Motorized and Remote Controlled Blinds – A Guide to what’s Available

                                                                                         

The first question you might be asking is, “why would I even need a remote controlled, motorized blind?” The answer is convenience. It is nice to be able to push a button and raise and lower your shades or, open and close the slats on your blinds. And, many blinds and shades are placed in locations that are hard to reach, e.g. skylights.

Before I dive into what’s available, a little explanation of the difference between the motorized option for either window blinds or window shades. On window blinds the motorization opens and closes the slats for light control. This is called motorized tilt. For window shades, the motorization raises or lowers the shade by unrolling or rolling up. This gets at the basic distinction between blinds and shades: blinds don’t roll up and have vanes or slats, whereas shades are one continuous piece of material that either rolls up or folds up (in the case of some roman shades). This is called motorized lift.

The motors inside the blind or shade are operated by a remote control. When ordering a motorized option, you will also need to purchase at least one remote control. Typically one remote can operate multiple motorized blinds or shades for added convenience.

The options and functionality of the motors and remote controls will vary by product and manufacturer. For example, some remotes operate using infrared or "line of sight" transmission, while other remotes use radio frequency transmission which can operate without pointing directly at the shade or blind and can control single shades or groups of shades simultaneously for added convenience.

Now that we got the details out of the way, here’s a list of window shades with the motorized lift option: cellular shades, solar shades, sheer shades, pleated shades and woven wood blinds, which are more commonly called bamboo shades. Cellular shades, also known as honeycomb or cell shades, are an excellent choice if you want to add insulation to you window. Pleated shades look a lot like cellular shades but do not have the same amount of insulation. They have small crisp pleats like an accordion and fold up instead of roll up. Solar shades are meant to block incoming light but still preserve views. They come in different levels of opacity (see-through) from 3% to 14%, the latter offering the greatest see-through. Solar shades are good for blocking damaging UV rays from the sun and also limit solar heat gain. Sheer shades are a little less known. They are kind of a hybrid shade, featuring two sheer fabric facings over soft fabric vanes. Sheer vertical blinds feature a light filtering material between hanging fabric or vinyl vanes.

Your choices of blinds with the motorized tilt option are: mini blinds, wood and faux wood blinds. I am sure you all know what mini blinds are so I won’t go into any details. Wood and faux wood blinds have real hardwood slats or composite or vinyl slats that look like real wood. They come in a variety of slats sizes depending on what size window you are trying to cover. Just so you know, in general, the larger the window the larger the recommended slat size. The slat sizes range from ½” (wood mini blinds) to 2 ½” for large windows.

About the author:
I myself have motorized blinds in my home, specifically solar screens. With the touch of a button they raise or lower in unison. It’s very cool. So, if you are looking for window treatment ideas don’t forget your options. - David Brooks


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