Automated Thermal Energy Blanket Greenhouse

One screen, two jobs: hold heat in winter, keep heat out in summer.

The Thermal Energy Blanket is a motorized interior curtain that deploys over the growing area on its own aluminum/poly track system, independent of the roof and wall glazing. Closed, it traps a layer of still air between the crop and the cold roof — cutting heat loss on cold nights and blocking solar gain on hot afternoons. Open, it stacks neatly against the gutter line out of the way of light and headroom.

Semi-porous by design

Every grade is knitted from narrow strips with fine gaps between them. A fully sealed sheet saves a little more heat, but it also traps the moisture your plants breathe out: humidity climbs under the curtain, condensation drips back onto the crop, and growers end up cracking it open on cold nights to let the damp out — losing the heat they closed it to keep.

A semi-porous curtain lets water vapour pass through while still holding a layer of still, insulating air above the canopy. You keep it closed longer, the crop stays drier, and the risk of grey mould and other humidity diseases drops.

Shade levels

The shade level is the share of direct sunlight the curtain blocks when it is closed. Every level is the same price and the same semi-porous construction — pick the one that matches your crop and your summer sun.

*Typical figures for curtains of this construction, fully closed with the edges sealed. Your saving depends on your cover (single poly, double poly or polycarbonate), your climate and how tightly the curtain closes. Run your own numbers in the Heating Calculator.

0% clear — heat without losing light

For northern growers whose winter problem is cold, not sun. It passes nearly all daylight, so you can leave it closed through dull, freezing winter days as well as every night, and the crop never notices it is there.

25% — the all-season choice

Holds heat through the winter and takes the harshest edge off spring and fall middays. The light shade also scatters sunlight more evenly through the canopy, so lower leaves keep working.

35% — the most popular level

The balance most vegetable growers want: strong night heat retention in winter and real relief from midday sun in summer, keeping leaf temperatures down and growth steady through heat waves.

45% — for strong sun

For high-light sites and crops that prefer shade. It cuts midday heat load substantially and protects soft, leafy crops from tip burn and scorch.

85% — heavy shade and maximum heat retention

For plants that cannot take full sun and for nurseries hardening off cuttings and seedlings. It is also the warmest of the five on a winter night. It is not a full blackout: for photoperiod light deprivation, use a blackout system.

Sealing matters

Most of the saving comes from the still air the curtain holds, so the edges count. A gap of even a few percent along the side walls or gutters can lose a large share of the heat you are trying to keep. Fit the curtain to close edge to edge, and keep the perimeter tight.

Choose your control

Manual — a geared hand-crank opens and closes the screen on its track; upgrade to automatic any time.

Automated with Sunny — a motorized drive controlled through the Sun & Steel app. Set your own open/close schedule and temperature thresholds, or just tell Sunny what you're growing and it runs the screen on its own — closing at dusk, opening at dawn, and closing early on a cold-snap forecast. Add a Sunlight Sensor and Sunny also draws a shade grade across when the midday sun gets too strong, then opens it again as the light drops.

• Priced per square foot of growing area covered, at $2.32/sq ft, for every shade level.
• Semi-porous knitted strip fabric in 0% clear, 25%, 35%, 45% or 85% shade.
• Manual — geared hand-crank, no power required.
• Automated — motorized track, button + app control through Sunny.
• Reduces winter heating load and moderates summer peak temperatures in the same system.