Retractable Awnings With Screens: Shade Overhead, a Screen on the Front

You want a retractable awning with a screen, and most search results blur two different products into one. Here is the plain version. Sunesta MN builds the combination two ways: the SmartDrop motorized front-drop valance that hangs a vertical shade screen off the leading edge of your awning, and the standalone Sentry retractable screen that seals the front or sides of the space underneath. Both are American-built in Jacksonville, Florida, custom manufactured to the inch, and installed by a Sunesta Certified Installer. Both run on a wireless remote, and you can add either one to a new Sunesta retractable awning or retrofit the SmartDrop to one you already own.

The reason this matters in Minnesota is the low sun and the bugs. A horizontal awning shades the deck at noon, but at 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. the sun comes in flat under the front edge and the awning does nothing. That is the exact gap a front-drop screen fills. And in a four-season climate the retracting is the whole point: extend the shade or the screen when you want it, then pull it back into its housing when the weather turns instead of leaving a fixed structure to carry snow all winter.

Retractable Awning With Drop Screen: How the SmartDrop Works

A retractable awning with a drop screen is a Sunesta awning fitted with the SmartDrop, a motorized valance that drops vertically from the front bar of the awning to block low-angle sun the horizontal fabric cannot reach. It shares the same wireless remote as the main awning, and when you do not need it, it retracts fully back into the awning bar. That is the whole mechanism, and it is why homeowners searching for a drop screen usually want the SmartDrop, not a separate screen system. <aside class="my-6 rounded-md border border-border bg-card p-4 text-sm"><strong>Minnesota-specific reason it matters:</strong> a west-facing Twin Cities deck gets flat, blinding sun from roughly 6 to 8 p.m. all summer. The overhead awning does nothing at that angle. The SmartDrop front-drop is what turns those two lost evening hours back into usable deck time.</aside> The SmartDrop integrates with all three Sunesta awning models, the Sunesta, Sunstyle, and Sunlight. It can be ordered at the time of your awning installation or retrofitted to an existing Sunesta awning later, which means you do not have to decide everything on day one. Add the awning now, add the front-drop the summer you finally get tired of squinting through dinner. Thinking about the retrofit? Call 763-271-3366 and we will confirm your awning model supports it.

Retractable Awnings With Screens: Pairing an Awning With a Sentry

The second way to get a retractable awning with screens is to put a Sunesta awning overhead and a Sentry retractable screen across the front or open sides of the space below it. This is a different product doing a different job. The SmartDrop is a sun valance on the awning itself. The Sentry is a full retractable screen that runs in an integrated side track and creates a sealed enclosure, keeping insects and weather out while preserving airflow. <blockquote class="my-6 border-l-4 border-primary pl-4 italic text-foreground/85">"Shade overhead solves the sun. A screen on the front solves the bugs, the glare, and the neighbors. The combination is what actually makes a Minnesota deck usable morning to night."</blockquote> A single Sentry runs up to 18 feet wide and 12 feet tall, custom manufactured to the inch. Larger openings are handled with multiple coordinated screens on the same remote system rather than one oversized panel. This pairing is a favorite for walkout and second-story decks around the Twin Cities and for lake-country porches near Lake Minnetonka and the Brainerd Lakes, where the awning handles the sun off the water and the Sentry handles the mosquitoes at dusk. Talk to us about pairing an awning and a Sentry and we will lay out which screen fits your opening.

