In an established home, motorising a blind usually means a battery unit or an electrician chasing a wall to find a plug point. In a Boardwalk Meander home that's still being built, none of that applies — the wiring goes in alongside the lights and the aircon, hidden and permanent, before the plasterers even arrive. It's the single biggest reason to have this conversation before your build reaches lock-up, not after.
Power options
- Wired 220V motors — the new-build default. Permanent, no charging, and the only sensible option for big or heavy systems, exterior products, and blinds above stair voids or double-volume glazing.
- Rechargeable battery motors — no wiring required, ideal for a room you've already moved into or a spec change after handover. Charge every few months via a USB-style charger.
- Solar trickle options exist for awkward positions where neither wiring nor regular charging is practical.
Control layers — sold by lifestyle, not tech
- A single multi-channel remote that runs every blind in the house from one handset.
- App control from the couch — or from the office, checking whether the west-facing blinds are still up.
- Schedules: bedroom blinds open at sunrise, living-area blinds drop at three in the afternoon through summer.
- Sun sensors drop shading automatically on the hottest elevation; wind sensors retract awnings and exterior screens before a highveld storm rolls through.
- Voice and smart-home integration for the automation-minded household.
The best time to plan the blinds is while the electrician is still on site.
Where it's essentially required
Wide stacking doors and any blind heavier or wider than a chain comfortably handles; windows above stair voids and double-volume living rooms; concealed ceiling-recess systems, which are almost always motorised by design; and every exterior product — external venetians, awnings, zip screens — where a wind sensor genuinely protects the hardware.
Safety and practical honesty
No dangling chain is the most child-safe operation there is, which matters in a young-family estate like this one. Quality motors are quiet but not silent, and carry multi-year guarantees; battery units need that periodic charge, which we'll set clear expectations on at the quote stage rather than leaving you to discover it.
Asked at almost every measure
How much extra does motorisation cost?+
It is priced per blind rather than as a flat house upgrade, so it depends on the motor size and whether the blind is wired or battery. The quote shows it as a separate line on each window, which means you can motorise the four that matter and leave the rest manual.
Do the motors make a noise?+
Quiet, not silent. You hear a soft hum for the few seconds a blind travels. On a bedroom sunrise schedule most people stop noticing it within a week — but we would rather you heard that from us than discovered it after installation.
What if we have already moved in?+
Then rechargeable battery motors are the answer: no wiring, no chasing walls, no patching and repainting. You plug a charger in every few months. Same control experience, different power source.
Wiring in motorisation at first fix isn't unique to Boardwalk Meander — we do the same across: