Electric Awning Power Supply: Mains, Solar and Battery Options
An electric awning runs on one of three supplies: a hard-wired 230 V mains connection, a solar-charged battery motor, or a battery you charge yourself. Mains is the usual choice for a patio awning on a house. Solar suits a spot where running a cable is hard. Whichever you choose, the supply decides where the cable runs, who can fit it and what happens in a power cut. Settle it before you pick the awning, not after.
We supply and install retractable awnings, pergolas and verandas across Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire. Power is the question customers most often leave until the end, and it is the one that causes the most delay on site.
TL;DR
Mains is the standard supply for a house patio awning. Somfy says its electric patio awnings need mains power and professional installation.
A solar motor stores power in a battery that a small panel keeps topped up. Somfy’s Sunea 40 Solar io is rated at 12 V DC, 26 W while operating and 0.01 W on standby.
In England and Wales, new outdoor electrical work at a home falls under the Building Regulations. Use a registered electrician or involve building control.
Outdoor equipment should sit behind an RCD, and a mains motor with a manual override can still be wound in with a crank during a power cut.
Running costs are tiny, because the motor only works for a short time each time the awning moves.
Table of Contents
The three ways to power an electric awning
Hard-wired mains
The motor connects to the house’s 230 V supply through a fixed cable, normally taken from a fused connection point inside the property. The motor is built into the front roller tube, so the cable usually leaves the wall near one end of the awning. There is no plug and socket on the awning itself. You control it with a wall switch, a handheld remote, a smartphone app, or sensors that act on their own.
Mains gives you the full range of options: stronger motors for larger awnings, integrated LED lighting, heaters, and wind, sun and rain sensors that act without you. It is the supply we specify for most domestic and nearly all commercial installations.
Solar-charged battery
A solar motor has its own rechargeable battery. A small panel, usually mounted on or near the awning, keeps it topped up. Somfy describes its Sunea 40 Solar io as a self-powered motor for shades and lateral arm awnings, with a panel that continually recharges the battery. It specifies 12 V DC and 26 W operating consumption.
This is the answer when there is no practical route for a cable: a detached pergola at the bottom of a garden, a listed wall you do not want to chase, or a position on the far side of a building.
Rechargeable or crank-assisted battery
Some budget products use a battery or a detachable power pack that you charge indoors. It avoids a fixed electrical installation, but you have to remember to charge it. We would not choose it for an awning that sits outside all year, because a flat battery gives you an awning you cannot move.
Which supply suits which situation
Situation | Usually best | Why |
Patio awning on a house wall, cable route is easy | Mains | Full control options, extras such as lighting and heating available |
Large or heavy awning | Mains | Mains motors are the norm for bigger frames |
Free-standing pergola or distant structure | Mains with buried armoured cable, or solar | Depends on distance and ground |
Wall you cannot drill for cable runs | Solar | No cable to hide |
Shaded or north-facing spot | Mains | A solar panel needs good light |
Restaurant, bar or hotel terrace | Mains | Daily use and sensors suit a permanent supply |
A solar drive is only as good as the light its panel gets. A north-facing wall under a deep overhang will starve it, whatever the specification says.
What the mains installation involves
This is the part people underestimate. Connecting a motor to a house supply is fixed electrical work, not a plug-in job.
Who is allowed to do it
In England and Wales, electrical installation work in a home, garden, conservatory or outbuilding has to comply with the Building Regulations. Electrical Safety First explains that, apart from some minor tasks, the work must be notified to building control or carried out by a registered electrician in a government-approved scheme. Registered electricians can issue certificates confirming compliance with BS 7671 and the Building Regulations.
Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules, so check locally if you are outside England and Wales.
The practical point: ask who is doing the electrical connection, and ask to see the certificate afterwards. Keep it with your house papers, because a buyer’s solicitor may ask for it.
RCD protection
Electrical Safety First advises that all outdoor electrical equipment should be protected by an RCD, which cuts the supply quickly if there is a fault and reduces the risk of electric shock. An awning is outdoor equipment by definition. If the circuit you are tapping into has no RCD, the electrician will need to deal with that. We have written a separate guide to awning wiring and BS 7671 if you want the detail.
Planning the cable route
A tidy job is decided before anyone picks up a drill. The questions we settle at survey stage:
Where is the nearest suitable supply inside the house, and is there capacity on that circuit?
Can the cable go through the wall directly behind the awning, or must it be routed around a window or down a cavity?
Where will the control unit and any wall switch go, and will they be reachable?
If lighting or a heater is planned, does it need its own supply or a larger fuse?
For a free-standing pergola, how far is the run, and does it cross a lawn or a patio that will be dug up?
Making these decisions at the quote stage keeps surprises off the final invoice. If you plan lighting on a pergola, our guide to pergola lighting ideas that avoid rewiring shows which options need extra cable and which do not.
How much electricity does an electric awning use?
Very little. A motor only draws power while it is moving the awning, which takes a matter of seconds to a minute or so, and it sits on standby the rest of the time.
