luckyc1423 Posted August 29, 2020 Share Posted August 29, 2020 I am building a new home and doing alot of control4 automation (lighting, TV...ect..) I have shy'd away from automatic shades because of the cost. My deal only does Lutron currently as they use to do Qmotion but got alot of complaints due to how loud the motor was so they stopped doing Qmotion. He will install anything i will just have to buy the shades seperately. Currently he is thinking it will be $900-$1,200 per shade (he is firming up numbers for me. I do think now that i need automatic shades as how we design the porch of our home we have opened area with very high ceilings and i have sunshine coming in through my middle set of windows which around about 10' off the ground so their is no other logical option aside from Curtains and a 15' curtin will be really expensive to. Question here - does that pricing seem about right? how much more aggressive does it get on pricing if i went with a Qmotion? is there another good option? If i could get to $600/window for the red circled windows i would do this i think - given that pricepoint what are the options? Do i pre-wire for this or go battery? (pre-wire will start in about 2 weeks) I definitely do not want a inferior product as this is a expensive house, but i also cannot spend $1k per window as if i do this i would have about 10 windows total i would do. the photo - in red is my problematic window with alot of sun coming into the living room. If i did this i would also do the blue windows which are my master bedroom windows that also face the direction that the sun drops in the evening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie3130 Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 I recently added Hunter Douglas PowerView shades. At least from the dealers around me, they were significantly less expensive than Lutron..which was surprising to me. I find they generally work flawlessly. Can't comment on wired vs non.. as I added mine after the house was built. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C4 User Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 I have Qmotion and love them. I installed 10 shades about 3 years ago and another 4 this year. The newer shades run much smoother/quieter. The shades are controlled via zigbee and powered over CAT6. I prewired to all my windows during the build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckyc1423 Posted August 30, 2020 Author Share Posted August 30, 2020 How is pricing for Qmotion in comparison to Lutron? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C4 User Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 7 hours ago, luckyc1423 said: How is pricing for Qmotion in comparison to Lutron? I believe they were similar. I did briefly discuss Lurton with my dealer when I bought the second set of shades this year, but decision was based around staying with what I already had and Qmotions Zigbee integration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnGordon Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 Qmotion used to have tons of issues with their Zigbee motors losing their settings and disconnecting from the Zigbee mesh. Don't know if there are still problems with this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riverguy Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 I installed Lutron shades 18 months ago and have not had any problems with the shades or C4 integration. Everything works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C4 User Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 On 8/31/2020 at 7:42 AM, DawnGordon said: Qmotion used to have tons of issues with their Zigbee motors losing their settings and disconnecting from the Zigbee mesh. Don't know if there are still problems with this. It’s only been a few months for me, but my new Qmotions have been very reliable and were very easy to setup. No network drops. I old Qmotions do occasional drop from the network but they always return on their own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfh Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 Absolutely prewire. changing batteries or charging motors gets old fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dinom Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 Just changed my Lutron shade batteries after about 4-5 years, so not really an issue for me. msgreenf 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocky350z Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 I did Somfy blinds a little over a year ago when I built my townhouse. Every window has motorized shades including the patio door. They are a little noisy but cost was a factor as I have 22 windows and one french door for a total of 23. With the volume I purchased I was able to get them installed for about $440 total for each window including the tax. I have had very little problems with them interacting with my Control4 EA5. My ONLY regret is not pre-wiring for low voltage to the top of each window for the motor. Currently they are battery controlled and most are used everyday. I have not had to change any batteries yet but the day is coming soon I am sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fluid15 Posted September 4, 2020 Share Posted September 4, 2020 On 8/29/2020 at 4:05 PM, luckyc1423 said: I am building a new home and doing alot of control4 automation (lighting, TV...ect..) I have shy'd away from automatic shades because of the cost. My deal only does Lutron currently as they use to do Qmotion but got alot of complaints due to how loud the motor was so they stopped doing Qmotion. He will install anything i will just have to buy the shades seperately. Currently he is thinking it will be $900-$1,200 per shade (he is firming up numbers for me. I do think now that i need automatic shades as how we design the porch of our home we have opened area with very high ceilings and i have sunshine coming in through my middle set of windows which around about 10' off the ground so their is no other logical option aside from Curtains and a 15' curtin will be really expensive to. Question here - does that pricing seem about right? how much more aggressive does it get on pricing if i went with a Qmotion? is there another good option? If i could get to $600/window for the red circled windows i would do this i think - given that pricepoint what are the options? Do i pre-wire for this or go battery? (pre-wire will start in about 2 weeks) I definitely do not want a inferior product as this is a expensive house, but i also cannot spend $1k per window as if