Shade Sails Buying Guide
By admin
A shade sail is designed to provide UV sun protection in outside areas. They are typically used for covering pools, grill and Bbq areas, balconies, patios and picnic spots. They are also regularly used in commercial settings providing shade for outdoor restaurants, car parks, play areas, markets, exhibitions and walkways.
The tensioned structure of a shade sail gives it an eye-catching, contemporary look. Some of the best looking installations have multiple overlapping sails and dramatic height changes. Adding an architectural twist to the sail is recommended both from an aesthetic perspective and to allow adequate tension. See image below.
The most common shapes are triangular, square and right angled. The shade cloth can be attached either to an existing structure or held up by free standing upright poles.
Shade Sails – What To Look For
- Expect UV protection of at least 90% for outdoor shade sails. You’ll find some models offering 96% UV block.
- Look for commercial grade knitted shade cloth.
- The fixings, or attachment rings, attaching the shade sail to an existing structure or the free standing uprights should be made from high quality stainless steel (ideally marine grade).
- The weakest part of a shade cloth is typically the stitching. If you can, choose a brand that uses UV stabilized awning thread.
- Ensure a fabric warranty is provided. The standard is 10 years, but remember that this doesn’t normally cover the stitching.
- The best models use seat-belt webbing for the sides and corners of the shade sail where the attachment rings are located for maximum strength and durability.
- If you are planing to attach sun shade sails to an existing building the manufacturer should be able to provide a special corner clip, snap hook, D shackle, or lag bolt.
- If you are planning to install shade sales in a windy location, ask the manufacturer for details of the ‘burst strength’ of the shade sale. Commercial quality sails are designed to withstand winds of 75mph.
Installation And Use
Most manufacturers will provide standard sizes as well as custom shade sails. The latter are considerably more expensive, often up to 5 times the cost, so if you can it’s best to opt for a standard size. Shade sails do not have straight edges but the cloth has a gentle curve.
When erecting a shade cloth ensure that the material is taut. Not only will they look better, but as the material won’t be moving in the wind, there will be less wear and tear, and the sail will last far longer. In order to ensure adequate tensioning, the minimum distance between the sail and fixings should be 300 mm. A good way to think about this is to ensure that the footprint of fixing points is at least 1 foot larger than the sail itself. Adding a twist to the sail during installation and pulling evenly out from all corners assists greatly with tensioning.
The knitted shade cloth used in the construction of shade sales is slightly porous, normally around 10%. This ensures that hot air can rise and escape through the material creating a cool shady mico-environment beneath the sail. When installing, try and keep a slight angle on the sails for water run off. If they are flat, water can pool and eventually drain through the cloth. Waterproof shade sails are also available but these do not tend to last as long as standard designs.
For cleaning, the sails can be watered down with a hose while standing, or taken down and scrubbed using a standard household detergent and soft brush. They can be folded and packed into a compact shape that is easily stored or transported.
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Topics: Sun shades | 4 Comments »
October 22nd, 2010 at 11:01 pm
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