Honeycomb: The unique design of honeycomb shades makes them easy to fold up tightly, and the air pockets that expand as the shades lower can actually help insulate your home from heat.
• Roman: Similar to the honeycomb style, Roman shades pull the fabric straight up and down. Roman shades offer more variety in pleat and fabric style, so you can find the perfect option for each room.

Patterns

Whether you want your shades to be one neutral color or the fashion statement in the room, there are plenty of patterns to choose from. DB Media Solutions can provide you with a comprehensive selection of patterns and work with you or your interior designer to decide on the best option for each room. Beyond the pattern of the fabric itself, you also have options for the color and material of the curtain rods, finials, and other hardware.

We’ve barely scratched the surface of the different options available for motorized shades, but the point is clear: whatever design or style you’re seeking for your home, we can supply it. To learn more about motorized shades or our other smart home automation technologies, contact us today.

Whether you’re completely new to home automation or you’re looking to upgrade an existing system, there’s one component that many homeowners overlook. Plenty of people want to start with their home theater system or their security features – both great ideas. But if there’s one aspect of your home that you should really consider upgrading, it’s your window treatments. Smart shading systems can help save you money, add privacy to your spaces and reduce the damage that the sun can wreak on your internal furnishings. In this blog, we’ll show you why they’re perfect for every room of your home.

Smart Shades Are Perfect for Any Season

Did you know, motorized shades can help you reduce your overall energy consumption? By helping you regulate temperatures inside your home, and preventing valuable AC air from escaping through the windows, you can enjoy a more comfortable home without having to adjust the thermostat.

That makes them perfect for your home all year round. While the Texas temperatures are sweltering in the summertime, your shades can help keep you cool by containing the cool AC air. You can even integrate sunshades – translucent coverings that filter in light without the heat.

Plus, in the winter, heavier curtains can help keep your rooms from getting too cold. By creating a small pocket of air between the window and the curtain, your motorized shades can keep you comfy without extra energy.

With so many types of motorized shades on the market, selecting the right one can feel overwhelming, especially if you don’t know the differences.

 In this blog, we will discuss the differences between single roller and dual roller shades, why this distinction matters, and what that means for your Dallas, TX home.

See also: Why Smart Window Shades Are a Great Addition to Any Space

What is a roller shade?

Single or double, roller shades are made up of a panel of fabric rolled on a rod that is fixed to the top of a window frame.

Unlike traditional drapery or blinds, roller shades are designed to be compact, so they can be completely invisible when rolled up. This is especially beneficial for rooms with floor-to-ceiling windows, where you don’t want shades detracting from the view outside.

The modern smart home has gone far beyond keyless locks and 4K Ultra HD TVs. Everything from your home surveillance cameras to your window shades can be automated with technology that adds convenience and comfort to your home. Below, we’ve covered two of the main ways that upgrading to motorized shades can make your Dallas, Texas home smarter.

SEE ALSO: 3 Reasons to Invest in Motorized Shades for Your Home

Energy Management

It takes a lot of energy to keep a home cool in Dallas, especially during Texas’ stifling summer months. The large windows that add so much beauty and character to your home are actually contributing to your high energy bill. Once the sun comes up, your windows can essentially bake your home in the sunlight, significantly raising interior temperatures.

The regular approach to this problem is to hang shades on all the windows, but with your curtains always closed, you don’t get to enjoy your outdoor views, and you have to rely on artificial lighting all the time (which also requires energy). Motorized shades solve this problem by intelligently monitoring your home’s temperature and lighting. The motorized shades automatically adjust throughout the day to ensure your rooms are adequately lit without the sun blasting heat into your home. Sensors detect the amount of sunlight hitting the window and cause the shades to lower or raise as needed.

On average in the city of Keller, Texas there are 235 sunny days per year with July being the warmest month. That being said, what can homeowners do to protect their interior finishes and keep HVAC units from working overtime? The best ideas are those that keep the heat from entering a home, think motorized shades that block solar heat gain or taking your cooking outdoors. Read on to learn more about how you can combine the latest smart home technology with common practices employed by homeowners before central AC was en vogue.

SEE ALSO: Which Type of Motorized Shades is Right for Your Home?

