Specification-grade coordination for Sonoma, Napa and Marin county builds
New construction is the point where a window treatment stops being an accessory and becomes part of the building envelope. Fabric choice, operating system, mounting condition and motorization all have to be settled before drywall if the result is going to look integrated. We work alongside the design team, the electrician and the general contractor so the selected product can actually be installed the way the drawings show it.
When: After window schedule is set, before finish selections lock
Review the window schedule with the design team, identify likely product families by room, confirm which openings may use motorization and flag any opening that will need concealed pockets, blocking or a non-standard mount. The goal is a short list of candidate products — not a final selection — before specifications close.
When: Framing complete, before mechanical rough-in
If any opening is a candidate for a hardwired motorized shade or a recessed pocket, the framer can plan the blocking and the pocket depth using the current manufacturer dimensions for the shortlisted product. Catching this at rough framing avoids a return visit to open a finished wall.
When: After framing, before drywall and insulation
Low-voltage cable is pulled to shade locations for any opening that will use a hardwired motor. Current Hunter Douglas, Somfy or Alta documentation should drive cable gauge, run length limits and transformer placement — we provide the installation guide so the electrical team can size the circuit against the product that will actually be used.
When: Walls closed, trim not yet installed
This is the earliest point an inside-mount dimension can be verified against as-built conditions. On projects with recessed pockets, the drywall return into the pocket is detailed now so the finish carpenter and painter know the exposed edges.
When: After paint, before furniture
Final field measurements are taken when the openings are complete enough to measure accurately — jambs square, trim installed, sill or stool in place where applicable. Orders are placed against those field dimensions, not the drawing dimensions.
When: After cabinets, flooring and major trades are out of the house
Shades are installed and set to the opening. Motorized systems are paired to the hub, scheduled for sun position, and if the project includes a Crestron, Savant or Control4 whole-home controller the PowerView integration is handed to the automation contractor for programming into the home's scenes.
Three motorization platforms cover the catalog we install. Each uses different power, control and integration conventions, so the decision between them has to be made before pre-wire — not at order time.
Scope: The standard motor platform for Hunter Douglas shades, including Duette, Silhouette, Pirouette, Luminette, Vignette, Designer Roller, Alustra and Provenance product lines.
Power: Battery-powered (rechargeable lithium-ion) or hardwired 24V DC. Battery is practical for most residential installations; hardwired is used for wide product spans, demanding duty cycles, or where cables are already being run during a build.
Integrations: Apple Home via Matter, Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and the PowerView app. For whole-home automation, PowerView Gen 3 integrates natively with Crestron, Savant and Control4.
Scope: Motorized drapery tracks and some roller shade applications. Used where a traversing drapery is specified or where a third-party RTS/Zigbee ecosystem is already in place.
Power: 24V DC hardwired or battery depending on configuration. Hardwired is standard for drapery tracks spanning sliding walls or oversized windows.
Integrations: Somfy TaHoma, Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and third-party integrations through Z-Wave and RTS bridges.
Scope: Motor platform for Alta Roller, Honeycomb, Dual and horizontal shades. A simpler platform than PowerView, suited to residential projects that do not need a whole-home controller.
Power: Rechargeable battery motors with app-based scheduling. Hardwired variants are available for specific product configurations.
Integrations: Apple Siri, Amazon Alexa and Google Home. BLISS does not currently publish Crestron, Savant or Control4 drivers.
Pre-wire planning. For any opening that will use a hardwired motor, the current manufacturer installation guide should drive the final design. We supply the guide for the shortlisted product so the electrical team can size the cable, locate the junction box and plan the transformer. Pulling to a slightly oversized location gives the installer room to work and avoids a cable splice behind drywall.
A clean recessed-shade detail hides the headrail inside a drywall pocket at the ceiling. The pocket has to be deep enough for the chosen headrail with the chosen operating system — those dimensions come from the current manufacturer spec sheet, not from a general reference, because they change between product generations.
For technical projects, current manufacturer drawings and product data should drive the specification. A dealer website is not the final authority for code compliance, wiring design or engineering decisions, and those items remain with the responsible project professionals.
Permit, code and engineering determinations stay with the architect, engineer, energy consultant or authority having jurisdiction. Our role is to route current manufacturer information, measure and install.
Share the window schedule, drawings and timeline. We can identify likely product families, flag openings that need pre-wire or recessed pockets, and route current manufacturer requirements to the electrical and framing teams in time to act on them.
Start a Trade ProjectCall (707) 523-0300Design development, before specifications close. If any opening may use a hardwired motor, a recessed pocket or a non-standard mount, those decisions change framing, blocking and pre-wire — all of which happen before drywall. Later involvement is possible but limits the available options to battery-powered systems and surface-mounted hardware.
Yes. Hunter Douglas PowerView Gen 3 and Somfy both support hardwired configurations using 24V DC low-voltage cable. Hardwired is specified where product spans are wide, duty cycles are demanding, or the construction schedule allows pre-wire. Alta BLISS has limited hardwired variants and is more commonly specified battery-powered.
Hunter Douglas publishes current cable, gauge, run-length and transformer requirements by product and motor generation. Those requirements should drive the final design. We can route the current installation guide to the electrical contractor as soon as the shortlisted product is confirmed, so the pre-wire targets the product that will actually be installed.
Yes, through Hunter Douglas PowerView Gen 3. All three whole-home automation platforms publish native PowerView drivers, and the integration is handed to the automation contractor after the shades are installed and the hub is online. We do not install Crestron, Savant or Control4 hardware; we hand off the PowerView credentials and support the integration contractor.
Where the current manufacturer publishes BIM, Revit or CAD content for the shortlisted product, we route the files to the design team. Hunter Douglas and Alta publish selected content; coverage depends on product and generation. The design team should treat manufacturer files as the authoritative source, not a dealer-provided illustration.
Hunter Douglas Duette Architella honeycomb shades and selected Alta cellular products carry NFRC-rated U-factor, SHGC and VT data suitable for a responsible professional's Title 24 2026 energy calculation. The specific values depend on fabric, opacity and cell construction and should be pulled from current manufacturer data for the exact configuration specified.