With your own skills and ingenuity, and possibly a little help from us, you can create and install your own shade sail project for a fraction of the cost of professional installation.
You have two alternatives to consider: - Install attachment points to accommodate our Ready-Made Sails. - Install attachment points first and then have us manufacture a Custom Shade Sail to fit.
Whether you opt for our Ready-Made Shade Sails or our Custom Shade Sails, you will have similar decisions to make.
Attachment Points on Buildings / Structures
When attaching to a building, it is very important to ensure that the attachment point is structurally strong. If attaching to a wooden part of a building, we normally use an eyestrap with two lag screws. If attaching to a concrete wall, we normally epoxy a 3/8 inch or 8mm eyebolt into the wall. For less common applications, such as going through a wall and using a backing plate or attaching to a roof, alternative hardware may be required.
Posts We usually recommend a 4 inch steel post. While steel is preferred, a large wooden post is a common alternative. The size of the post depends largely on how many shade sails will be attached to it, the size of the sail and how far from the ground the shade sail will be.
When it comes to how deep to bury the posts, a conservative rule would be one third in the ground and two thirds out. Therefore, a post with eight feet exposed would have four feet buried. This will vary depending on how many sails are attached to the post, soil conditions, size of the sails, etc.
We almost always use a 3/8 inch or 8mm eyebolt on a post. To avoid standing on a ladder while drilling a hole, we highly recommend installing the eyebolt before burying the post.
Don't forget to let the concrete base fully dry before installing the shade sails!
Turnbuckles / "D" shackles / Cable
In most cases we suggest using a turnbuckle on each corner of the shade sail. "D" shackles are an acceptable alternative, but they do not allow for tensioning of the shade sail.
When using turnbuckles it is recommended that you work your way around the shade sail tensioning each turnbuckle as you go to ensure an even amount of tension across the shade sail.
Steel cables can be used to span distances from shade sail corners to attachment points.
We know every installation is different, so if you have specific questions feel free to contact us and we will do our best to answer them.
DISCLAIMER : These installation suggestions are offered as a courtesy and are only intended to facilitate accurate ordering of our products. Custom Shade Sails does not and cannot know the specific intentions of purchaser and makes no extension of warranty by these general guidelines and disclaims any responsibility for any installation related matter including, but not limited to, the actual installation, design of installation, engineering requirements, code compliance, soil or wind conditions, or strength of existing structure.