Cool Down, Block Out Sunlight

During the sunniest parts of the day, you may find that sunlight streams into your home, and while the natural light is welcoming, it can also have an adverse outcome, quickly heating up your indoor spaces. The result: your AC unit is forced to work harder to keep these rooms cool and comfortable. Improve the cooling performance of your HVAC system by adding motorized shades made of UV-resistant material. Each solar shade type has a UV rating, which measures the shade’s ability to restrict harmful rays from passing through it.

Automate Operation, Restrict Harmful Rays

Let’s face it: Texas homeowners are not well equipped to deal with cold weather. Anything below 70 degrees is practically foreign territory, and your home’s heating system (if you even have one) is likely rusty from lack of use. That said, the Southlake area has already seen some chilly days, and the fickle Texas weather could turn even colder at a moment’s notice. Is your home prepared? In this blog, we discuss how motorized shades can help keep your home cozy warm without blasting the heater 24x7.

The Need for Insulation

The big trend with home architecture these days is large windows in every room. While these windows promote an open, airy feel to the house, that ambiance comes at a price, a very tangible cost seen each month on your energy bill. That’s because glass is not a very good insulator. During the summer, those glass windows focus the sun’s heat, essentially baking each room and causing your HVAC unit to work overtime to keep things cool.

In the winter, the problem is on the opposite end of the spectrum. Your home’s heat seeps out of the glass, so even though your heater might be running, the odds are likely that you’ll still feel a chill in the air whenever you go into rooms with large windows.

The Solution: Motorized Shades

Obviously, you don’t want to cover up your beautiful windows for the entire winter season, so the trick is to find a solution that balances your view of the outdoors with smart energy management. Motorized shades are a perfect fit.

Window treatments form a barrier between your well-heated room and the glass that enables the heat to pass outside, essentially trapping the warm air in the room. You can achieve this effect through multiple shading styles, such as traditional drapery, but one of the best types of window treatment for heat harnessing is the honeycomb style. The design has pleats that open up to create and trap warm air pockets.

The month of May means that summer is around the corner. But in Southlake — or most anywhere in Texas — the summer heat has already arrived. Higher temperatures likely mean higher energy usage — and consequently the associated costs — when using your climate control system to cool down your home. But consider an alternative: motorized shades work easily to provide convenient energy efficiency.

You may already know that shades can add to a room’s aesthetic, create privacy, and more. But in this blog, we’ll discuss the unique energy-savings benefit of motorized shades. Read on to learn more.

See Also: Why Smart Window Shades Are a Great Addition to Any Space

Automate Shades to Work with Your Smart Home Control System

Use your smart automation system for full control of your technology and home. Set it to close the shades when it detects too much heat — that way your climate control system doesn’t kick in and use unnecessary energy. Instead, the shades will know when to close and block out the sun.

This is especially true with blackout shades, which completely block any sunlight — and thus heat — from entering the space at all.

Are you looking for a subtle way to upgrade your home’s technology? Motorized shades serve a myriad of functions from protecting your privacy to reducing your energy costs. And your smart shading solution can be custom-designed to meet your needs. Start in one room, then expand to your entire Colleyville, Texas home as you see fit. Choose the control option that works best for you, whether it’s a remote, touchpad or smartphone. Read on to find out how the right solution can transform your home.

SEE MORE: 5 Ways to Manage Your Lights With Smart Control

Protect Your Family’s Privacy

Large windows are a trademark feature of luxury homes, letting you bathe your home with natural light and exposing beautiful views. These windows come with their own set of challenges. Windows may be too tall to reach or hard to manage for children or older family members. Don't worry; motorized shades can help! With control from a remote or touchpad, you can close them in seconds at the touch of a button without having to deal with them manually.

Having smart control of your shades also helps with your daily routines. Did you forget to close the shades before you went into the shower? There’s no need to walk up to the window to close them when you get out, just use the remote by your bed. To ensure all shades are closed when you go to sleep, use a "Shutdown" button that closes all the shades in your home.

Enhance Your Home’s Interior Design

One of the reasons motorized shades are so popular is that they serve both pragmatic and aesthetic purposes. While shades are there primarily for your privacy, they’re also a vital component in your interior design.

We work with the top manufacturers in the country to offer thousands of style, color and texture options so you can dress up your home with the perfect shades. No matter how big or out of reach your windows may be, we find the fabric and control solution that works best.