Solar Shade Screens for Houston Patios
A patio cover blocks the sun when it’s overhead. Late in the day, when the sun drops low in the west, it shines right under the roof and onto your table, your grill and your guests. A solar screen stops that.
Solar screen fabric is woven to block a set share of sunlight. Tighter weaves cut more glare and heat, and more open weaves keep more of the view. Pick the openness that suits your patio and lower the screen only for the hours the sun comes around.
What solar screens do on a sunny patio
Cuts glare
Low afternoon sun stops blinding you at the table or washing out the TV.
A more comfortable patio
Blocking direct sun keeps furniture, floors and people from baking in it.
Your choice of openness
A lower openness percentage means more shade and privacy, and a higher one means more view. Colors affect visibility too.
Protects furnishings
Less direct sun on cushions, rugs and wood helps slow fading and wear.
Daytime privacy
In daylight, people outside have a hard time seeing in through denser solar fabrics.
Often bug-proof too
Many solar fabrics also keep insects out when the edges are in the tracks. We’ll tell you which ones do.
What’s included
- Free in-home consultation with fabric samples in several openness levels
- Sun exposure check for each opening
- Solar fabric in your choice of color and openness
- Side-track system and motor with remote
- Optional sun or wind sensors on supported systems
- Installation and walkthrough
Best for
- West- and southwest-facing patios
- Outdoor TVs and living rooms
- Pool-side seating with no afternoon shade
- Rooms behind the patio that heat up in the afternoon
Houston sun on a west-facing patio
If your patio faces west or southwest, you know the problem. For a few hours every summer afternoon it’s too bright and too hot to use, and that’s exactly when people get home and want to cook outside.
Glass would trap the heat and a solid wall would kill the view. A solar screen lowers for those hours and goes back up at sunset. With a sun sensor on supported systems, it can do that on its own.
How it works
- Step 1
Free in-home consultation
We come to your home, look at the patio and talk through how you want to use it.
- Step 2
Custom measure and quote
Every opening is measured on its own, and you get a clear written quote.
- Step 3
Professional installation
Your screens are made to your measurements and installed by our crew.
- Step 4
Walkthrough
We show you how everything works before we leave.
Questions about solar shade screens
What openness should I choose?
It depends on what bothers you most. If glare and heat are the main problem, a tighter weave blocks more sun. If keeping the view matters more, a more open weave lets more through. We bring samples so you can hold them up on your own patio at the time of day the sun is worst.
Can I see out through a solar screen?
Yes. During the day, from the shaded side, you can see out through most solar fabrics, and darker colors usually give a clearer view. At night with lights on in the patio, it reverses, and people outside can see in more easily.
Will a solar screen make my patio cooler?
It blocks direct sun, which is most of what makes a west-facing patio uncomfortable, and it keeps surfaces from heating up in that sun. It doesn’t cool the air the way air conditioning would. Screens and a ceiling fan together are a common setup.
Related services
Motorized Retractable Screens
Our main product. Screens lower from a slim housing at the push of a button and roll back out of sight when you want the open view back.
Learn morePrivacy Screens
Dense fabric that blocks the view from neighbors and the street, then rolls away when you want the open air back.
Learn moreOutdoor Kitchen & Pool Area Screens
Screens for outdoor kitchens, cabanas and pool-side patios, so bugs and late sun don’t keep you off a space you paid to build.
Learn more
Solar Shade Screens near you
We install across Greater Houston, including: