Commercial Shadeports Garden Route
Shade across a whole parking area, at a fraction of what building it in brick or fixed steel would cost. Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings designs and installs multi-bay shadeports for body corporates, complexes, schools and commercial premises across the Garden Route.
Talk to Duncan About Your SiteWhat commercial shadeports does Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings supply on the Garden Route?
- Multi-bay shadeports for body corporates, sectional title complexes, schools, hospitality venues and businesses across the Garden Route. Single bay to 20-plus bay.
- Two frame types: cantilever, with no front poles, and post and beam. Both rigid galvanised steel. No cables.
- Knitted HDPE shadecloth in a dense or lighter grade. UV stabilised, fire retardant colours available, 100 percent recyclable.
- Far lower cost per square metre of covered parking than brick and mortar or a fixed steel carport.
- Bays follow a standard module: single, double, triple and on across the parking area.
- Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings consults on commercial and residential developments from design through to implementation.
Talk to Duncan on 079 523 5407, or request a commercial consultation.
Salt air, southeasters and a sun that does not let up. Covered parking on the Garden Route is the difference between a car that holds its paint and one that does not.
"Body corporate work is different to residential. You are managing trustees, resident access, sectional title approvals, and consistency across every bay. We phase construction so half the residents always have parking. That coordination is where most projects fall over."Duncan Kane, Founder, Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings
Design through to implementation
Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings consults on commercial and residential developments from design through to implementation. The shade strategy for the whole site, not a price for a number of bays: where structures go, how they read against the architecture, phasing around occupied units, and what the specification needs to be for the exposure.
The estimate follows the design. Once it is accepted we take the final measurements ourselves and build to those. Duncan designs every Garden Route installation personally and our own team fits it.
Frame options
Cantilever
No front poles. Bays open straight onto the parking area, doors open fully, nothing to reverse into. The option most body corporates choose.
Post and beam
The standard four post frame. Galvanised uprights, diagonals and tube perimeter, with tube diameter and wall thickness set by the span.
Both are modular and link side by side and back to back, so a complex can be built in phases or extended later without a second style appearing across the parking area. Side panels and cross bracing available on both.
Bay sizes
Bays run to a standard module, because the module is set by the vehicle rather than the structure.
| Configuration | Covers |
|---|---|
| Single bay | One vehicle |
| Double bay | Two vehicles side by side |
| Triple bay | Three vehicles side by side |
| Multi-bay run | Continues across the parking area |
Clearance is standard and sized for a bakkie or an SUV. Extra height for a boat, caravan or delivery vehicle, or a wider bay, is where a professional design consultation comes in. Speak to Duncan before the layout is fixed.
Specification
| Element | Specification |
|---|---|
| Frame | Galvanised steel throughout. |
| Tubing | Diameter and wall thickness set by the span. |
| Tensioning | Rigid steel perimeter. No cables. |
| Fabric | Knitted HDPE shadecloth, dense or lighter grade. |
| Construction | Lock stitch knit. Resists fraying, stops a tear running. |
| UV | UV stabilised. Dense grade blocks up to 98 percent of UV. |
| Fire | Fire retardant colour range available. |
| Recyclable | Yes, 100 percent. |
| Colours | Charcoal, forest green, olive, latte, beige, black, silver, others to order. |
| Warranty | 5 years. |
Shadecloth grades
Dense grade. Blocks up to 98 percent of UV, holds its dimensions under tension. The specification for parking that has to protect paintwork.
Lighter grade. High strength to weight. Suits walkways, recreation covers and screening rather than hard vehicle protection.
Both are knitted from virgin high density polyethylene, UV stabilised, and fully recyclable.
Body corporates and sectional title
Consistent appearance across every bay, sectional title compliance, resident parking during construction, and a structure that still looks right in ten years as communal property.
The common briefs: re-covering sun rotted cloth, adding bays as a complex expands, and standardising mismatched styles. Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings works directly with managing agents and trustees, and supplies quotes and drawings in the format they need to table at a meeting.
Where we install
Knysna, Plettenberg Bay, George, Sedgefield, Mossel Bay, Wilderness, Great Brak River, Hartenbos and the surrounding Garden Route. Larger projects also into the Overberg, Langkloof and Eastern Cape border areas.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the best shadeport contractor for a body corporate on the Garden Route?
