Lutron vs Crestron: Which One Should Run Your Shades, and Your Home?
Both companies make superb motorized shades. They disagree about what should sit around the shade. Here is the difference in their own published numbers and on our own installs, from a Lutron shading dealer and Crestron Residential Consultant that installs both.
Lutron or Crestron: the house decides, not the shade
Lutron is a lighting and shading company. Crestron is a whole-home control company. A Lutron shade is one device in a Lutron system (Caséta, RadioRA 3 or HomeWorks QSX) that runs a lighting-and-shades home on its own and that Crestron, Control4, Savant and the voice assistants all talk to. A Crestron shade is one device in a Crestron Home system that also runs the audio, the video, the climate, the locks and the security, and it answers only to Crestron hardware: its motors speak Cresnet, infiNET EX or SG wireless, which only a Crestron processor understands.
So the control system picks the shade. In a Lutron home, or a home with no automation yet, the shade is Lutron (or Somfy): there is no Crestron shade without Crestron hardware in the chain. In a Crestron home you can have either, and both are common. Our two Sunny Isles installs show one of each: at the Ritz-Carlton Residences, Lutron Sivoia QS shades and tracks under HomeWorks inside a Crestron house; at Trump Tower III, a short walk up Collins Avenue, Crestron QMT rollers and a Crestron drapery track, which we commissioned with the home's AV partner into the residence's Control4 system.
Choosing from a blank sheet: if what you want automated is the light and the glass, Lutron on its own is simpler, cheaper to enter and easier to service, and it grows from one battery shade with a Pico remote to a HomeWorks estate of up to sixteen processors and gateways. If you want one platform for audio, video, climate, security and the shades, with a Crestron dealer you trust for the next decade, Crestron is that platform, and the largest houses we work in run Crestron on top with Lutron lighting and shading underneath.
- Who programs it: a Lutron shade is commissioned by the Lutron dealer who installs it (us) and any Lutron dealer can service it later; a Crestron shade is commissioned into the processor by the home's Crestron dealer, and Crestron sells only through its dealers.
- Published noise: Lutron prints figures (Palladiom under 35 dBA at 3 ft, Sivoia QS rollers 35 to 50 dBA by size); Crestron prints none and calls its motors "nearly imperceptible" or "nearly inaudible".
- Sizes: Sivoia QS from 20 in to 20 ft with coupling; Crestron's QMT3 to 96 in and QMT5 to 168 in on a single tube.
- Price: our published Lutron figure is about $3,141 for a 72 by 84 in wired roller shade installed with its panel; Crestron publishes only a 2022 budgetary MSRP guide for the bare shade ($1,100 to $2,200 at 5 by 10 ft, by fabric tier) before the control processors, user interfaces, wiring, power and commissioning it leaves to others, and before installation. We quote both at the measure.
We hold a direct Lutron shading account and Lutron's LCI shades qualification, we are members of Crestron's Residential Consultants program, and we have installed both brands a short walk apart on Collins Avenue in Sunny Isles Beach, so we have no reason to push one. Every maker's figure on this page is linked to the maker's own document under Sources; where a maker publishes nothing, the page says so.
Two companies, two ideas about a shade #
Every difference on this page comes from one fact about each company: what it set out to control.
Coopersburg, Pennsylvania · since 1961
Lutron: the light, the glass, and nothing else
Joel Spira founded Lutron in 1961 around the solid-state dimmer he had invented, and the company has stayed on that line ever since: dimmers, keypads, sensors, Ketra tunable light, motorized shades and drapery, and a thermostat. Its systems form a ladder, Caséta for a condo or a few rooms, RadioRA 3 for a renovation, HomeWorks QSX for an estate, myRoom for a hotel, and the same shade rides any rung.
What Lutron does not make, it connects to. Lutron's own list for RadioRA 3 runs through Crestron, Control4, Savant, URC, RTI, Elan, Kaleidescape and AMX for control, Apple Home, Alexa, Google and josh.ai for voice, Sonos for music and Honeywell and Ecobee for climate, and Crestron Home pairs natively with HomeWorks QS and QSX and the RadioRA lines. The shades sit on Lutron's wired QS link or its Clear Connect radio, which runs at 434 MHz in a band Lutron calls essentially silent, with a 2.4 GHz Type X radio for dense lighting.
- Caséta is sold at retail; RadioRA 3 and HomeWorks through Lutron dealers.
- A Lutron shade works alone (Pico remote), in a Lutron home, or inside another brand's system.
- Read: the Lutron ladder explained · our Lutron practice.
