Love my outside, golf front, screened west facing lanai. You should live with it until you decide how you use it and what you need to do. We have fans and manual screens. You do not sit out on the deck in snow covered winter areas do you? Common sense.

Things are so confusing. We had a Florida room in New York. Here it should be a New York room.

Yes. There is nothing better than walking down the beach when it is snowing. Truth not April fools.

West is much nicer than east during cooler 6 mos. it averages out

We face West and it is terrific for the pool. No pool, the motorized blinds and awnings are terrific for all the things mentioned. As a snowbird, trying the manual blinds might work just as well. You’ll have wonderful mornings, warm springs and falls, and many beautiful evenings. Every house has its season and its view. Make the most of what you have. If all else fails, try enclosing the lanai for a very special room.

Enjoy your sunsets
 

You made a wise dedision. You will be rewarded with the most remarkable sunsets over your perserve.

I have west facing screened lanai and I have been enjoying the sunset almost everyday! :) :welcome:

We have a wet facing lanai and love it. Sun shades in the summer cool it down and it is a heat sink in the winter. We can sit out in our lanai in the coldest of days in Jan/Feb
and be toasty.

Totally agree with "wait a while". We were concerned with our West facing lanai and now we LOVE it. All the neighbors want to join us for sunset cocktails in our birdcage. The 20/20 screen and patio fans help. A big NO to pergola - a waste of money in Florida.

We have a west facing lanai with a large bird cage. I have pull down screens that I have very rarely used for the 5 pm. sun. Our lanai is not enclosed. We eat most of our meals out on the lanai except for the few hottest days. We love the sunsets and our view.

Last year we had over 120 days with temps in the shade 90 degrees or higher and much hotter in the sun. You must really like to eat in the heat.

My western facing lanai is ok except for about an hour in the afternoon

Don't forget rain
 

Rainstorms are commonly from the west in summer also. Make sure your furniture is back a ways and be prepared to mop and keep adequate drainage channels

Thanks!

Are you able to turn a crank or pull the blind into position and return it? Manual will be fine for you unless you expect to have major shoulder surgery. Can you afford the difference in pricing? Would you like the convenience of just pushing a button on the wall or on a remote? Not a difficult decision to make. Buy what you want.

My west facing lanai was enclosed with clear double pane windows by the second owner. We've lived here for two years and have found it comfortable. FYI, no extra HVAC was added. Suggest you wait and see.

We did the exact same thing, front patio with manual shades for west facing lanai but our back lanai is ringed with shrubbery that is now almost 5 feet high. Shrubs help with the sun.

Plant lots of fast growing trees.

I had solar film installed on window glass. Cuts the glare without obscuring the view. Plus it is a bonus during summer storm season. There are films that can protect from certain mph hurricane winds.

Film
 

Had wanted to do this but would have voided the warranty on the new windows we installed. Great concept though.

Our Florida was not put in until after the summer so we have not yet added a split A/C.
Waiting to see how it will be cooled by our A/C we have now but thinking a split will be needed.

We installed remote controlled awnings. The height and extension can both be adjusted to suit. It has made a HUGE difference in our lanai, which we use all times of day. We use our awnings almost every afternoon. The only time we don't is when it's very windy or (obviously) raining. We installed two - one also shades our bedroom. They were not an inexpensive purchase, (several thousand). However, the comfort they provide, as well as facilitating much increased use of our lanai, has for us, justified the expense.
Contact:

Contact: Sun Shades of Central Florida ph 407-935-9115

There are screens that block more than 90% of sun rays; however we still couldn’t sit out there when it was raining or too cold. We eventually “partially” enclosed or lanai, installing stacking siding doors. Now we have full air when we want, but can keep the doors closed and still enjoy the lanai 100% of the time. Best investment in our opinion.

I have an east faceing lanai. I love it. Sun in the am and cool in the pm.

I've had both and prefer not having the low glaring sun in my eyes every morning, I'm not a big fan of shades and we use our Lanai every morning but rarely in late afternoon as there is always something else to do so West is Best at least for us.

We would highly recommend outdoor solar shades for a west facing lanai. It made a huge difference for us. We got ours from Budget Blinds and they did a great job. We loved the selection of window coverings for both inside and outside our Home!

Cool breeze roll screens,retractable doors,privacy-hurricane shutters and awning
 

Cool Breeze roll screens, retractable screen doors, interior motorized shades,privacy-hurricane shutters and awning.

We manufacture our products in Odessa, Fl and have the Longest warranty,quality and service in the industry.

888-896-8935
coolbreezerollscreens@Yahoo.com

I think using your home air conditioner to cool lanai is less efficient than getting a split. We use ours a lot and really notice little in the way of a higher utility bill.

I was going to share my story but you already did. I have a west facing porch on a lake in NY...sunsets are great, but it can get brutal. However, we have found ways to deal with it, and it has its pluses. Which is what I want to share with the OP...you'll find ways to enjoy the pluses, and to mitigate the minuses. It will be grand.
Enjoy!

We cut down the trees because we love the sun and don't want the trees to block the solar panels that heat our pool.

On a monthly basis your probably right but when you factor in the cost of buying the split would disagree.

We have a Gardenia with a west facing lanai. Like you, we had heard all the reasons why this was a terrible idea. We often think about everything we heard each morning when we have breakfast facing the rising sun in the east and in the evenings when we often just sit and enjoy the beautiful sunsets in the west. Yes, summers in Florida can be brutal - no matter which way your lanai faces. Screens, awnings and other devices can provide some relief if you find you truly want them (we do have pull down screens we use when we must). Enclosing the lanai is a different alternative. We didn't need additional living space nor a replication of our living or dining rooms. We prefer the open air and sense of being outside that the screened lanai provides.

A number of folks have provided the best advice. Live with your house and your lanai. The experience will let you know what is going to work best for you. It might be any of the suggestions already mentioned. Enjoy your home and welcome to TV.

West Facing Lanai:
 

We live in Monarch Grove and have a lanai with birdcage that faces west. We have lived here since October and have now ordered screens from Lowes. We are going to purchase a section at a time to see what we really need. Also, thinking of purchasing a canvas cover for the birdcage.

We have a West facing lanai and love it. The morning breakfasts are wonderful and the evening sunset are fantastic. We were also faced with what "should we do about the sun in the evening" and after some thought decided to go with curtains. We found curtains on Amazon that are mold resistant and have guide holes on both the top and bottom. You need the guide holes on the bottom to stop the curtains from blowing into the lanai. We then had a handy-man run a steel guide wire across the top and bottom of the lanai opening where the curtains were to be placed. A curtain was hung on the left side of the lanai able to run about 1/2 way into the middle and another one hung on the right side able to run about 1/2 way. The logic I used was: Its a lot cheaper solution then an electric shade running from the top to bottom of the lanai window and if we didn't like it we didn't have a lot to loose compared to the electric shade solution. When we want to block the sun typically we only need to move one of the curtains over some and it leave the rest open for a nice view. Out lanai is large and we have 2 sections with 2 curtains on each section. It is very rare for us to have to move even 1 curtain over to the middle and I can't remember ever having to close 2 of the curtains and never the 4. The curtains move fairly easy on the guide wires but clearly not as easy a pressing a button. This solution works for us but as most people have recommended > use the Lanai in the spring/summer/ a little before you make a decision. Good luck.