Motorized Vent or Window Opener

You can use our 12v electric window openers to open and close horizontal slider windows and single hung (or double hung) vertical sliders.

The installations on this page were done by Bruce Sterling at Sterling Renaissance, Inc., Construction Managers and General Contractors in Lake Zurich, Illinois, using Pella^® "Impervia" fiberglass windows.

These very unobtrusive window openers use a chain actuator that emerges from the housing at right angles, exterting a 20lb push/pull in any direction. The chain retracts neatly into the housing when closing the window.

Made from heavy duty metal components, these units are very strong, and the 12v AC/DC power adapter system virtually eliminates any shock hazard. They also work nicely with backup battery systems and/or solar powered systems.

They can be used with our wired wall switches for push button operation of open/close/stop functions. These switches have an internal header that can also be connected to a relay module for remote control with any home automation system, including those (such as Vera) that enable control by phone, tablet or PC.

We also have a ZWAVE interface for this unit; please see this instructional article series on how to add ZWAVE control to your window openers and roller blind motors.

These two pictures show how they can be used for vertical slider windows, single or double hung. On the left, the chain is fully retracted, and the window is closed. On the right, the chain is fully extended, and the window is open.

It really doesn't matter which way they are oriented; these actuator units can push/pull anything in any direction. We've had customers use them for sliding panel doors in a bar, tv lifts, greenhouse vents, skylights, and all kinds of other applications.

If you want to use these with skylights, or other heavy objects, you can offset the weight by using gas shocks or counter-balances. These actuators have an adjustable stroke: 4" (100mm), 8" (200mm), 10" (250mm), 12" (300mm), and these units work well with motorized awning windows because most of the weight is supported by the hinges. The opening/closing force is approximately 20 lb (9 kg), current consumption is ~1.5 A.

Here's a set of pictures kindly provided by one of our customers, showing some details of his awning window installation:

motorized awning window opener installation pictures

Here's an example of these actuators used to replace worn out Velux™ skylight motors:

Velux™ skylight motor replacement

It can be adapted to work with most types of windows: single hung, double hung, hinged casement, skylights, etc. The internal electronics provide motor overload cutoff and travel limit stops.

It should also be noted that the window, skylight or whatever object you want to move should be able to move freely. In the case of windows, for instance, you may have to remove the existing manual mechanism in order to allow the window to move freely.

Please see below for more details and photographs showing how to install these units. The installation is quite simple and you can use these with our ZWAVE controller, which gives you the ability to control these units with phones, tablets and laptops.

This article discusses home automation

Skylight and window motorized automation

Care should be exercised when these units are installed where adults or children could get fingers caught in a closing window - serious injury could result. Use of insect screens can help eliminate this possibility.

These units do use safe low voltage (12v DC), with no high voltage shock hazard present.

We sincerely hope you enjoy using these advanced motors; if you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at any time!