Control systems · since 1972
Crestron: one platform for the whole house
Crestron has built control technology since 1972, for conference rooms as much as for homes. Crestron Home OS, now in version 4 on the MC4-R and CP4-R processors, integrates audio, video, lighting, motorized shades, thermostats, door locks, sensors and security systems, in Crestron's own list, behind one set of keypads, touch screens, remotes and one app. The shades are Crestron's own: Digital QMT motors inside Crestron hardware, in Crestron fabrics, built to order.
Everything speaks Crestron's networks, Cresnet by wire and infiNET EX by radio, with SG wireless for the battery shades, and everything is sold, configured and serviced through authorized Crestron dealers. Since May 2020 Crestron Home also pairs natively with a Lutron system, which is why so many Crestron houses have Lutron lights and shades inside them; the reverse does not exist.
- Sold only through Crestron dealers; the processor must be live before the owner can move a shade.
- A Crestron shade answers to Crestron hardware; another brand's system reaches it only through that hardware.
- Read: Crestron shades · every Crestron shading product.
The rule we give every client: find out what processor the house has, or will have, before you fall in love with a shade. A Lutron shade can live in a Lutron, Crestron, Control4 or Savant home. A Crestron shade lives in a Crestron home, and reaches any other system only through Crestron hardware. Everything below follows from that.
Lutron vs Crestron shades, side by side #
What each company publishes about its own shade, with the document behind each figure under Sources. Where Crestron prints no number, the cell says so.
Each row stacks on a phone.
| Lutron | Crestron | |
|---|---|---|
| The lines | Sivoia QS wired rollers, romans, honeycombs, wood blinds and drapery tracks; Triathlon and Serena on batteries; Palladiom, the exposed hardware line, wired or wire-free. Lutron shades. | Digital QMT roller motors: QMT3 (3/4 Nm) and QMT5 (4 Nm), each wired or wireless, plus a battery QMT3; one drapery track system; horizontal sheers; cable-guided shades for sloped glass. Crestron products. |
| Wired link | The QS link: one low-voltage 4-conductor run per shade carrying power and data to a Sivoia QS panel. Every shade has its own address and reports its position back. | Cresnet: a 4-wire run per motor carrying 24 V DC and two-way data, home-run or daisy-chained, from a CSA-PWS supply (the PWS10S hub feeds ten motors and bridges to Ethernet). |
| Wireless | Clear Connect Type A at 434 MHz, the radio Lutron's lighting runs on; Pico remotes, keypads and the Lutron app. | infiNET EX, a 2.4 GHz mesh, through an infiNET EX gateway (built into the MC4-R, or a separate gateway); the motor still needs a 24 V DC power run. |
| Battery shade | Triathlon and Serena: replaceable D cells (AA lithium on some sizes); Lutron rates Triathlon at three to five years at two cycles a day. | CSM-QMTDC-163-1-SG: eight D cells in an external pack, three years average at two cycles a day, SG wireless at 915 MHz; 25.44 to 96 in wide. |
| Widths | 20 in to 20 ft on Sivoia QS, with coupling brackets joining tubes across a wall of glass. | QMT3 17.5 to 96 in; QMT5 18 to 133 in on the 2.5 in tube and 18 to 168 in on the 2.75 in tube, depending on fabric and height. |
| Drapery track | Sivoia QS D105, D145 and D175 drives: rated up to 175 lb (pinch pleat; less for ripplefold), 18 ft with no splice, 6 in per second, no more than 50 dB measured 3 ft from the drive. Lutron drapery tracks. | CSS-DRAPERY with the brushless CSM-QMTDC-DRP-3: 145 lb to 240 in single (spliced past 192 in), tandem to 480 in and 290 lb, 10 to 50 rpm; a pull on the fabric starts it (Touch Motion). Crestron drapery track. |
| Published noise | Palladiom under 35 dBA at 3 ft; Sivoia QS rollers from 35 dBA (Roller 64) to 50 dBA (Roller 300) at 3 ft by size; the compact Roller 20 under 44 dBA. | No figure. Crestron calls it Digital Quiet Motor Technology and describes its motors as "nearly imperceptible" (QMT3, drapery) or "nearly inaudible" (QMT5, battery). On our installs the rollers are quiet; we cannot put a number on it, and neither does Crestron. |
| Alignment and feedback | Intelligent Hembar Alignment keeps a bank of shades within 1/8 in of each other, moving or stopped; two-way position reporting on the link. | The motor reports its position to the processor, calibrates its own torque and stops on an obstruction; Crestron publishes no alignment figure. |
| Fabrics | Lutron's fabric library: 921 colourways in 56 designs (solar screen, light-filtering, sheer, blackout, honeycomb, wood). Browse it. | Crestron's fabric program: 457 colourways in 43 designs, most woven by Mermet, Phifer and Coulisse, in four price tiers. Browse it. |
| Hardware | Brackets, fascias, pockets and side channels for wired and battery shades; Palladiom's hand-finished brackets are meant to be seen. | Architectural hardware (pockets, fascia, blackout channels) and Decor hardware for a shade in the open; one look for wired and battery motors. |
