Retractable awnings are a popular addition for homes around the world. These motorized retractable awnings are versatile, affordable, and stylish, with the best part being that they suit a wide variety of homes and businesses.
If you’re thinking about installing an awning, the question on your mind is probably “do they work?”. Today, we’re going to get to the bottom of that very question.
Do Retractable Awnings Work in Rain, Snow, and Storms?
A wonderful benefit of retractable awnings if their quality construction, design, and materials. High-quality awnings are TUV certified through the Technology Surveillance Association, which means that they have been tested and meet or exceed various industry standards in both safety and quality.
Most manufacturers recommend that their awnings are fully retracted when the weather gets rough. Despite this, the water-resistant, color-safe fabric and stainless steel, coated brackets are fully protected by a hooding mechanism. The housing of the awning is also mounted to the building’s roof or outer wall, which works to provide even more protection.
Do They Withstand Wind?
If the wind picks up while you’re outside and you head inside to get out of it, you might forget to retract your awning. When you realize this, it might cause you some stress. However, when you choose a quality awning, the damage should be very minimal if you do forget, so don’t worry too much.
Most retractable awnings will have no problem sustaining themselves during winds of certain high speeds and weight that comes from rain, ice, or snow. They are designed to have a dedicated slope or pitch that allows moisture to run off easily without adding excess weight to the fabric of the awning, bending the frame, and effectively ruining the product.
For the specific speed that your awning has been tested for, check with the manufacturer. The information may also be on the awning packaging or found online. This information is important to know before you attempt to use your awning on a particularly windy day or during a storm.
The Do’s and Don’ts of Retractable Awnings
When it comes to retractable awnings, there are a few things that you should and should not do.
Do’s
Do make sure that everyone knows how to retract the awning.
If you live in a home with multiple people or have installed your awning outside of your business, make sure that everyone who frequents the area knows how to retract and extend the awning. This helps ensure that it can be retracted whenever necessary, regardless of who is around. Luckily, teaching your entire team of staff to control the awning will be no difficult task as awnings are notoriously easy to operate.
Do regularly clean your awning.
If you’re located in an inland area, you’ll want to clean your awning once a year. If you live near saltwater, cleaning once a month is your best bet. To do this, you can use a mild soap such as dish detergent and the low-pressure setting on a pressure washer. You could also opt to hire a professional.
Do understand your warranty.
It’s important to understand the warranty that comes with your awning. Most awning warranties do not cover weather-related damage. Understanding your awning’s warranty can help save you time and hassle should you try to utilize said warranty.
Do purchase multiple remote transmitters for motorized awnings.
If your awning is motorized, consider purchasing multiple remote transmitters in
case the first one gets lost or stops working. If your transmitter stops working and you don’t have an extra, you can be left in quite the spot.
Don’ts
Don’t hang things from your awning.
Awnings are designed to withstand a certain amount of weight, however, they are not designed to be used as hangers. Avoid hanging anything – plants, fans, signs etc – from your awning. The excess weight can damage the arms as well as the fabric.
Don’t leave extended awnings unattended.
Awnings should never be left extended for long periods of time when there is no one outside. This leaves them vulnerable to sudden weather changes and increases the chances of damage.
Don’t overextend.
It goes without saying that your awning should only be extended as much as it can go. Of course, you could extend your awning to the point of the arms having no gap and the fabric stretching, but it’s not recommended. This is known as overextending and can lead to a host of problems including drooping and broken arms.
Conclusion
So, do retractable awnings really work? We’d like to say yes! They most definitely do. This is, of course, dependent on how you treat your awning – an awning that is never cleaned or is left extended during high winds isn’t going to work for long but one that is well maintained can provide you with years of reliable use.
Just remember to keep the general weather conditions of your area in mind when purchasing and/or using your retractable awning.
