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Florida Shade Company offers professional installation services throughout Central Florida and guidelines and tips for customers who want to install their Shade Sails themselves. Note that our ready-made Sail Shade MUST be installed firmly and tight in order to reduce windflap in the shade fabric. Loose shades will sag and this will cause premature wear and tear to your sails. Check out our installation guidelines before you install your shade sails.
Do-It-Yourself Shade Sail Installation Tips
With basic preparation, anyone with basic home repair skills can succesfully install a beautiful and functional sail-shaded area. Follow these guidelines to sucessfully install your new Shade Sails:
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Place your order in our online store. In a few short weeks, your Shade Sails arrive.
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Lay the Shade Sail on the ground where you intend the Shade Sail to go.
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Determine how you are going to support the Shade Sail.
Can you attach to an existing structure, or will you install poles for support?
If you are going to attach to an existing structure (i.e. tree or building), make sure to check that the fixing points are good and strong.
Always allow at least 14 inches (350mm) diagonally from each corner of the sail to your fixing points. This applies whether it’s a building, tree or a pole.
If you are installing a pole for your Shade Sail to attach to, it should be should be at least 4” in diameter.
In general when installing a pole, 1/3rd of the pole's height should be concreted into the ground. We recommend metal posts for semi-permanent structures, but a good 5” to 6” wooden post will safely secure a ready-made Shade Sail.
A good sized hole, the bigger the better, should be dug for the posts being installed to support your Shade Sail. Fill your hole with premixed concrete. This will provide a strong foundation for your Shade Sails.
The hardware required to install your Shade Sails will be determined by what you are attaching the Shade Sails to.
Florida Shade Company sells the hardware needed for installation, and can provide guidance on what you need for your installation. When attaching your shade sails to poles, it is common to use threaded rods. When attaching to an existing structure it is common to use a pad eye firmly in place. Whatever method you use, this hardware will enable you to attach your Sail Shade with a turnbuckle. Turnbuckles provide the ability to get required tension to make the sail rigid. Shade Sails should always be tensioned as this prevents the sails from flapping and reducing the life of the product. Additionally, turnbuckles can be loosened to make for easy Shade Sail removal.
By changing the heights of the fastenings on the fixing point, you can easily obtain a really cool shape with your sail. Contorting the shade sail will also help deflect and spill the wind, reducing the pressure on the fixing points.
If you have any doubts about your shade in very wet and windy weather, always bring the shade down and store it safely.
Now enjoy the summer, cool and relaxed knowing you and your loved ones are protected from the sun!
Commercial InstallationsInstalling a Shade Sail solution requires planning experience and know how. Florida Shade Company has got you covered:
Sails can be attached to existing structures with a variety of common or custom made brackets and hardware. They can also be supported by their own columns made of either timber or steel pipe. We prefer to use schedule 40 galvanized steel pipe embedded in concrete footings. The dimensions of the pipe and the footings are engineered for each sail and its application depending on the size of the sail and the expected wind loading. The columns can then be powder coated or painted to help protect them and provide the desired color. If timber posts are used, then we generally use temporary power poles with a preservative added to the wood.
Depending on local building codes and engineer's requirements we add either threaded rod or rebar to the footings or posts to tie the concrete and post together. In general, there is very little gravitational load, but uplift is the concern, and footings can be quite deep
We manage commercial installations to minimize disruption to your business and customers and get the job done fast and effectively. Our services cover:
- Excavation
- Installation of steel poles
- Concrete pumping and pouring
- Shade Sail rigging and installatioin
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