| How it is sold | Through Lutron dealers; Serena is also sold online. We hold a direct Lutron shading account, so the shade comes to us from Lutron. | Only inside a complete shade built to order, through a Crestron dealer. Crestron publishes no prices for motors, hardware or fabric. |
Both lines come from the same two mills for the fabrics that matter in Florida, Mermet and Phifer, so a 3% E Screen exists on either side (T Screen is Lutron's only). The shade you would notice the difference on is the oversize one: a wall of glass past 14 ft is coupled Sivoia QS on Lutron and two shades on Crestron, and Lutron's drapery drive is rated for 30 lb more and runs 18 ft to Crestron's 16 ft before a splice. The quiet question is settled only in Lutron's favour on paper, because Crestron does not put its number on paper; our page on the quietest drapery tracks shows how every maker states, or avoids, that figure.
Lutron vs Crestron as a control system #
The part most comparison pages skip, and the part that actually decides the shade. Lutron's platforms against Crestron Home, in each company's own published terms.
Each row stacks on a phone.
| Lutron | Crestron | |
|---|---|---|
| The platforms | Caséta (a condo or a few rooms), RA2 Select, RadioRA 3 (renovations and mid-size homes), HomeWorks QSX (estates), myRoom (hotels and condo-hotels). The Lutron ladder. | Crestron Home OS, now version 4, on the MC4-R (single rooms, small and medium homes, multi-dwelling buildings) or the CP4-R for larger homes; a custom-programmed Crestron system where the owner wants what configuration cannot do. |
| What it runs | Lighting, including Ketra tunable light; shades and drapery; temperature through the Palladiom thermostat and HVAC controller, or Honeywell and Ecobee; Sonos. Everything else is handed to a partner platform. | Audio, video, lighting, motorized shades, thermostats, door locks, sensors, security systems "and other equipment", in Crestron's words, plus up to 500 BACnet objects on the MC4-R. |
| Wire and radio | QS wired link for shades and panels; Clear Connect Type A at 434 MHz, a band Lutron describes as essentially silent; Clear Connect Type X at 2.4 GHz (IEEE 802.15.4) for dense lighting such as Ketra and Sunnata. | Cresnet (wired); infiNET EX at 2.4 GHz (IEEE 802.15.4 mesh, gateway built into the MC4-R); SG wireless at 915 MHz for battery shades; Ethernet for everything else. |
| Scale | RadioRA 3: up to 200 Lutron devices per processor. HomeWorks QSX: one processor plus up to 15 more processors and gateways, 32 configurable links and 10,000 zones per system. | "Capable of handling systems with hundreds of devices" (MC4-R); up to 100 infiNET EX devices per gateway, 50 recommended; the CP4-R above that. |
| Who sets it up | Caséta: the owner, in the app. RadioRA 3 and HomeWorks: a Lutron dealer in Lutron's Designer software, which is also where shade groups and scenes are built. | A Crestron dealer, in the Crestron Home Setup app (Configure Pro from September 2025, "you no longer need a custom programmer for every job"), or a Crestron programmer for a bespoke system. |
| Lutron shades in it | Native. | Yes, natively since May 2020 (HomeWorks QS and QSX, RadioRA 2, RA2 Select; RadioRA 3 added after its 2022 launch): Crestron Home pairs with one Lutron system on the same network switch and imports its lights, shades and keypads. Lutron shade groups stay in Lutron Designer. |
| Crestron shades in it | Not directly. Cresnet, infiNET EX and SG wireless are Crestron's own networks; a Lutron processor has no path to a Crestron motor. | Native. |
| Voice and apps | Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, Google Home and josh.ai on RadioRA 3 and HomeWorks; the Lutron app. | The Crestron Home app and the home's voice assistant, enabled by the dealer. |
| Other control systems | RadioRA 3 integrates with Crestron, Control4, Savant, URC, RTI, Elan, Kaleidescape and AMX (Lutron's list); HomeWorks QS and QSX and the RadioRA lines are what Crestron Home pairs with (Crestron's list). A Lutron home can change its brain later and keep its shades. | A Crestron processor can host Lutron (above), Somfy RTS (through the CI-SOMFY-RTS) and line-voltage motors (C2N-SDC). A Crestron shade reaches a Control4 or Savant house only through Crestron hardware and the integrator's drivers. |
| Where it is sold | Caséta at retail and online; RadioRA 3 and HomeWorks through Lutron dealers. | "Select authorized Crestron dealers and distributors" only. |
Two rows carry the whole decision. "Lutron shades in it" is yes on both sides; "Crestron shades in it" is yes on one. That asymmetry is not a flaw in Crestron, it is the business model: Crestron sells a complete house, and the shade is one of its parts. It does mean a Crestron shade is a commitment to Crestron hardware and a Crestron dealer for as long as the shade is on the window, which is a fine commitment in a Crestron house and a roundabout one anywhere else. The lighting question in a Crestron house is a separate choice, and the answer in the houses we work in is often Lutron HomeWorks underneath Crestron; the Ritz-Carlton Residences in Sunny Isles is built exactly that way.
