How a Roll Shutter Project Works, From First Photo to Final Follow-Up
Roll shutter projects aren't complicated, but they have a few moving parts most websites don't explain honestly. This page walks through the whole thing. What to send first. How Sunrise reviews your opening. How quoting and measurement work. How the shutter gets built and installed. And what happens after. If you're thinking about roll shutters for your home, your business, a cottage, or something less usual, start here.
Is a Roll Shutter Project Right for You?
Roll shutters solve a specific set of problems. Knowing which one you're trying to solve makes the rest of this easier.
Most Sunrise customers come looking for roll shutters for one of these reasons:
-
Security. Protecting a home, a storefront, a laneway garage, or commercial glass against break-ins, vandalism, or after-hours risk.
-
Weather protection. Shielding windows and doors from storms, driven rain, hail, wind, and snow load. This one matters most on cottages and exposed rural properties.
-
Winterisation. Closing up a seasonal property for the off-season so it stays protected while nobody's there.
-
Sun, glare, and heat control. Cutting UV, reducing cooling costs, making south- and west-facing rooms livable in summer.
-
Insect control on open-air spaces. Motorised screens on decks, patios, porches, pergolas, and outdoor bars.
-
Privacy and noise. Dropping the shutter for daytime privacy, or quieting a bedroom that faces the street.
-
Energy efficiency. Adding an insulating layer over windows in cold months and hot ones.
If any of that sounds like the problem you're trying to solve, the process below is how Sunrise handles it. If you're not sure which solution fits your situation, that's what the opening review in is for.
What to Send First
The first message to Sunrise is meant to be easy. You don't need exact measurements, drawings, or any technical knowledge. Sunrise handles the precision later. What actually helps at this stage is simple:
-
Photos. A straight-on shot of the opening, and one from an angle if you can manage it. If there's a door handle, hinges, trim, or anything else near the opening, get those in the frame too. For larger projects, a wider shot of the surrounding wall is helpful.
-
Rough measurements. Width and height of the opening, to the nearest inch or centimetre. A tape-measure reading is plenty.
-
Your city or town.
-
A short description of what you're trying to solve. Security, weather, winterisation, sun, bugs, privacy, noise, or something else.
How Sunrise Reviews Your Opening
When your photos, rough measurements, and description come in, Sunrise looks at the opening before anything else. This review step happens before a technician goes out and before a quote gets built. It's there to make sure the project is a good fit and to figure out the right way to handle it.
​
Here's what Sunrise is actually looking at:
-
Is there room for the shutter box? Roll shutters need space above the opening, or in front of it, for the box that holds the curtain when it's rolled up. Box sizes run from 150 mm to 205 mm depending on the system.
-
Face mount or in-reveal? A face mount puts the shutter on the wall in front of the opening. An in-reveal mount fits the shutter inside the opening itself. The right choice depends on the wall, the opening, and what you want it to look like when it's done.
-
Is anything in the way? Door handles, hinges, trim, or bits of brickwork near the opening sometimes mean the shutter has to be built out a few millimetres to clear them.
-
Which slat and which operator? Based on what you're trying to solve (security, weather, winterisation, privacy, something else), Sunrise matches the opening to the right slat profile and the right operator: manual crank, spring-loaded, motorised, or another option.
-
Where is the project? Location shapes the service path. More on that in the next section.
If something in the photos isn't clear, Sunrise will ask for a better image or a second measurement before going further. It's faster to catch a question at the photo stage than at the install stage.
What Happens Next Depends on Your Project
After Sunrise has looked at your opening, the next step depends on where you are and what the project needs. A storefront in downtown London isn't the same kind of job as a family cottage three hours north, and the way Sunrise handles each one is different. Here's how projects usually go.
Sunrise does the whole project.
If you're in the direct service area (London, Port Stanley, St. Thomas, Woodstock, Stratford, and the wider Southwestern Ontario region), Sunrise handles everything. Opening review, site visit, measurement, production, installation, system check, follow-up. One team, start to finish.
Sunrise plans the project and someone else installs it.
Some jobs need Sunrise's planning and consultation no matter where they are. That's usually the case when there's design integration, architectural detail, or complex coordination involved. On projects like those, Sunrise runs the planning and then brings in a nearby Sunrise partner to do the install. When there's no partner close by, Sunrise hires a qualified local installer directly, often an overhead-door company or another trade business that already works with roll-up systems. Either way, Sunrise is still on the hook for the product, the plan, and the outcome.
You already have someone who does your work.
A lot of customers already have a contractor or tradesperson they trust. Maybe they renovated your kitchen last year, or they look after your commercial property. If you'd rather have that person do the install, Sunrise is happy to brief them, walk them through the process, and support them while they work. This happens often, especially on bigger renovations where a contractor is already on site.
For straightforward projects outside the direct service area, a local trade partner can take care of measurement and installation, with Sunrise product and support behind them. Partners are established trade businesses: contractors, landscapers, enclosure companies, shed builders, and other trades that know how to read an opening and install properly.
You install it yourself on a remote property, with Sunrise's help.
For properties well outside any service footprint (cottages up north, remote rural homes, places where sending a crew doesn't make sense), Sunrise will support you installing it yourself. This asks more of you: accurate measurements, careful attention to the written instructions, and a willingness to follow the process. It isn't a shortcut, and it isn't a starter project. But for the right customer and the right opening, winterising an off-grid cottage for instance, it's a genuine option. Sunrise has supported customers through installations like this many times.
