The Hidden Benefits of an Awning: Less Glare, Cooler Rooms and More

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Most people buy an awning for the garden: shade over the patio, somewhere to sit without squinting, a table that stays comfortable at lunchtime. But some of the benefits our customers value most turn up indoors, and they are the ones nobody mentions when you are choosing.

Shade where you sit, and where you live

A retractable awning gives you shade, shelter from the sun and a defined outdoor room that you can open up or close away in seconds. That is the benefit everyone expects. The less obvious one is what it does for the room behind it.

One of our recent customers told us his lounge faces west and, on bright afternoons, it was almost impossible to see the television. He bought the awning for the patio. What he discovered afterwards was that extending it, even when nobody was sitting outside, cast shade into the lounge and solved the glare at a stroke.

Less glare indoors, without losing the view

Curtains and blinds deal with glare by shutting the garden out. An awning works from the outside, so you can soften harsh sunlight on screens, work surfaces and dining tables while still enjoying daylight and the view of your garden.

Cooler, more comfortable rooms

Large glazing, patio doors and open-plan layouts bring in beautiful light, but they can also let rooms heat up on a sunny day. Stopping the sun before it reaches the glass is far more effective than trying to deal with it once it is inside. That is particularly noticeable in south and west-facing homes and in newer houses with big areas of glass.

Protection for floors and furnishings

Strong sunlight fades wooden flooring, rugs, fabrics and furniture over time. Keeping direct sun off the glass helps to protect the things you have invested in, whether that is a new floor or a favourite sofa.

More use of your garden, for more of the year

With shade in the heat and a little shelter when the weather turns, you use the patio far more often. Many of our customers add LED lighting or a heater to their awning so the space stays comfortable into the evening and into autumn.

Easy to control, and looks after itself

A motorised awning opens and closes at the touch of a remote, and can be fitted with sensors that respond to the sun and the wind. That makes it simple to extend the awning for a sunny afternoon, or to bring it in when the weather changes.

What about the low sun?

The sun in autumn and winter, and late on summer afternoons, sits much lower in the sky, so it is worth thinking about this before you order. If your room gets a lot of low sun, there are a few ways to deal with it:

• A larger projection, so the awning reaches further out and catches the sun at a lower angle.
• A longer valance, the fabric flap that hangs from the front edge, to block low sun in autumn and winter.
• Adjusting the pitch. Lower the angle of the awning in autumn and winter to shade the low sun, then raise it again for the higher sun of spring and summer.
• A valance plus, a deeper drop at the front edge. This needs to be chosen when the awning is ordered, as it cannot be added afterwards.

Which option suits you depends on your home and the direction it faces, so we always look at how the sun moves across your property before recommending anything. You can read more in our guide to the low winter sun.

Choosing the right awning for your home

The best awning depends on which way your home faces, how you use your garden and how much shade you need indoors as well as out. These guides will help you narrow it down:

• The best awning for a south-facing garden
• How big should my awning be?
• Motorised or manual awnings
• What to consider before buying an awning

With both our Weinor and Saffron Signature ranges, we carry out a site survey before any order is placed. During that visit we look at your home and garden together, and talk through the size of the awning, where it should sit on the house, and how the sun moves across your property, so you can be confident you are choosing the right awning and size before you commit.

Not sure where to start? Our friendly team in Haverhill is happy to visit, look at how the sun moves across your home, and talk it through with you, with no pressure. Book a free design consultation and site survey or call us on 01799 615000.