Who programs it, and who you call in ten years #
Three situations cover nearly every project we see. The hardware differs less than the phone numbers do.
Situation 1
A Lutron home, or no system yet
We measure, Lutron builds the shade, we install it and commission it: on a Pico remote, on the Caséta bridge, or into the RadioRA 3 or HomeWorks processor through Lutron's Designer software, with the scenes and the keypads. One company, one phone number, and if that company ever changes, any Lutron dealer can open the same file and carry on. Lutron's pre-wire runs are planned before the drywall; a Triathlon shade needs none.
Situation 2
A Crestron home with Lutron shades
The shades live on a Lutron processor, RadioRA 3 or HomeWorks, which the Crestron dealer pairs into Crestron Home on the same network switch, or reaches from a custom program. Two companies, two phone numbers, each responsible for its own gear: we build, install and commission the shades and their groups in Lutron Designer; the integrator maps them to the Crestron keypads and scenes. We coordinate that hand-off, as we did with the AV partner at the Ritz-Carlton Residences, and it works without drama because both makers wrote it down.
Situation 3
A Crestron home with Crestron shades
We specify and measure as Crestron Residential Consultants, Crestron builds each shade to order, we install it with our own team, and the home's Crestron dealer commissions the motors into the processor and its scenes; we are not a Crestron dealer and do not sell the processor. One ecosystem and one app, with two conditions: the processor must be live before the owner can move a shade, and the motor's service life runs through the dealer who holds the system. Ask who keeps the configuration files and the passwords. The fabric and the hardware, as always, come back to us.
What a Lutron shade and a Crestron shade cost #
Two sets of figures that are honest on their own and misleading side by side, so here they are with their conditions. We publish our Lutron prices; Crestron publishes a budgetary MSRP guide for the bare shade and nothing else.
Lutron, on our published price list
| Project (installed, wired system with its panel) | Lutron | Wired Somfy, for scale |
|---|---|---|
| One 72 by 84 in motorized roller shade, fabric and motor included | about $3,141 | about $1,910 |
| One oversized window, 96 by 108 in | about $3,445 | about $2,095 |
| A living-room wall: three openings at 96 by 120 in | about $7,418 | about $4,511 |
| A main floor: five bedroom windows plus a 14 ft slider (two coupled shades) | about $14,947 | about $9,088 |
| A whole main level: eight motorized shades | about $16,566 | about $10,073 |
Exotic Shades & Draperies published pricing, September 2026: budgetary planning figures from the engine behind our written quotes, installed, before tax, with the low-voltage power panel. A Lutron processor is added only when the home wants Lutron scenes and keypads; a Triathlon shade on a Pico needs none. Battery Triathlon and Serena shades are quoted per project. Cost by system · instant price.
Crestron, in Crestron's own budgetary guide
| One motorized 5 Series roller shade, MSRP | Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Tier 3 | Tier 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 ft wide by 5 ft high | $900 | $1,000 | $1,200 | $1,400 |
| 5 ft wide by 10 ft high | $1,100 | $1,300 | $1,600 | $2,200 |
| 10 ft wide by 10 ft high | $1,400 | $1,600 | $2,000 | $3,200 |
Crestron Shades Budgetary Estimation Guide, June 2022: MSRP for the shade and its motor only, before fascia ($20 per ft), pocket ($50 per ft) and a dual shade (double). In the guide's own words, "all control processors, user interfaces, wiring, power requirements, commissioning, and startup fees, etc. are not included in this pricing and are to be provided by others at additional cost"; installation is not in it either, and a Crestron shade cannot run without the processor. E Screen and SheerWeave 2500 sit in Tier 2. Crestron may have moved its prices since. The guide, with its fabric tiers.