i do this i would have about 10 windows total i would do. the photo - in red is my problematic window with alot of sun coming into the living room. If i did this i would also do the blue windows which are my master bedroom windows that also face the direction that the sun drops in the evening. The cost sounds about right but depends on the size. The pricing I received was ~ $1200/window for 5'x6'. Keep in mind that cost is also driven by qty of motors so for your windows circled in red you probably don't need 4 separate shades. Talk to your Dealer/Installer but you can probably buy 2 large shades to cover all 4 and that way you're only buying 2 motors which is a big difference than 4. I don't know your dimensions but making a guess based on scale. I have one large window in front of our kitchen sink that is 10' wide x 4' tall. I have one shade that covers it, thus one motor (and it's quiet). From discussions with Lutron I believe max size for one shade is 12' x 12'. I've been holding off on getting the shades for our Great Room but it's inevitable. We have pretty good privacy so we've been on the fence but ultimately my wife would prefer the shades. It's a series of 8 glass panels, each 4' wide with the middle 2 panels are doors that slide away from each other. So when I set out for pricing I was thinking many individual shades but as it turns out the proposal is for 3 sections (thus 3 motors), at widths of 12'/8'/12'. So I could open only the center for walking in/out and have the rest down. I have the pre-wiring because I want to ease of mind to open/close them 100x/day without worrying about batteries. Also, if it's not too late consider building pockets in the ceiling for them to disappear when closed. It's a clean look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anon2828 Posted September 4, 2020 Share Posted September 4, 2020 Vote here for QMotion - because I have them. If I had Lutron, I would probably say Lutron...so you see... Anyhow, QMotion wins for being able to cover larger openings (such as the quad sliders you have) and also being able to couple 2 or more shades together driven by a single motor (pros: cost, sync of the shade). QMotion also has hembar control (tug on the shade and you can control it) - nice for when there is no phone, remote, etc around - for your high windows that is probably a non-issue. Keep in mind wiring for QMotion vs. Lutron is completely different (to best of my knowledge). QMotion can be accomplished with just Cat5/6 drops. I have tons of these, and yes, when they all go up or down on schedule you can hear them - but that is 2x per day and hardly drives anyone crazy - never been an issue. One at a time is minimal sound (I can be on the phone in my office and it does not interrupt the conversation). Lutron is said to be least noisy, but I have to imagine you are going to hear any automated shade. I would never put a battery operated shade where I would eventually have to get on a ladder to change batteries. Pricing you mention is ballpark at best, and it always sounds reasonable until you see the final bill. Each of your small windows may be in that range, but the larger openings can get to be easily $2k-$4k or more depending. Those sliders would easily be $3k-$4k. Width, length, and material all affects price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggzlot Posted September 4, 2020 Share Posted September 4, 2020 I've posted this before "The Bali Somfy blinds are about 52-53 decibels. The somfy 30RTS I think were 42-43 decibels. Lutron Serena is 38. Qmotion would not disclose. I could be +\- 1 or two decibels off but that’s the general spread - low/mid 50s down to upper 30s. So between Bali and lutron huge difference. Between RTS and lutron a bit less. Somfy has even more expensive motors I think that get down to 39-40 decibels." ** This data is from ~2 year old research. #s could have changed but I doubt super drastically. And I didn't look at Rollease at the time which is also an option that can work within C4 with a driver. https://www.noisehelp.com/noise-level-chart.html - there are tons of these charts online to help you get an idea of what decible levels may sound like in the wild. I have somfy, I was able to test Lutron and Somfy, not in the same room but within a few days of each other, and my wife and I honestly didnt notice that much of a difference to pay that premium. I did somfy via AVOutlet.com - the owner is super responsive and direct with his support and answers. He sent me literally 100's of samples, when I narrowed it down I got some more samples in larger sizes, I did the measurements and orders all through his site. Very easy. It just really comes down to budget, if you can afford "the best" its probably Lutron because ratings wise it is the most quiet and they have that patent technology to be in perfect sync. That said, I thought I'd use my automated blinds more often (living room and bedroom) and honestly we barely use them so I am thrilled I went with Somfy and not Lutron! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnGordon Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Lutron also has an 8 year warranty compared to everyone else's 5 year warranty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 On 9/3/2020 at 9:19 AM, dinom said: Just changed my Lutron shade batteries after about 4-5 years, so not really an issue for me. If you can pre-wire you NEVER have to change them - cost of prewire is minimal so really no reason NOT to if it's easy to include Qmotion is a bit louder, but hardly excessive. Lutron is nice and quiet undoubtedly, but it all hangs on how important it is. How often do you CHANGE the settings on your blinds is something often forgotten but is very important in questions of loudness, speed of operation battery vs wired power etc. Anyway, Lutron prices as you mentioned aren't off - other WILL be cheaper. Lutron is rock-solid no doubt, but honestly, Somfy isn't far behind in reliability, just can be trickier to get control pieces in the right spot. Hunter Douglas is hardly a poor choice to make, though I've had clients recently needing to get hardware rplaced a few times (which were done under warranty without hassle AFAIK - we didn't provide them). QMotion I'd say is at the same level of quality of parts as Hunter Dougles, integration is better (current drivers for powerview are not bad mind you). Best integration in C4 is Qmotion and Lutron with better two-way feed back I would say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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