Look outside at your patio right now.

If you're like most Americans, you're looking at unused space. Maybe there's nice furniture out there. Maybe you spent good money making it beautiful. But you're sitting inside, separated from it by bugs, or heat, or the weather that just won't cooperate.

We get it. We see it every day.

We're industry insiders who've spent decades designing, manufacturing, and servicing motorized screens across America. Engineers. Quality control specialists. Customer service managers. People who know exactly what works, what fails, and what's about to fail in your backyard.

And we can't stay silent anymore.

The Storm You Don't See Coming

Right now, thousands of homeowners from Portland Organ to Port St. Lucie Florida are about to make a $15,000 mistake. They're comparing quotes for motorized screens. They're listening to dealers and sales people make promises, and they're about to write checks for products that will fail when they need them most.

The storm that destroys their investment won't always be a hurricane. Sometimes it's the slow storm of degradation—motors that grind to a halt at month eighteen, fabric that fades to nothing, tracks that jam when temperature swings. Sometimes it's the financial storm of endless service calls, denied warranty claims, and the final insult of complete replacement.

Your patio dreams deserve better than becoming someone's cautionary tale.

We Are About to Changes Everything

We're launching Motorized Screen News today, for a reason. Hurricane season isn't over. The evidence is fresh. Drive through any coastal neighborhood from Galveston to the Outer Banks and you'll see the truth—screens hanging like broken wings, tracks twisted beyond repair, promises shattered by reality.

But you'll also see something else. Homes where the screens stood strong. Restaurants still serving on protected patios. Families whose investment survived exactly as promised.

The difference between destruction and protection isn't luck. It's not even about how much you spent. It's about knowing what questions to ask, what promises to believe, and what company still makes decisions based on performance, not profit margins. So, lets dive right in.

The Motorized Screens Industry's Dirty Little Secret

Here's what nobody will tell you at the showroom: The motorized screen industry has been hijacked by investment firms that see your home as a quarterly earnings opportunity. In the last five years, massive private equity groups have been buying up manufacturers, promising that "nothing will change."

Everything changes.

We've watched from inside as quality gets quietly compromised. Components that used to last twenty years now fail at two. Warranties that once meant something now exclude everything that actually breaks. The local company you think you're buying from? They're installing products designed in boardrooms two thousand miles away by people who measure success in stock prices, not storm survival.

Meanwhile, decisions that should be about protection are being made about profits. And you're the one who pays the price.

Go-Fenetex Will Be Your Lighthouse in the Storm

Motorized Screen News exists for one reason: to guide you safely through an industry full of hidden rocks and false promises. Think of us as your lighthouse—steady, reliable, constantly scanning for danger, always showing the way to safe harbor.

Every week, we'll share what insiders know:

• Why certain motors fail at eighteen months like clockwork

• Which warranty language actually protects you (and which is worthless)

• What those wind ratings really mean when the storm hits

• Why some screens cost three times more—and whether they're worth it

We'll name the tactics. We'll expose the failures. We'll celebrate the successes. Most importantly, we'll give you the knowledge to make a decision you'll still be proud of in ten years.

The One Exception

There's one major manufacturer that hasn't sold out to Wall Street: Fenetex.

Still family-owned in Jacksonville. Still making screens where hurricanes actually hit. Still using aramid fibers—the same material as bulletproof vests—while others switch to cheaper alternatives. Still answering their phones when something goes wrong.

We've watched Fenetex from inside this industry for years. When Hurricane Michael hit the Panhandle, their screens held. When the polar vortex froze Minneapolis, their motors kept working. When Phoenix hit 118 degrees, their systems didn't melt down.

This isn't luck. It's what happens when the people making decisions about your screens face the same weather you do.

What You'll Find Here

The Truth About Failures: Next week, we're starting with "The 2025 Hurricane Season Scorecard"—real photos, real failures, real survivors. No marketing spin. No corporate PR. Just documented truth about what worked and what didn't when it mattered most.

The Education You Need: We'll teach you about motors, materials, and warranties in language you can understand. No engineering degree required. Just clear, honest information about what actually matters for your climate, your home, your life.

The Success Stories That Inspire: Because when motorized screens work properly, they transform how you live. Morning coffee without mosquitoes in Charleston. Year-round patio revenue in Chicago restaurants. Family gatherings in Phoenix that don't end when the sun comes up.

The Protection You Deserve: Every post serves one purpose: making sure your investment in outdoor living delivers on its promise. Whether that's understanding why cheap screens cost more in the long run, learning what questions terrify bad dealers, or knowing exactly what to demand in your warranty.

Your First Decision

Before you read another blog post, get another quote, or listen to another sales pitch, you need to decide something fundamental:

Are you shopping for screens, or are you investing in protection?

Motorized Screens are what you'll find at every dealer. They look good in showrooms. They work great in perfect weather. They come with warranties full of exclusions and dealers who disappear when problems arise.

Protection is what your family actually needs. Systems that survive real storms. Motors that work in your actual climate. Companies that will exist when you need service. Dealers who answer their phones after the check clears.

The price difference between screens and protection is significant. The cost difference over ten years? That's where cheap becomes expensive and quality becomes value.

Join Us for the Journey

Every week, we'll shine light on another dark corner of this industry. We'll answer the questions you didn't know to ask. We'll share stories from homeowners who learned the hard way and others who got it right the first time.

Some posts will make you angry—like when you learn about planned obsolescence built into motors. Others will give you hope—like when you see what's possible with screens that actually work. All of them will give you power—the power of knowledge in an industry that depends on your ignorance.

A Promise and a Warning About Motorized Screens

We promise to tell you the truth, even when it's uncomfortable. Even when it makes manufacturers angry. Even when it challenges what you've already been told.

But here's the warning: Once you know what we know, you can't unknow it. You'll never look at motorized screens the same way. You'll see through the marketing. You'll recognize the tricks. You'll understand why some companies can't answer simple questions about their ownership, their manufacturing, or their warranties.

And you'll understand why one company can.

The Storm Has Passed, The Season Isn't Over

As we write this, communities across the Gulf Coast are still cleaning up from the latest storm. Insurance adjusters are denying claims. Warranty departments are finding exclusions. Homeowners are learning that "hurricane-rated" doesn't mean what they thought it meant.

But other homeowners are sitting on their protected patios, screens intact, promises kept, investment validated.

The difference between those two groups isn't luck. It's knowledge.

Welcome to Screened In News. Your education starts now.

Next Week: "The 2025 Hurricane Season Scorecard: Which Screens Actually Survived"—with photos and documentation from the Gulf Coast to the Carolinas. Real damage. Real survivors. Real answers.

Have a story about motorized screens? A question nobody will answer? A warranty denial you want us to review? Contact us at [email protected]

This blog is produced by industry insiders, Friends of Oatis, in partnership with Fenetex—the only major manufacturer that welcomed transparency instead of threatening us over it.