Read together, the two tables say one useful thing: the shade is not where the two brands part. The money moves with the system. A Lutron project pays for the shade, the panel and, if the home wants it, a Lutron processor that any dealer can program; a Crestron project pays for the shade and its power supplies, and then for the dealer's hours commissioning it into a processor the house already needed for everything else. In a Crestron house that processor is a sunk cost and a Crestron shade is a fair buy; in any other house it is a new one. We quote both at the measure, with the processor, the gateways and the programming shown as their own lines, so the two can be compared on the same basis.
Four houses, three answers #
Lutron inside a Crestron house, Crestron inside a Control4 house, and Lutron on its own: the installs this page is written from, measured, sewn, installed and commissioned by our own team.
Six questions that settle Lutron vs Crestron #
The order matters. The first question usually ends the conversation.
- What processor does the house have, or will it have? Crestron already installed or on the integrator's drawings: either brand of shade works, read on. Lutron, or nothing yet: the shade is Lutron (or Somfy), and the Crestron column is closed. Control4 or Savant: Lutron joins natively, while a Crestron shade would add Crestron hardware to the house, so start with Lutron.
- How much of the house do you want on one platform? Lights and glass only: Lutron on its own, from Caséta to HomeWorks, is the simpler, cheaper and more portable system. Audio, video, climate, security and the glass: a Crestron house, with the shades on either brand and, very often, Lutron lighting underneath.
- Count the glass. Openings past 14 ft, banks of shades that must stay level, 18 ft drapery runs and heavy lined panels favour Sivoia QS and its coupling, hembar alignment and D-series drives. Ordinary openings are a draw.
- Where are you in construction? Walls open: wire either brand (one 4-conductor run per shade on both) and plan the pre-wire and the pockets now. Walls closed: Lutron Triathlon or Crestron's battery shade in a Crestron house, both on D cells, or a Somfy battery motor where there is no system at all.
- Who will you call in ten years? Lutron: any Lutron dealer. Crestron: your Crestron dealer, for as long as the shade is on the window. Choose the dealer with the same care as the brand, and ask who keeps the files.
- Then, and only then, the fabric. Both programs carry Mermet and Phifer screens and good blackouts; Lutron's library is twice the size and adds honeycomb and wood, Crestron adds horizontal sheers. Find a fabric in either library, or request swatches.
Lutron vs Crestron: questions
Is Lutron or Crestron better for motorized shades? #
Neither, on the shade alone: both build quiet, dealer-specified motorized shades with two-way feedback and large fabric programs. They differ in what sits around the shade. Lutron is a lighting and shading company whose shades live in Caséta, RadioRA 3 or HomeWorks and plug into every control platform, including Crestron. Crestron is a whole-home control company whose shades run only through Crestron hardware. So the house decides: no Crestron hardware, no Crestron shade; a Crestron house can have either.
Can Lutron shades work with a Crestron system? #
Yes. Crestron Home has paired natively with Lutron systems since May 2020, first HomeWorks QS and QSX, RadioRA 2 and RA2 Select, with RadioRA 3 added after its 2022 launch. The Lutron processor and the Crestron processor sit on the same network switch, Crestron Home imports the Lutron lights, shades and keypads, and the shades then answer the Crestron keypads, touch screens and app. Shade groups are built in Lutron's Designer software. A custom-programmed Crestron system reaches Lutron the same way. That is how our Ritz-Carlton Residences project in Sunny Isles runs: Sivoia QS shades and tracks under HomeWorks, inside a Crestron house.
Can Crestron shades work without a Crestron system, or with Lutron? #
Not on their own. A Crestron shade motor talks Cresnet, infiNET EX or SG wireless, and only Crestron hardware speaks those networks: there is no Lutron driver for a Crestron motor, no stand-alone remote and no app without a Crestron processor. A Control4 or Savant house can reach a Crestron shade through that Crestron hardware and its integrator's drivers, which is how our Trump Tower III project runs, but it puts two brands of control in one house. If the house runs Lutron, or nothing yet, the shade is Lutron or Somfy.
