INSTALLATION

To achieve the very wind-resistant properties characteristic of shade sail structures, a large amount of tension must be applied to the sail fabric. As a result, the structural strength of the anchor points is of utmost importance. These anchor points can be constructed by attaching to existing structures, installing new ones or a combination of both.

Existing structures

If the existing building is of known structural integrity, we are able to anchor the sails to points on it. This may mean attaching to brickwork, roof trusses, fascia boards or steel and concrete beams and almost always requires some steel fabrication to ensure that expected wind loads do not exceed the strength of the anchor points. In the case of roof trusses and fascia boards, we will fabricate steel plates and brackets so that loads are spread evenly between two or more members.

Stand-alone structures

Anchor points for these structures will consist of either minimum 6"x 6" hardwood or pressure-treat lumber or minimum 4" SCH40 steel posts buried in concrete footings. We prefer to use powder coated steel posts due to the increased strength, durability and greater aesthetic appeal of the material. The dimensions of the pipe and size of the concrete footings are determined by the engineering requirements for each sail and its application depending on size and expected maximum wind load.

Steel posts may be powder coated in a huge array of colours to suit your individual application. For instance, day care centres and kindergartens generally choose brighter post colours while a more elegant look is achieved with black posts; very popular in high-end residential and commercial uses.

Post footings are concrete sonotubes with a minimum diameter of 16" and depth of at least ½ the height of the anchor point. For example; a post that has an anchor height of 12' will be drilled into the ground a minimum of 6'. This substantial footing ensures that maximum wind loads will not result in movement and will guarantee that your shade sail structure will continue to represent a great long-term investment.

Installation Process

Either Glynn Lord or Shaun McDonald will meet with you on site to discuss your shade and sun protection requirements. Measurements and photographs will be taken and a no-obligation design and quotation will be yours within one week.

Once a design and price have been agreed upon your project gets underway. Any engineering and steel fabrication begins at this point. Depending on the scope of the work, this can take up to 4 weeks, especially if an engineered structure is required.

Upon completion of steel fabrication and powder coating, our crew will arrive on site to install all anchor points. This generally takes 1-2 days and is the most time consuming part of the project.

Once anchor points are in place, very precise measurements are taken so that we may order your custom made sail. This is a very important step as the measurements must be exact in order for the sail to stretch properly once initial tension is applied. At this point, sail colours need to be chosen.

Your order is placed with Graham, our sail maker in Queensland, Australia. Within 10 days it will arrive in Toronto.

As soon as your order arrives, we schedule in the installation of the sails. This takes approximately ½ hour per sail depending on size and complexity. Our crew will show you how to take down the sail for the Winter months and put it back up again in the Spring. For those of you who would like us to look after this on a biannual basis we do offer this service.