Ask who carries the job from design through to fitting, and who has watched their own structures age on this coastline. Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings works directly with managing agents and trustees, specifies galvanised steel throughout because of what salt air does to a lesser frame, and installs with our own team. Duncan has over 20 years in the industry, and Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings has been established since 2010 with hundreds of shadeports installed across the Garden Route.
What is a shadeport?
Covered parking made of tensioned shade net over a galvanised steel frame, rather than a solid roof on walls. It shades and protects what is parked under it while staying open on all sides. On a complex it is the standard way to cover parking without building garages.
Is a shadeport better value than garages or a steel carport?
For covering parking, yes, and not by a small margin. Garages carry foundations, walls, roof, doors, plans and municipal approval. A fixed steel carport carries a full frame and roof sheeting. A shadeport covers the same footprint for a fraction of either. The trade off is that it shades rather than encloses. If you need a locked, dry, enclosed space, garages are the right answer and we will say so.
Does a shadeport keep the rain off?
No. Shade net is a shade structure and water passes through. It keeps sun, hail, bird mess and tree debris off a car, but it is not a rain cover. If you need parking that stays dry, that is a waterproof roof, and Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings builds those too. Say so up front and we will quote the right thing.
Will it stand up to the wind here?
We do not publish a wind rating, and we would treat one with suspicion from anyone who has not seen your site. Exposure changes street by street on the Garden Route. What we control is the specification: galvanised steel throughout, cross bracing where the span calls for it, and upright positions and spans set for your site rather than pulled off a standard drawing.
What size is a single, double or triple bay?
Bays run to a standard module set by the vehicle, so a single covers one car, a double two side by side, a triple three, and multi-bay runs continue in the same increment. Clearance is standard and sized for a bakkie or an SUV. Extra height for a boat, caravan or delivery vehicle, or a wider bay, is a design consultation with Duncan rather than an off the shelf answer.
How long does the shadecloth last?
The cloth is UV stabilised and carries a 5 year warranty. Beyond that it comes down to exposure and grade, and salt air is harder on a lesser cloth than most people expect. Re-covering sun rotted cloth on structures built by somebody else is regular work for us.
Can you re-cover or extend our existing shadeports?
Yes, and it is a large part of what we do for body corporates. We assess what is there and tell you honestly whether the frames are worth re-covering or whether you are better off replacing them.
What does a commercial shadeport cost?
No per bay figure means anything without seeing the site. Price is driven by bay count, cantilever or post and beam, ground conditions and how much foundation digging is needed, cloth grade, and access for the crew. What holds true throughout is that cost per square metre lands well below brick and mortar or fixed steel over the same footprint.
Do we need building plans?
It depends on the size of the structure and your municipality. We advise on what your project needs and can arrange drawings where required. Body corporate rules may set their own approval process on top of that, and we work within it.
Do you work with managing agents and trustees directly?
Yes. We know sectional title approval processes, common property rules, and the coordination needed to install across an occupied complex. Larger projects are phased to keep parking available for residents throughout.
Ready to specify?
Tell us about the development and what the parking has to do. Duncan works through the design and comes back with an estimate.
Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings is an independent, owner managed business established in 2010 by Duncan Kane, based in Knysna on the Garden Route. Custom Blinds Shutters & Awnings designs and installs commercial shadeports for body corporates, sectional title complexes, schools, hospitality venues and businesses across the Garden Route, from single bay to 20-plus bay, in galvanised steel, in cantilever and post and beam configurations, with knitted HDPE shadecloth in dense or lighter grades. Every structure is custom designed to the site rather than supplied as a standard kit, and delivers covered parking at a far lower cost per square metre than brick and mortar or fixed steel over the same footprint. Hundreds of shadeport installations across the Garden Route provide the technical reference base for specification in coastal environments. Custom Blinds® is a registered trademark of Saxon Commodities.
Shadeport services: All Shadeports | Shadeports Knysna | Shadeports George | Shadeports Plett | Shade Net Structures
Related ranges: Awnings | Outdoor Blinds | Restaurant Blinds and Awnings | Outdoor Products