SmartDrop Front-Drop Valance vs Sentry Screen: Which One You Actually Want

These two get confused constantly, so here is the honest breakdown before you spend anything. - **SmartDrop front-drop valance:** a motorized vertical sun screen that drops off the front bar of the awning. Best for blocking low morning and evening sun and adding light privacy. It mounts to the awning, shares the awning's remote, and retrofits to any of the three Sunesta models. It is a sun-control add-on, not an insect enclosure. - **Sentry retractable screen:** a standalone motorized screen up to 18 feet wide and 12 feet tall that runs in an integrated side track to create a sealed enclosure. Best for sealing out insects and weather, adding real privacy, and enclosing a porch, patio, or under-deck space. It is its own product and does not require an awning to work. <aside class="my-6 rounded-md border border-border bg-card p-4 text-sm"><strong>Quick rule:</strong> if your problem is the sun, you want the SmartDrop. If your problem is the bugs or you want the space actually enclosed, you want the Sentry. Plenty of homeowners end up with both, on the same deck.</aside> The short version: the SmartDrop is a valance on the awning; the Sentry is a screen for the space. You can run both together, an awning with a SmartDrop front-drop for the sun and a Sentry across the side for the bugs, and everything operates from wireless remotes.

Awnings With Drop-Down Screens for Minnesota Patios and Decks

Awnings with drop-down screens earn their keep in Minnesota's four-season climate specifically because they retract. A fixed pergola or a permanent screen wall sits out in the weather twelve months a year and carries snow load through every storm. A Sunesta awning with a SmartDrop or a paired Sentry does not. You extend the shade and the screen when you want them, and both roll back into their housings when a storm rolls up or the season turns. Motorized patio screens like the Sentry, and the motorized SmartDrop valance, both operate on a wireless remote, so a full setup extends or retracts in seconds without touching a crank. On a deep patio the overhead awning still needs the reach to matter: the flagship Sunesta Model projects up to 14 feet 8 inches with no front support legs, so the shade covers the whole patio and the surface below stays clear before you ever add a front screen. <blockquote class="my-6 border-l-4 border-primary pl-4 italic text-foreground/85">"A retractable awning is closed and tucked away through winter, eliminating snow load entirely. A drop screen and a Sentry do the same thing, on demand."</blockquote> Every piece is custom-built to your exact specifications and installed by a Sunesta Certified Installer, which keeps the industry's most extensive warranty on fabric, frame, and motorized components intact. Ready for shade and a screen before the next warm weekend? Call 763-271-3366 for a free in-home estimate.

When an Awning-and-Screen Combination Is Not the Right Call

Straight talk, because it saves you money. The full awning-plus-screen combination is not the answer for every project. - **You only have a low-sun problem, not a bug problem.** Then you do not need a Sentry at all. A retractable awning with the SmartDrop front-drop handles low-angle morning and evening sun for a fraction of a full screen enclosure. Start there. - **You want a heated, insulated, year-round room.** Neither product does that. The Sentry adds retractable screens to a covered opening; it is not insulated and it is not a permitted three-season-room build with framing and a foundation. We will not sell it as one. - **There is no cover over the space yet.** A Sentry screens the sides of a covered area. If nothing is overhead, the awning comes first for shade, and a screen can follow underneath it later. If any of those describe your situation, we will tell you on the estimate visit rather than after you have paid for more than you need. When a covered patio or deck does suit the combination, there is not a better setup for a four-season climate.

Timeline, Financing, and the Free In-Home Estimate

Sunesta awnings, SmartDrop valances, and Sentry screens are all manufactured to your exact dimensions after the in-home consultation, so plan on roughly 4 to 6 weeks of production from the day you approve the order. Many Minnesota homeowners order over the winter and install in spring, shade and screen in place before the first hot weekend. <aside class="my-6 rounded-md border border-border bg-card p-4 text-sm"><strong>Current offers apply to the whole setup:</strong> 15% off any motorized retractable awning or retractable screen through March 31, 2026, plus 15 months no-interest financing if paid in full within 15 months, subject to credit approval.</aside> These specials cannot be combined with any other offers or promotions. See the specials page for details. The in-home estimate is free and carries no obligation. A Sunesta Certified consultant measures your patio or deck, checks the mounting surface, and walks you through whether you want just the SmartDrop front-drop, a paired Sentry, or both, with physical fabric samples in your actual light. Call 763-271-3366 to schedule.

Frequently Asked Questions

Shade overhead and a screen on the front. Call 763-271-3366 for a free, no-obligation in-home estimate on a Sunesta awning with a SmartDrop front-drop or a paired Sentry screen.