How Shade Structures Help Lower Your Energy Bill

For most of the country, blistering temperatures and oppressive humidity are the norm for summer. As such, many homeowners opt to remain indoors—with the AC cranked and running—several months of the year. However, it comes at the cost of time better spent outdoors—not to mention an uptick in your energy bill! Every homeowner needs some means of staying cool while outside in the summer, even when the temperature’s climbing out of the 80s. That way you can enjoy the fresh air and give your A/C the occasional break. And there’s no better solution to this problem than the high-quality shade structures custom-designed and fabricated by PalmSHADE.

PalmSHADE is one half of the nation’s leading custom fabrication contractor. (Our other half—PalmSHIELD—custom-manufactures the architectural screening used for obscuring HVAC units, cooling towers, rooftop equipment, and other mechanical installations.) Since our inception, we’ve adhered to a policy of working closely with clients—both residential and commercial—to deliver the sun shades of their dreams. This is accomplished by:

1. Requesting measurements of the client’s installation site. The customer tells us their spatial needs: how much ground needs to be shaded, what are the height limitations involved if any, etc. From there, we create original CAD drawings that match said parameters.
2. Once the client approves the CAD drawings, we pass them on to our fabrication team, who builds everything according to the plans on paper. There are no factory-made, standard-issue products here. PalmSHADE makes everything from scratch, according to your exact—specific—needs.

But how do sun shade structures help slash energy bills? Sure, they look nice and are neat to sit under, but how can they be used to cut down on your summer spending? These are the questions we’ll be answering today. Read on, and consider getting a PalmSHADE structure for next year’s blistering summer heat.

Shade structures allow you to spend more time outdoors

The major selling point behind PalmSHADE’s products—and how they can help reduce energy spending—is that they allow homeowners to spend increased time (comfortably) outdoors. The more hours spent in the yard, the less the A/C must be left running, and the smaller the amount on your bill.

PalmSHADE’s products aren’t the lightweight parasols found at the local box store. No summer wind is going to uproot them from the yard. Each shade is fabricated using rust-resistant materials and fixed to the ground via robust posts. Their overhead canopies are similarly resilient and will protect users from the sun’s oppressive heat and cancer-causing UV rays. With one of these fixtures on your property, everyone (family, friends, neighbors) can more safely partake in summer activities. Now you can host a neighborhood barbecue without asking guests to sweat it out; people can spend whole afternoons socializing in the backyard rather than retreating inside after a few minutes; kids can play tag with their friends and then retreat to beneath the shade for breaks as needed.

Even pets benefit from shade structures. Dogs, in particular, become especially restless when cooped up inside. When they look through the sliding glass door, all they see is sunshine and a blue sky; they don’t question whether or not the heat’s unbearable. That said, quick access to shade allows them to spend time outside in spite of the heat. They can roam around, sniff the grass, and take shelter after becoming too warm. Set up their water dish underneath the shade to give them extra motivation to stay cool.

Shade structures make good poolside installations

Do you have a swimming pool? If so, you probably think you have everything needed to stay cool in the summer. But what happens when it’s time to clamber out of the water? Perhaps you want to spend additional time outside, but the sun’s oppressive rays are preventing you from doing so in comfort. Cooler as you are after swimming, you still run the risk of developing skin cancer and sun spots when constantly inundated with UV rays.

This is where PalmSHADE swings to the rescue once more. Our magnificent shade structures make excellent poolside installations. Install them over your pool deck to provide users with a convenient, nearby refuge. You can even set up sun chairs beneath the protective canopy—the perfect locale for drying off without suffering heat stroke. And the many hours you spend swimming and cooling off means fewer hours spent indoors.

Sun shades help businesses cut back on energy spending, as well

As mentioned before, PalmSHADE’s products are acclimated to both residential and commercial use. So, businesses also profit from these fixtures.

• Hotels use them to increase outdoor comfort for guests. Think about hotel pools and garden walkways. The more guests spend time outside, the less often they’ll have the A/C in their room cranked up to Full Blast—and you’ll end up spending on energy.
• Shade structures are perfect for outdoor entertainment venues: giving you an advantage over competitors who don’t have on-site shade. If you rent space for concerts, live entertainment, and street fairs, you must be able to provide shade. You don’t need an indoor area with constantly running A/C to take advantage of this market.
• These canopies also make excellent visual attractants, their elegantly constructed shapes more naturally catching the attention of potential customers. From a commercial perspective, sun shade structures are a must.

Summers, more often than not, are taxing on our health. Constant exposure to heat and humidity can result in dehydration, skin damage, cancer, and other ill effects. That doesn’t mean, however, that we must spend our every hour indoors. All it takes is a well-crafted shade structure, and the amount of time you spend outside instantly increases. PalmSHADE’s products are available in a variety of styles. And like we mentioned before, when you work with us, your shade is custom-designed and fabricated to match your specific spatial installation needs. Contact our sales team today to learn more about these structures—and how they can help save money on your A/C bill!