The one published figure we can point to is Somfy’s for the Sunea 40 Solar io: 26 W operating and 0.01 W standby. A simple calculation shows the scale. Running at 26 W for 30 seconds uses about 0.2 Wh, a fraction of a penny even at current tariffs. Even if you moved the awning several times a day, the energy involved would be negligible beside a kettle or a tumble dryer.
Mains motors are larger, so their wattage is higher, and it differs between models and awning sizes. The figure is on the manufacturer’s data sheet for the specific motor, and we give it to customers at quote stage. Lighting and heaters are different: those draw continuously while on, and they are what will show up on your bill if anything does.
The real saving is indirect. Shading a south-facing glazed room cuts the heat that gets in, which is a better reason to buy than any running-cost comparison. Our piece on how electric awnings reduce home heat gain goes into it.
What happens in a power cut
With a mains awning, a power cut does not have to leave it stuck open. Somfy’s data sheet for its DMI5 and DMI6 motors states that they have a manual override that lets you open and close the awning with a crank handle during a power failure.
Two practical tips:
Ask the installer where the crank handle lives and how it connects. A handle in a drawer you cannot find at the moment the wind picks up is no use.
Not every motor has this feature. Ask for it by name if it matters to you, particularly for a commercial terrace where staff need to bring the awning in quickly.
A solar motor carries on working from its battery during a mains outage, which is one genuine advantage of that supply. If the battery has run flat after weeks of dull weather, though, you are in the same position as a mains awning without a crank.
Motor, controls and sensors: check these before you choose
The power supply and the control system are linked, so decide them together.
Motor type. Ask which motor is fitted, its voltage, and whether it has a manual override. Reputable brands publish data sheets, and an installer should hand you the one for your motor.
Controls. A wall switch is the simplest. Handheld remotes and app control are more convenient, but they need a receiver that is powered too. With a solar system, check that the control box is also supported by the solar supply.
Sensors. Wind sensors protect the awning, and sun sensors extend it for you. A sensor only works if it has power, so on a solar system ask how the sensor is supplied and whether it will keep working through a run of overcast days.
Safety behaviour. Ask what the motor does when the awning meets an obstruction, and what the end limits are. These are set during installation and matter more than most buyers realise.
Accessories. LED lighting and heaters usually need a separate supply or a higher-rated circuit. If you want a patio heater under the awning, read our guide to patio heater rules in the UK before you commit.
If you are still deciding whether to go electric at all, our comparison of manual and electric awnings sets out the trade-offs.
Our perspective: plan the power first
After more than 15 years fitting awnings, pergolas and verandas, we see the same pattern. People spend weeks on fabric colour and frame finish, and ten minutes on power. Then, on survey day, we find the nearest supply is the far side of a solid wall, or the circuit has no RCD, or the patio has been laid and there is nowhere to run a cable.
Our advice is simple. Decide the supply before you order. For a house with a normal wall behind the awning, mains is almost always the right answer: it supports sensors, lighting and heating, and there is nothing to charge or monitor. Use solar when the site makes mains impractical, and be honest about how much light the panel will get.
We also recommend not treating the electrical work as an add-on. The supply, the motor and the controls need to be chosen as one system, installed by people who are accountable for the whole job. We work with premium brands such as Weinor, Llaza, Selt, Tarasola and Morvelle, and we take the same consultative, no-pressure approach to power as to everything else: we tell you what your site needs, and you decide.
— Andrew
Getting your awning powered properly
If you are planning a patio awning, a pergola or a commercial terrace, we survey the site, specify the supply and motor with you, and install the whole system. Look at our retractable awnings and patio awnings, or ask us for a free quote and we will walk the cable route with you before anything is ordered. We cover Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.
A short checklist before you order
Choose mains or solar based on the cable route and the light your site gets.
Confirm who carries out the electrical work and that a certificate will be issued.
Check that the circuit is protected by an RCD.
Get the motor data sheet, and ask about manual override.
Ask how sensors, lighting and heaters will be powered.
Agree where the wall switch, receiver and any solar panel will sit.
Ask where the crank handle is kept.
FAQ
Does an electric awning need to be hard-wired?
Most need a fixed mains connection, and Somfy states that its electric patio awnings need mains power and professional installation. The alternative is a solar or battery-powered motor, which needs no cable to the house. Each has trade-offs for sensors, lighting and reliability.
Can I plug an electric awning into a normal socket?
An awning motor is normally wired into a fixed connection, not plugged in, and the cable runs through the wall. In England and Wales, new electrical work in a home has to meet the Building Regulations, so have it done by a registered electrician. Plug-in kits sold online are a different type of product from a professionally installed awning.
Does a solar awning work in winter or on cloudy days?
The panel continues to charge in weaker light, but more slowly, and the battery has to cover the gap. A shaded or north-facing position makes this much worse. If the awning must work reliably all year, mains is the safer choice.
Will an electric awning raise my electricity bill?
Not noticeably. The motor only runs for a short time when the awning moves. Somfy’s solar motor, for example, is rated at 26 W operating and 0.01 W on standby. Lighting and heaters are the items that use real power while switched on.
Can I still use the awning in a power cut?
On motors with a manual override, such as Somfy’s DMI5 and DMI6, yes: you wind it with a crank handle. Check that your motor has this feature and where the handle is kept.
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