Detailed Measurement and Final Quote
Once the opening review is done and the service path is clear, the project moves to detailed measurement. On direct Sunrise projects, a technician visits to measure the opening properly. Width gets measured at the top, the middle, and the bottom. Height gets measured at the left, the centre, and the right. The smallest of the three horizontal numbers becomes the width. The smallest of the three vertical numbers becomes the height. Openings are almost never perfectly square, and the shutter is built to fit the tightest point so it runs smoothly.
​
While the technician is there, they also confirm the mount type (face or in-reveal), any build-outs needed for handles or trim, the slat profile, the colour, the operator, and anything custom.
On partner and engaged-installer projects, the measurement uses the same method, and Sunrise reviews the numbers before the shutter goes into production.
​
On remote customer installations, Sunrise shares the measurement method and works with you to confirm the numbers before anything is built.
​
Once the measurements are locked in, the quote goes together. The quoting system itself is automated, so the number comes out quickly once the inputs are complete. How fast you get it depends on when a salesperson is free to review it and send it.
Approval, Deposit, and Production
Once you accept the quote, a 50% deposit confirms the order and production starts. Every shutter and screen Sunrise supplies is custom-built to the measurements and specs of your specific opening. Colour, profile, operator, mount. Everything is set to the project.
​
Production timelines are realistic. A single shutter unit usually gets built in a few hours and ships in two to three days once it's in the queue. Bigger multi-unit projects take longer in proportion to how many units are involved. Sunrise gives you the timeline at the quote stage so there are no surprises.
​
The remaining balance is due when the project is complete.
Installation and System Check
This is what measurement accuracy looks like in use. When the openings are measured properly and the shutters are built to match, a row of units moves together cleanly from fully up to fully down.
Installation is the step most people picture when they imagine "getting roll shutters," but it usually goes faster than people expect. A straightforward single-unit install is often under an hour. A larger residential or commercial project spreads across one or more days depending on how many openings there are.
On install day, the crew (Sunrise directly, a partner, an engaged installer, or your own contractor working with Sunrise support) mounts the box and guide rails, fits the curtain, hooks up the operator, and checks that the system runs smoothly from fully up to fully down. Motorised systems get their electrical connections completed and tested. Any build-outs or trim work flagged during measurement gets handled on the spot.
The last step is the system check. Every unit runs through its full range at least once to confirm smooth travel, correct stopping positions, and proper limit settings on the motorised ones. If something isn't right, it gets adjusted before the crew leaves.
Follow-Up
A few weeks after the install, Sunrise checks in. By then the system has been used a bit, you've had a chance to live with it, and any small adjustments or questions can get handled quickly while the project is still fresh.
This happens whether Sunrise did the install or someone else did. If Sunrise product is on your opening, Sunrise stays in the loop.
The five-year limited warranty on materials and workmanship starts from the install date.
Ready to Start?
Most projects start with a short message and a few photos. Send those, and Sunrise takes it from there. Opening review, the right path for your project, accurate measurement, honest quote, careful build, clean install, and a follow-up once the system is actually being used.
​
If you're not sure yet whether roll shutters are the right answer for what you're trying to solve, send the photos and the description anyway. Part of Sunrise's job is to tell you when a different approach would serve you better.
Common Questions
How long does a roll shutter project take from first contact to finished install?
It depends on the project and the service path. A straightforward single-unit project can go from first message to finished install in two to three weeks. A few days for the opening review and quote, a few more days for the site visit and detailed measurement, two to three days for production and shipping, and under an hour for the install itself. Bigger or more complex projects take proportionally longer. Sunrise gives you a realistic timeline at the quote stage.
Do I need exact measurements before I contact Sunrise?
No. Rough measurements, width and height to the nearest inch or centimetre, are fine at first contact. A technician takes the precise measurements at the site visit. For projects outside the direct service area, Sunrise shares its measuring method so you can send accurate numbers.
Does Sunrise install everywhere in Ontario?
Sunrise serves Southwestern Ontario directly (London, Port Stanley, St. Thomas, Woodstock, Stratford, Sarnia, and the surrounding area) and works across the rest of Ontario and beyond through a mix of direct service for complex projects, Sunrise partners in other regions, engaged installers where there's no partner nearby, and customer installations with Sunrise support for remote properties. Wherever the project is, Sunrise is responsible for the product and the plan.
Can Sunrise repair a roll shutter or exterior screen installed by another company?
Yes. Sunrise services all exterior roll-up shutter and screen systems, including ones installed by other companies. The core components (box, axle, slats, rails, operator) are the same across brands. Send photos and a description of the problem to get started.
What's the deposit and payment structure?
A 50% deposit confirms the order once you accept the quote. The balance is due when the project is complete.
Does Sunrise do garage doors?
Yes. A roll-up garage door is a roll shutter on a garage opening. Same components, same process. Sunrise does residential laneway garages, standard garages, warehouse and industrial openings, and other exterior roll-up work.
Does Sunrise make interior shutters or fire-rated shutters?
No. Sunrise's scope is exterior roll-up systems only. If you need a fire-rated shutter, Sunrise can refer you to partners who specialise in those.
What warranty comes with a Sunrise product?
A five-year limited warranty on materials and workmanship under normal use, with an optional additional five-year extension. Registering the warranty within 30 days of installation locks in the start date.