Erich is very helpful and a pleasure to work with. He is very committed to keeping his clients happy.

Sun Spot Systems came highly recommended. Erich, the owner, came to our home and showed us samples, so that we would have an idea what the shades will look on our windows. I appreciate the fact that he takes his craft seriously. He took the time to show us many other options. He doesn't charge for an estimate and there was no charge for installation. Thanks to you Erich, we are very happy for the nice job you have done. read more

Erich Bichel, owner of Sun Spot Systems, completely fitted out two houses of mine and later 5 years later came back to adjust two shades and to install an additional cover. I think his service is the best around. He is meticulous, thorough, honest and inventive when something needs to be a bit different than the standard. I give him my highest rating. read more

Erich was very professional and knows his blinds. He helped me replace some old non-functioning wood blinds with metal blinds. They look great and he went above and beyond the call of duty. He even fixed and installed some valences on my old blinds free of charge. I would recommend him to anyone. read more

I would definitely encourage anyone who is interested installing new blinds or shades to use Sun Spot Systems. Mr. Bichel the owner is meticulous with his installations. I am so pleased and have used him many times in the last 25 years with my moves. read more

Erich did all the window coverings for 3 houses we live in after the fire. He is the best deal in town, and an entertaining world travelor too. read more

My wife and I highly recommend Sun Spot. Erich runs his operation single-handedly and runs it well, so from the recommendations he makes, to his measurements, to ordering and installation, we've never had a single surprise and really quite the opposite: between his experience with window coverings, windows, blinds manufacturers and their lead times, and his own energetic style, he sets things in motion and it just goes like clockwork to completion. We've had Erich out to our house for two rounds of Kirsch honeycomb blinds, probably 15-20 pieces when we first moved to our house about three years ago, and then, about a year later, three large additional ones as we learned how the harsh afternoon sun comes into one room during certain seasons. Most recently, just this week, he came by on very short notice to reinstall three blinds. (I had taken them down several days before in preparation for having the windows replaced.) When I say short notice, I mean that when the window contractors finished at 3pm, I thought on a whim: "I wonder if Erich would be up for doing this for us in the next couple weeks?" I left him a message and he called back 15 minutes later to offer me a 6pm same day appointment. So the blinds were back up literally before all of the spackle on the new windows' trim was dry! Of particular note, the kinds of things for which I'd give six stars if I could: We have a large arch window for which Erich likely could have sold us the most expensive window covering of our initial order but he had genuine concerns about the aesthetics and began to brainstorm other ways of doing it with simple sheer curtains and a removable rod to preserve the "big glass" look and view. In so doing, he steered us away from buying anything from him for this window, and the end result turned out great. Later, when we asked him to come out for just a three blind order (quite a bit more boring and probably 1/5 the $) we got absolutely the same service, speed, and good pricing. Lastly, for the above-mentioned "short notice reinstall of previously purchased/installed blinds," not only did Erich come out on two hours' notice and knock out the task, *he tried to not charge me anything*. (I insisted.) And I noticed that when he arrived to do this reinstall, he had pulled our records from his files. Armed with invoices, specs and notes for every component he had previously sold us and the corresponding window opening measurements, he was able to track back each original custom piece to its correct window with total confidence! Again, this was on two hours' notice, and for a reinstall of blinds bought three years prior. All in all, I would say if you lean towards a clean look, like interesting people (Erich is a world traveler and old-school Berkeley guy), and want your vendors on time, knowledgable, nice, energetic and on top of it... call Sun Spot! read more

Erich has installed many a blind or window covering for my interior design clients over the years, always to good reviews. He recently installed some roller shades in the display windows of my store, All Things Vintage, in Oakland. This was not an easy installation in that the building is old and nothing is plumb or straight. He did a terrific job and came up with some creative solutions to a difficult situation. His aim is to make sure that his customers are satisfied by the time he leaves the job. His prices are fair and he measures and installs for free! Claudia E. All Things Vintage read more

