Motorisation & automation

Motorisation used to be a luxury line on a quote. On certain windows it is now simply the correct specification — and on a few, the only one that works at all.

Where it stops being optional

• Wide stack doors. A four-metre blind is heavy. A chain will wear, and so will your patience.
• High and gable glass. Stairwell and double-volume windows you cannot reach without a ladder.
• Concealed blind boxes. Once the hardware is hidden in the ceiling, there is no chain to pull anyway.
• Awnings and zip screens. Wind sensors only exist on motorised units, and the wind sensor is the thing that protects the awning.
• Children's rooms. A motorised blind has nothing hanging at the window at all.

Battery, wired or solar

Rechargeable lithium tube motors are what make retrofits painless: the motor lives inside the tube, charges from a plug a few times a year, and needs no cabling in a finished wall. Mains-wired motors suit new builds and renovations where the electrician is on site anyway, and they never need charging. Solar trickle-chargers suit exterior screens and awnings that get plenty of sun by definition.

Control

• Handheld remotes, single-channel or multi-channel for grouping rooms together.
• Wall-mounted switches that look like a light switch and need no explaining to anybody.
• Timers — blinds down at 14:00 on the hot side of the house, up again at 17:00, without anyone thinking about it.
• Sun sensors for automatic shading, and wind sensors that retract awnings and screens when gusts build.
• Smart-home integration where the house already runs a hub, discussed at the measure so nobody buys hardware twice.

Honest notes

Motors add cost per blind, so we usually recommend motorising the windows where it earns its keep rather than the whole house by default. Battery motors need charging — a few times a year on a normal-use blind, more if it runs on a timer twice a day. And a motor is a mechanical part: it can be serviced and replaced without replacing the blind, which is exactly the kind of thing worth knowing before you buy.