Which is quieter, Lutron or Crestron shades? #
Lutron publishes figures: Palladiom under 35 dBA at 3 ft, Sivoia QS rollers from 35 dBA (Roller 64) to 50 dBA (Roller 300) at 3 ft depending on size, the Roller 20 under 44 dBA, and the drapery drive no more than 50 dB at 3 ft. Crestron publishes no number; it calls the technology Digital Quiet Motor Technology and describes its motors as nearly imperceptible or nearly inaudible. On our installs both are quiet enough for a bedroom. If you need a figure in writing, only Lutron gives you one.
Which costs more, Lutron or Crestron shades? #
They are not priced on the same basis, which is the honest answer. Our published Lutron figure is about $3,141 for one 72 by 84 in roller shade on the wired system, installed, with its panel, before tax. Crestron's only public figure is a budgetary MSRP guide from June 2022 for the bare shade, $1,100 to $2,200 for a 5 by 10 ft roller depending on fabric tier, before the control processors, user interfaces, wiring, power and commissioning the guide leaves to others, and before installation. We quote both at the measure with those lines shown separately, so you can compare them on one basis.
Do I need an integrator for Lutron? For Crestron? #
Lutron: not always. A Triathlon or Serena shade works from a Pico remote on its own, Caséta is set up by the owner, and RadioRA 3 or HomeWorks is programmed by a Lutron dealer, which for the shades is us. Crestron: always. Crestron sells only through authorized dealers, the processor is configured by the dealer, and the shades are commissioned into it by the dealer. We specify, measure and install the Crestron shades as members of Crestron's Residential Consultants program and coordinate the integrator; we are not a Crestron dealer.
What is the difference between Lutron and Crestron lighting control? #
Lutron makes lighting control and little else: dimmers, keypads, Ketra tunable light, shades and a thermostat, with everything else handed to partners. Crestron makes lighting control as one part of a platform that also runs audio, video, climate, locks and security. Many of the largest South Florida houses we work in do both: Crestron on top for the house, Lutron HomeWorks underneath for the lights and the shades. Our Lutron systems guide explains the Lutron ladder from Caséta to HomeWorks.
Which has the bigger fabric selection? #
Lutron, by count: 921 colourways in 56 designs in the Lutron library we carry, against 457 colourways in 43 designs in Crestron's fabric program. Both programs are built largely on the same mills, Mermet and Phifer, so the solar screens that matter in Florida (E Screen, M Screen, the SheerWeave basketweaves) exist on both sides, while T Screen is on Lutron's side only; Lutron adds honeycomb and wood blinds, Crestron adds horizontal sheers.
Which handles bigger windows? #
Lutron, on paper and on our jobs: Sivoia QS runs from 20 in to 20 ft with coupling brackets and Intelligent Hembar Alignment within 1/8 in across a bank, and its D175 drapery drive is rated to 175 lb and runs 18 ft with no splice. Crestron's widest single roller is 168 in on the QMT5 with the 2.75 in tube, and its drapery track carries 145 lb to 240 in single or 290 lb to 480 in tandem, spliced past 192 in. Our Hillsboro Mile house is fourteen walls of glass on wired Sivoia QS under HomeWorks, every bottom bar held in line.
Which battery shade lasts longer between changes? #
On the makers' own ratings, Lutron: Triathlon is rated at three to five years on replaceable D cells at two cycles a day; Crestron's battery shade is rated at three years average on eight D cells at the same two cycles a day, and Crestron notes that heat and shades taller than 60 in shorten it. Both avoid the charging cable of the lithium motors most retrofit shades use.
Can I mix Lutron and Crestron shades in one house? #
Only in a Crestron house, and we would not recommend it. The Crestron shades would run on the Crestron processor and the Lutron shades on a Lutron processor paired into it, two systems to program and service for no gain. Pick one line for the whole house; in a Crestron home either line works, and the fabric, the sizes and the dealer you want to call in ten years should decide.
What about a Control4 or Savant home? #
Lutron shades join Control4 and Savant through RadioRA 3 or HomeWorks, as they join Crestron. A Crestron shade gets there only through Crestron hardware: at Trump Tower III we installed Crestron rollers and a Crestron track and, working with the home's AV partner, commissioned them into the residence's existing Control4 scenes and keypads. It works, and the owners run it on the clock and the sun, but we would not plan a Control4 or Savant house around Crestron shades from scratch; Lutron or Somfy is the straightforward choice there.