Recently we asked Erich to do the windows of our entire house - 6 rooms and 2 baths. He did a beautiful job. 100% satisfaction. read more

Erich was such a pleasure to work with. I have never written a review on yelp before but decided this service was worth it. I thought I was going to have to pay hundreds of dollars to re-cord a blind and he did it for only $45, and that was only because I insisted on paying him more than the $35 he asked for. He had to come out twice, once on the 4th of July and when he didn't have the part he came back the 2nd time on a Sunday. He was interesting, friendly, reliable, knowledgeable, professional and competent. What a value! I would recommend him to anyone. read more

I cannot say enough about the wonderful service I received from Erich of Sun Spot Systems. I am an Oakland restaurant owner and had one of our shades come right off the roller. I thought I would have to replace the shade but Erich took a look and repaired it on the spot. He saved me both time and money as I really thought I would have to get all new shades. He even tuned up all my shades to make sure they worked properly. If only all the services I receive were as honest, professional and efficient as Sun Spot is. I will highly recommend him to not only my fiends but my fellow small business owners as well. read more

Sun Spot Systems was an absolute pleasure to work with. Erich, the owner was incredibly responsive, knowledgable, and went above and beyond to provide excellent service. The free in-home consultation provided me with many options for window treatments and we worked together to find a treatment that was aesthetically pleasing and within budget. He took measurements at the consulation and gave me a few days to think through my options/preferences. Erich contacted me as soon as the order came in and he installed everything in one day just days later. The treatments look beautiful-even better than I imagined. The pricing was fair and the workmanship was very high quality. I highly recommend Sun Spot Systems. read more

I can't fully evaluate his service because I refused to hire Sun Spot systems after the estimate. There were a number of issues, but first was that he seemed totally un-interested in what I wanted on my windows and gave me no confidence that I'd be happy with the product. Case in point, he spent a lot of time showing me blinds with lifter cords, despite the fact that I kept saying I wanted the spring loaded ones without cords. Each time I brought this up, he just told me those were more expensive and acted like he was doing me a favor to go back out to his car to show them to me. Secondly, I wasn't happy with the colors of the product line he was showing me. Now, to look at his website, you'd think he had several product lines to chose from, but he never offered to show me a different catalog. When I told him that I'd seen a color I liked from a different manufacturer (Hunter Douglas, the one listed first on his website) he just told me that those were more expensive -- though he couldn't tell me how much and finally admitted he didn't actually have their samples. He suggested I go find a different blind company to show me the Hunter Douglas colors and then call him with the fabric number. The final straw was when he accused me of being unethical for wanting the window-by-window breakdown of the costs because he said I was just going to use his measurements to get someone else to do the job (not unlike what he recommended I do for the colors). At the end of the day, I went with a different company (who did their own measurements for free, natch), who gave me all the options that Erich said were more expensive, all for less money than his estimate. Maybe he does great work, I wouldn't know because he couldn't be bothered to sell me what I asked for. Honestly, the whole experience was just plain weird. read more

I have been wanting to do this for a while now and time has flown by. I moved to the Oakland area in late June and our realtor suggested using Sun Spot Systems to design and install some new solar shades in the living room (very large single pane floor to ceiling window) and dining room. Erich came out and did the measurements and showed us a wide variety of shade samples. We agreed on a 3% weave and a spring assist continuous cord mechanism in a 'Golden sand' color. It took two weeks to get the custom size created and he then came back and installed them, taking down the old blinds carefully. Erich and I got along well as we have both traveled widely over our careers and so it was really fun seeing him doing the work and chatting in between window installments about our various adventures. Erich does professional and careful work. It has now been five months since our installation occurred. All is well and the effect is really stunning. He gave us some replacement parts for some other window shades in our home. I will be contacting him soon to have more shades installed. We paid by check. It is a highly competitive field and it is always good to find someone you can rely on to do professional work. He works alone without any helpers. I believe we got high value for the money invested for the products and the service delivered. read more