Motorise rather than replace: the smart calculation
Your manual shutters still work, but every open and close has become a chore? Good news: in the vast majority of cases there is no need to replace them. Motorising an existing roller shutter means removing the winch or the strap reel and sliding a tubular motor inside the current roller tube. The curtain, the box, the guide rails — everything else stays. You get the comfort of a brand-new electric shutter for roughly half the price of a complete replacement, with far less disruption to your home.
The operation is also a technical upgrade: the new motor brings obstacle detection, curtain locking in the closed position (a genuine brake on forced lifting) and precise electronic limit settings. And it adds to the value of your property: centralised, programmable shutters are among the features buyers and tenants notice, in Clichy as in Charenton-le-Pont — something worth knowing if you plan to sell or let your Paris flat one day.
How does the motorisation work?
- 1. Feasibility check: we open the box, inspect the condition of the curtain and guide rails, measure the diameter of the roller tube and weigh up the load to be driven. A damaged shutter is repaired before motorising — fitting a motor to a mechanism that rubs would wear it out prematurely.
- 2. Removing the winch or strap: the old operating mechanism is dismantled, and the strap hole through the wall is neatly sealed with an insulating cover.
- 3. Fitting the tubular motor: the motor, sized to the weight of the curtain (from 10 to 50 Nm), slides into the roller tube with its adaptor rings and its bracket in the side of the box.
- 4. Connecting the control: a wired wall switch, a wireless radio control point or a solar panel, depending on the option you choose.
- 5. Adjustment and handover: limit positions programmed, remotes paired, full test cycles and a proper walk-through with you — in English if you prefer.
Allow two to three hours per shutter for a radio motorisation, a little more if new wiring has to be created. A whole house is generally motorised in a single day.
Your shutters deserve a motor
Free feasibility check, free quote within 24 hours anywhere in Île-de-France.
Wired, radio or solar: which motorisation for your shutter?
Wired motorisation
The motor is connected to a wall switch by cable. It is the most robust and cheapest option in hardware terms, and makes sense when a power supply already runs near the box or when renovation works are planned anyway. Its drawback in an occupied home: the channel or trunking needed to bring the cable to the switch.
Radio motorisation
The receiver is built into the motor, so no wiring runs between the control and the shutter. The wall transmitter sticks wherever you like, a multi-channel remote drives one shutter, one room or the whole home, and a central control closes everything with a single press as you leave. It is the solution we recommend most often in apartments — particularly in older Parisian buildings where nobody wants to touch the walls.
Solar motorisation
A discreet photovoltaic panel on the box or the façade, a battery housed inside the casing: the shutter becomes entirely self-sufficient, with no connection to the mains at all. Perfect where no socket exists nearby — verandas, upper floors, outbuildings — and reassuring during a power cut, since the battery takes over for several weeks.
Smart home: your shutters join the connected household
A recent radio motorisation opens the door to every scenario: timed programming to simulate presence while you are travelling, automatic closing at sunset, a gentle opening at wake-up time, remote control from your smartphone wherever you are in the world, and voice commands through your assistant. We install and configure the compatible hubs (TaHoma, io-homecontrol, RTS, Zigbee) and build your shutter groups room by room. If you are also planning to equip new openings, our electric roller shutter installation page details the complete solutions; and for simple mechanical comfort with no electricity, a new manual roller shutter installation remains an option worth pricing.
Indicative prices for a roller shutter motorisation
- Wired motorisation: €250 to €400 per shutter, supply and fitting, excluding any new electrical line.
- Radio motorisation with remote: €300 to €500 per shutter depending on motor torque.
- Self-contained solar motorisation: €450 to €700 per shutter, panel and battery included.
- Central control or smart-home hub: €100 to €350 depending on the ecosystem.
- Discount from the second shutter motorised during the same visit.
The free, itemised quote is drawn up after the feasibility check. If your curtain or guide rails need attention first, that work is priced separately and transparently — no surprises on the final invoice.
Working across the whole Paris region
Our motorisation specialists work in Paris and throughout Île-de-France: Clichy, Vélizy-Villacoublay, Lagny-sur-Marne, Brétigny-sur-Orge, Le Blanc-Mesnil, Charenton-le-Pont, Goussainville and the neighbouring towns. After installation, your motor is covered by our parts-and-labour guarantee; to keep it at its best, our roller shutter maintenance visits include a check of all motorisations, and our emergency roller shutter service remains reachable 7 days a week if anything goes wrong.
Frequently asked questions about roller shutter motorisation
Can every manual roller shutter be motorised?
Almost all of them, yes: the roller tube simply needs to accept a tubular motor, which is the case for tubes of 40 mm and above. On a few very old or unusual models we replace the tube itself — a light operation that still costs far less than a new shutter.
Is electrical work needed to motorise a shutter?
Not necessarily: radio motorisation only needs a power supply near the box, and the solar version needs no connection at all. Only the wired option involves running a cable to the wall switch.
Can one remote control every shutter in the house?
Yes: a multi-channel remote or a central control drives each shutter individually, by group, or all together. Add a smart-home hub and you gain timed programming and remote control from your smartphone.
Does motorisation damage the existing shutter?
No — quite the opposite: the motor delivers a steady, even movement without the jolts of manual operation, and obstacle detection stops the curtain if it meets resistance. A well-adjusted motorised shutter wears more slowly than a manual one.
What guarantee comes with a motorisation?
The motors we fit (Somfy, Simu and professional equivalents) carry a 5-year manufacturer's warranty, and our installation is covered for parts and labour. You receive an itemised invoice listing the exact references of the equipment installed.