Which is easier to service in ten years? #
Lutron. Any Lutron dealer can service a Lutron shade, the Lutron processor file is portable between dealers, and a Lutron home can change its control brain later and keep its shades. A Crestron shade depends on the Crestron processor and on the dealer who holds its configuration or program; Crestron Home configurations are more portable than the custom programs of older systems, so ask who keeps the files and the passwords before you sign. We service Lutron systems installed by others; for Crestron motors the service call goes through your Crestron dealer, and the fabric and hardware come to us.
Where the figures come from #
All documents accessed 14 October 2026. Figures are quoted as each maker prints them; where the two makers state a thing differently, both wordings are given. Makers revise their sheets, and we will update this page when a figure changes.
- National Academy of Engineering, Memorial Tributes vol. 21 (2017): Joel S. Spira founded Lutron in 1961, invented the first solid-state electronic dimmer, moved the company to Coopersburg, Pennsylvania.
- Lutron, Sivoia motorized shades: widths 20 in to 20 ft, coupling, the QS wired link and Clear Connect wireless.
- Lutron, Sivoia roller shades: Roller 20 under 44 dBA at 3 ft.
- Lutron specification 085705, Sivoia QS Roller 64: 35 dBA at 3 ft.
- Lutron specification 085286, Sivoia QS Roller 300: 50 dBA at 3 ft.
- Lutron, Palladiom roller shades: under 35 dBA at 3 ft, wired or wire-free.
- Lutron, Triathlon shades: replaceable D batteries, three to five years.
- Lutron Application Note 561, Optimizing Battery Life in Lutron Shades, rev. F: ratings assume two cycles a day.
- Lutron drapery chassis specification 086-123 (rev. k, 10.02.25): drive does not exceed 50 dB measured 3 ft (1 m) away, 6 in per second, up to 18 ft without a splice, operates draperies up to 175 lb (see the capacity submittal).
- Lutron D175 capacity specification 086119: pinch pleat straight track 165 lb at 168 to 216 in, ripplefold 155 lb at the same length; the rating depends on heading and length.
- Lutron support, RadioRA 3 processor FAQ: up to 200 Lutron devices per processor, 100 Clear Connect Type X; integrates with URC, RTI, Elan, Crestron, Control4, Savant, Kaleidescape and AMX; Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, Google Home and josh.ai; Sonos, Honeywell and Ecobee.
- Lutron specification 3691221, RadioRA 3 processor: integrations and capacities.
- Lutron, HomeWorks system architecture, P/N 368-2617 rev. U (03/2025): one processor plus up to 15 additional processors and gateways, 32 configurable links, 10,000 zones; Palladiom thermostat and HVAC controller in the system diagram.
- Lutron press release, 12 September 2019, The next generation of HomeWorks is here: QSX processor, Ketra through the Clear Connect Gateway Type X (up to 200 Ketra devices per gateway), HomeWorks Designer.
- Lutron, Clear Connect technology whitepaper, P/N 367-1234 rev. E (01/2020): Type A at 434 MHz under FCC 15.231, a band Lutron calls essentially silent; Type X at 2.4 GHz, IEEE 802.15.4.
- Crestron, About: "Since 1972, Crestron has been the leader in creating innovative technologies"; dealers, partners and installers.
- Crestron, MC4-R 4-Series control system for Crestron Home OS: integrates audio, video, lighting, motorized shades, thermostats, door locks, sensors and security systems; "capable of handling systems with hundreds of devices"; built-in infiNET EX gateway, up to 100 devices (best practice 50); CP4-R for larger homes; Crestron Home Setup app and Crestron Home app; "may be purchased from select authorized Crestron dealers and distributors".
- Crestron Home documentation, Pair and Configure a Lutron System: HomeWorks QS, HomeWorks QSX, RadioRA 2, RadioRA 3 and RA2 Select; one Lutron system per Crestron Home system; same network switch; Lutron shades excluded from Crestron Home shade groups (build them in Lutron Designer); scenes imported for RA2 Select.
- rAVe [PUBS], 18 May 2020, Crestron Home adds Lutron integration that simplifies lighting and shading.
- Crestron blog, 4 September 2025, Configure Pro: Pyng (2014), Crestron Home OS 3 (2019), OS 4 (August 2023), 4.6 (July); "you no longer need a custom programmer for every job"; the Setup app remains available.
- Crestron, Shading Solutions: Digital QMT motors, Cresnet, infiNET EX, SG wireless, the Crestron Home app.
- Crestron, CSM-QMTDC-163-1-EX (QMT3): 3/4 Nm, 17.5 to 96 in, 42.5 W at 24 V DC, 10 to 30 rpm, infiNET EX through an infiNET EX gateway, 150 ft indoors, Cresnet connection for power only; "nearly imperceptible operation"; the -CN version on Cresnet.
