We’re looking for a window shade supplier(s) for our bus conversion. I have MCD shades now, but I'm wondering if something better exists. ShadeSmithCA is gone, so they are no longer an option. Post by: plyonsMC9

Post by: luvrbus

I saw a new Liberty Prevost with Hunter Douglas power shades. I don’t blame you for wanting something better than MCD. The new owners are tough to deal with. At one time, those were good shades. 

Post by: lvmci 

I purchased these (below) at Home Depot.  The inside is coated with insulation. Gary Bennett built the frame for the blinds. 

Post by: windtrader 

If you are looking at residential market products, there are many affordable options. They work fine in a bus, and as they are a more generic product, the cost is much more affordable than a "built for bus" option.

Hunter Douglas is a good brand; check their mini blinds. They may have pleats even thinner than normal. Mine are a standard 1" pleat but have two levels of shading. 

Post by: Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM

This is what I have in my bus installed by ShadeSmithCA.

www.busconversionmagazine.com/articles/shades-in-an-rv-or-converted-vehicle

However, as Phil said, the SoCal dealer retired. I love the fact that I can just flip switches, and all the shades open each morning. I can do the same to close them daily without climbing over furniture.

I wanted to wire them so I could throw one switch to open all shades each morning and the same switch to close them all at night.  However, I have yet to achieve the ambition of wiring them all into one switch.   I can also adjust the height of all four shades in the cockpit with four switches by the driver’s seat as the sun moves relative to the bus.

Post by: luvrbus 

My Country Coach had a panel where you could open and close every blind with one switch or open one at a time, including the windshield blinds.   I had the day/night shades.  There was a day setting that stopped the blind before touching the window casing.   I noticed that all the converted buses now use stringless blinds.  All the power control shades are nice, but with all the relays and tiny motors costing you $200, it comes with a price when it goes bad.  I saw a late-model Newell with vertical blinds.  I didn't ask who made those, but you can tell by the fabric they were not cheap.

Post by: windtrader

Forget all that fancy electric stuff.  It’s just more stuff to short out and break.  There are plenty of other gadgets to keep a Bus Nut busy.  I'd take cruise control over electric shades any day or another bank of lithium batteries. 

Post by: luvrbus 

Go for the batteries.  The cruise control on a manual 2-stroke engine was not impressive. Some people like sitting in a chair with a remote and controlling everything in a coach.  That’s not my cup of tea.  I don't mind a light switch in every room to turn the lights off and on.

Post by: Jim Blackwood

My wife ordered powered shades for the bay window in the house. They came with a battery and a remote that can control all three simultaneously. The battery needs to be recharged once in a while. It sure is nice to hit one button and have all the shades go down or up. The battery means they will work even without any power turned on.

Post by: luvrbus 

Some of those shades you can control with Bluetooth from your cell phone. It is crazy. I saw a refrigerator you could look inside it from your cell phone to see if you need to stop at a store and buy something for dinner. In today’s world, you can be 2,000 miles from home and see who is ringing the doorbell on your coach.  

Post by: Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM 

When you travel alone, as I usually do, you can't beat electric shades in the cockpit to keep the sun out of your eyes.  Also, once set up, they are basically maintenance-free.

The same can be said about a backup camera, or in my case, four-way cameras all around the bus. Yes, you can back into spots alone using mirrors, as I did many times driving a truck, but it sure is nice to have a four-way camera system when backing into a camp spot when you have no spotters.

Post by: luvrbus 

I like electric shades on the windshield and side windows. It is convenient to push a button to block the sun while driving at 60 MPH.    

Post by: plyonsMC9 

Thanks for the feedback folks!  So far it looks like the only brand specifically for an RV is Hunter Douglas.  Or, go with something for home use, and apply that to the coach as noted by Windtrader. 

Another option that looked interesting I ran across was this company.

www.rvblinds.com/features/motorized

They had several products and some good reviews. Has anyone had experience with this company? I noticed that all orders had to be handled online.

Post by: luvrbus 

That outfit is in Mesa, Arizona, off of Warner Road.  They have been there for 20 years.  You could drive there, and they would measure your blinds for you.  I bought one for the TREK from them.  However, I screwed up trying to re-string the unit and took it to them.  I was in and out in less than two hours.  

Post by: Dave5Cs 

We got MCD non-electric blinds, which I installed in 2010, and they still look great. They also have black solar shades. They work well all year round for heat and cold. They give me the exercise I need at 72, so non-electric is good. You can add the motors if you need them, but the motors are way more than they are worth, in my opinion.