Taming the Western Sun Over Lake LBJ
The whole point of the house is the water, so the walls facing Lake LBJ are glass — and that same glass, pointed dead west, turns the great room into an oven by mid-afternoon. The summer sun off the lake fades furniture, throws glare across screens, and pushes the cooling system to work twice as hard right when you want to be enjoying the view. Motorized shades solve all of it at once. We specify Savant and J Geiger systems with whisper-quiet motors you genuinely cannot hear from across the room, and we tie them to the sun so the shades lower ahead of the glare and lift again when the light softens over the water. The view stays yours; the heat and the UV do not.
Lakefront homes out here give us big, ambitious openings, and we love them. On an Escondido or Quail Point estate it is a long, uninterrupted span of glass that has to drop and stop as one clean line, with no shade hanging an inch lower than its neighbor. On a Summit Rock build it is oversized windows and arched transoms in rooms with twenty-foot ceilings, where reaching a shade by hand was never realistic. We measure every opening, hide the hardware in pockets and headers wherever the architecture allows, and choose fabrics that filter the harsh western light without surrendering the lake — sheer solar weaves for the daytime view, room-darkening linings for the bedrooms. All of it answers to one Savant control alongside your lighting and climate.
Who We Help in Horseshoe Bay
- You own a lakefront home on Escondido or Blue Lake with a wall of west-facing glass that overheats every afternoon
- Your Summit Rock or Quail Point estate has oversized and arched windows no one can reach by hand
- You want to protect art, rugs, and millwork from the intense UV that comes off Lake LBJ
- You have a primary suite facing the water that needs true room-darkening without losing the morning view
- You are coordinating shades with new lighting and climate control on a single Savant system
How We Do It in Horseshoe Bay
Glass & Light Assessment — We map every window by orientation and the sun it takes, paying special attention to the hard western exposure that lakefront homes face over Lake LBJ.
Fabric & System Selection — We choose Savant or J Geiger systems and the right fabrics — sheers for the lake view, room-darkening for bedrooms — sampled in your actual light.
Precise Measurement — We measure each opening, including tall, arched, and angled glass, so a long lakefront span of shades aligns as one clean line.
Discreet Installation — We mount whisper-quiet motors and conceal hardware in pockets, headers, and recesses wherever the architecture allows.
Sun Scheduling — We program shades to the sun and the clock so they lower ahead of the afternoon glare off the lake and lift when the light softens, all without a remote in hand.
Integration & Handoff — We fold the shades into your Savant system alongside lighting and climate, then walk the family through every scene and adjust to taste.
Licensed, Insured, Quietly Compliant
- Certified Savant dealer serving Horseshoe Bay and the Highland Lakes
- Fully licensed and insured in the State of Texas
- All low-voltage and structured wiring meets NEC and Texas code
- Manufacturer-backed warranties on every piece of installed equipment
- 2-year labor warranty covering all installation work
The Questions People Actually Ask.
How loud are the motors, really?
In the Savant and J Geiger systems we install, the motors are genuinely whisper-quiet — from across a lakefront great room you will not hear them move. That matters most in bedrooms and on a long wall of tall shades, where a cheap, grinding motor announces itself every cycle. We choose hardware specifically so the shades feel like part of the architecture rather than a machine on the window.
Can shades handle the wall of glass facing Lake LBJ?
Yes, and a tall, uninterrupted span is one of the things these systems do best. The challenge is alignment — a long lakefront wall of shades has to drop and stop as one clean line, with no shade hanging lower than its neighbor. We measure each opening precisely and tune the stop points so the whole window line reads as a single, deliberate surface against the water.
Will motorized shades cut the heat from the western sun off the lake?
Substantially. West-facing lake glass takes the full afternoon load, and shades that lower ahead of the glare keep the room livable and ease the cooling system at the same time. Many clients pair a sheer solar weave that preserves the view during the day with the schedule doing the work, so the great room never reaches that greenhouse point.
Can I keep the lake view and still get privacy and darkness?
That is exactly what fabric selection is for. We typically use a sheer or solar weave on the main lakefront glass so you keep the water and the light is simply softened, and reserve room-darkening linings for bedrooms and media rooms. Some windows get dual shades — one sheer, one blackout — so a single opening does both jobs on command.
Will the shades work with my lighting and climate?
They run on the same Savant system, so shades, lighting, and climate move together. A single Good Morning scene can raise the bedroom shades to the lake, warm the lights, and ease the thermostat at once, and an afternoon scene can drop the west shades before the glare arrives. One interface carries all of it rather than three separate apps.