- Crestron specification, CSM-QMTDC-275-4-CN (QMT5): 4 Nm, 18 to 168 in on the 2.75 in tube; the -250-4 to 133 in on the 2.5 in tube.
- Crestron specification, CSM-QMTDC-163-1-SG battery motor: eight D cells, three-year average life at two cycles a day, 25.44 to 96 in, SG wireless through the CEN-GW1 gateway, about 230 ft indoors; heat and heights over 60 in shorten battery life.
- Crestron specification, CSM-QMTDC-DRP-3-CN drapery motor: brushless Digital Quiet Motor Technology, "nearly imperceptible operation", 10 to 50 rpm, Touch Motion (a pull on the fabric starts the motor).
- Crestron specification, CSS-DRAPERY track: 145 lb to 240 in single, 290 lb tandem to 480 in; tracks longer than 192 in require a splice.
- Crestron, CRESNET-P cable: the 4-conductor Cresnet network, 24 V DC power and data, run lengths.
- Crestron, CI-SOMFY-RTS and the third-party shade and drapery controllers (C2N-SDC): the interfaces that bring Somfy RTS and line-voltage motors onto a Crestron processor.
- Crestron, Shades Budgetary Estimation Guide, June 2022 (PDF): MSRP for one motorized 5 Series roller shade by fabric tier and size; "all control processors, user interfaces, wiring, power requirements, commissioning, and startup fees, etc. are not included in this pricing and are to be provided by others at additional cost".
- Crestron, Shading Solutions design guide: hardware families, pockets, fascias and battery shades.
- Exotic Shades & Draperies, published pricing by system (quote-engine figures, budgetary, before tax, September 2026); credentials (direct Lutron shading account, September 2026; Lutron LCI Full Shades Qualification, April 2026; Crestron Residential Consultants program member since April 2025, not a Crestron dealer); the case studies linked on this page.
Discerning homeowners, designers, and developers across South Florida trust Exotic with their most important spaces.
“I’m absolutely blown away and in love with my ripple food curtains !! Everything about them from the install to the fabric and quality . My house feels so much more like a home I couldn’t have asked for anything better . I recommend to everybody !”
“I couldn’t believe how much of a change these new drapes could make! This company upgraded my apartment overlooking the water and it now has a fresh, art deco’ish vibe I can only picture in my head. The space feels modern and elegant without losing its at home feeling. From start to finish top notch work. I highly recommend them if you want your place to look like something out of a magazine.”
“I’m really happy with my new curtains! The team from Exotic Shades came to my place helped me choose the right fabric, and guided me through the whole process. Everything happened exactly as it was supposed to. Great service and beautiful results. Highly recommend A+”
Exotic Shades & Draperies, Fort Lauderdale and Miami Beach
Exotic Shades & Draperies is a South Florida window-treatment company that designs, sews and installs its own work: Lutron and Somfy motorized shades, custom draperies sewn in our Fort Lauderdale workroom by five in-house seamstresses, plantation shutters and blinds. Established in South Florida in 2024, backed by more than 20 years of window-treatment manufacturing and installation experience. Lutron certified dealer, Somfy Expert, Crestron and Control4 integration. The same in-house team measures, installs and programs every project; when shading has to integrate with another control system, we bring in our smart-home partner Adom Smart Home.
Fort Lauderdale workroom and showroom
4539 Powerline Rd, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309 · 954-881-9331
Miami Beach showroom
500 South Pointe Dr #150, Miami Beach, FL 33139 · 954-872-9007
Where we install
Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties: Miami Beach, Sunny Isles and Aventura through Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale and Pompano Beach to Boca Raton, Delray Beach and West Palm Beach, with projects in the Caribbean and New York.
How a project runs
Free in-home measurement, a written quote from the same engine as our published prices, fabrication in our own workroom, installation and programming by our own team, and service on the systems we install.
Lutron and Crestron shades from Miami to Palm Beach
Lutron Sivoia QS, Triathlon, Palladiom and Serena shades and Sivoia drapery tracks on Caséta, RadioRA 3, HomeWorks and myRoom; Crestron QMT shades and drapery track specified and installed in Crestron homes and commissioned with the integrator. The same in-house team measures, sews, installs and programs from Miami Beach to West Palm Beach.
Lutron or Crestron? Bring the plans.
One free hour with our team routinely saves owners thousands in avoidable mistakes. Book a private, complimentary consultation - we read the house's control system first, then specify the shade that belongs in it, and write both into the quote.