Awning Slope Guide

Artiklen på dansk - article in Danish

The following guide will describe how you determine how high the awning is to be fitted, so that the slope of the awning does not cause the front bar of the awning to be so low, that it bothers people walking under the awning. Additionally this guide provides some guidelines in regards to what slope to choose, so that rain will roll off the awning instead of being stuck on the awning fabric.

Why is a slope necessary?
Awnings for terrace or shop are always fitted with a given slope, as illustrated on the figure to the right. This is done to protect the awning in the case of rain. When it rains, the rain will remain on the awning fabric unless the awning has a slope that is big enough to make sure the water rolls off the awning. If pools of water are formed on top of the awning fabric, it is under the risk that the awning fabric will be stretched and slack. In addition to this, it can damage the awning if the awning is rolled in during the pool on the fabric.

How large slope can my awning have?
All awnings from Markiseeksperten are able to have slope between 5 and 40 degrees. The very low slope of only 5 degrees can be the only solution in some cases, here you just have to be careful not to use the awning under rainfall. How is this slope adjusted? All awnings from Markiseeksperten have the possibility of adjusting the slope via adjusting a bolt inside the casing of the awning.

How much does the awning lower because of the slope?
The higher slope, the more does the awning front lower. But how much? A typical awning with extension 3 meters will have the front lowering by 62 cm, if the slope is 12 degrees. In the case of other slopes you can use our slope-calculator to calculate the lowering of your awning. The slope-calculator can be seen here.

How much can the awning front be lowered?
When you fix an awning it is important to consider how much it is allowed the front bar to be lowered, and use this to calculate in what height the awning should be fitted. Typically the awning front will be lowered approximately 60 cm, therefore it is recommended that the awning is fitted no lower than in a height of 2,5 meters. If this is not possible due to the height of your house, it is worth consideration to fit the awning in front of the gutter. This is possible through rafter mounting with the use of rafter fittings. In this way the fittings will be attached to the rafters and then again connected to the awning. The fitters are usually custom-made in galvanized steel, so they fit the slope of the roof of your house.