“Awnings You Can Install Yourself” – DON’T Believe It!

Even “Easy” Awnings Require Professional Installation

As springtime warms up, and summer approaches us here in the beautiful Rocky Mountain West, your thoughts may turn to The Great Outdoors – and the enjoyment you and your family can get from spending time in your outdoor living space.

You might decide to check out the many wonderful options available for bringing more shade, comfort, privacy, and beauty to your deck, patio, or porch.  From retractable awnings to sun shades… from pergolas to full “added room” outdoor enclosures… start looking around, and you’ll find you have many outstanding choices.

And sprucing up your outdoor living space is a smart investment, too.  Add a retractable awning, and you’ll save money on your utility bills. A good awning can reduce the summer temperature out on the patio by as much as twenty degrees, and keeping the sun off your walls, windows, and sliding glass doors makes things easier – and less expensive – for your air conditioner.

So when ads for awning systems start appearing on television, your ears might prick up… or you might find yourself browsing your local big-box home improvement store, curious about the awnings they offer.

You might get the impression – or even be told outright – that these fabulous awnings are so easy to install, you can DIY – Do It Yourself!

Enjoy shopping for your awnings… but beware the DIY sales pitch.

You can find great awning solutions to enhance your outdoor living space… but great awnings require professional installation.

Imagine Yourself… And Your Spouse… Up On The Ladder… Or On The Roof…

… And trying to hold, let alone align, seal, bolt down, and properly secure your new awning.

Scary thought?  It should be.

A twenty-foot-long retractable awning, depending upon its design, mechanism, and configuration, will weigh anywhere from 150 to 350 pounds.

And it’s easy, all right… easy to mess it up!

Leaving aside the inherent hazards of working with heavy objects while perched on a ladder, this is a chore you and your spouse (or buddy) don’t really have the training and experience to do well.

You might very well botch it.

And if all you end up with is a crooked or inoperative awning… and no serious injuries… you should probably count yourself lucky!

Recently, a nice older lady ordered a modest awning for her home’s outdoor space.  It was easy to install, she was told, so she asked her son to come over and toss the thing up for her.

He did the best he could.

But before long, it looked like something was amiss… so the lady called Best Awning Company, and we dropped by to take a look.

Not only was the awning crooked and, well, a bit wonky… it was falling off the house.  And trying to take the soffit with it!

If a bit more time had passed, the damage to this friendly woman’s house might’ve been more costly to repair than the awning was to begin with.

Easy!

Trust The Expert Awning Pros… This Is What They Do

… Every day.

Whoever you get to install your new awning, here are some questions to consider:

• Who is doing the installation?  Are you calling in a favor from a friend, neighbor, or family member who’s never installed an awning before?  Is it a paid crew of subcontractors, who might only be motivated by how quickly they can get the job done… and get paid?  Or are you going with the real professionals – employees who install awnings every day and have a business’ reputation on the line – motivated by how well the job gets done?
• What materials and procedures will they use to install your awning?  A thin coating of the cheapest possible sealant, for instance? Maybe no sealant at all?  Or will they use the best stuff available, and bolt your awning down right to the studs or rafters, to virtually eliminate any possibility of a leaky roof or wall?
• Where did you come across these installers?  Did you go with whoever the big-box store sent to do the job, or did you find an A+ rated professional firm with a solid track record and a 100% customer satisfaction rating on awning installations?
• When will your awning installation crew arrive, and when will they finish the job?  Do these guys do what they say they’re going to do… or are you likely to run into delays?
• Why trust the installation of your wonderful new retractable awning system to anyone but the experienced professionals, who know what they’re doing at every step in the process?

Don’t trust to chance, when you have a chance to go with installers you can trust.  Your choice to cover your outdoor living space… to enhance the beauty, usability, comfort (and value) of your home or business… is a wise move, and a solid investment.  Protect that investment. Go with the pros for your awning installation, and you’ll have it “made in the shade.”