FULL FRAME Installers
Increase Your Profits With Plantation Shutters BY ROGER MAGALHAES
From my experience, I know many dealers and installers run away from plantation shutters, but I go in the opposite direction and embrace these wood or faux-wood interior shutters. It is true that making any mistake when dealing with shutters can be costly, but it is also true that once you master the techniques of measuring and installing, the margins and profits on this category of window treatments is significant. Many refer to installing shutters as a giant jigsaw puzzle due to the complexity, but I prefer to think of shutters as Legos. Yes, there many ways to specify a shutter for each window, but the key is to understand each component (I refer to these as tools), including the frames, materials, louver sizes and configurations. Once you understand what each tool does, you will be able to build the shutters easily and correctly to specification.
HERE ARE THE DETAILS ABOUT THE KEY SHUTTER TOOLS: MATERIALS: While all shutters may look the same to your customer, they are made of different materials and the selected material may be the most important factor when specifying shutters for a window. Shutters are made from a variety of building materials, including PVC, composite, real wood and aluminum. Each material has its own capabilities—some allow for single panels to be wider than others and some allow for custom color or staining. LOUVER SIZES: The larger the size of each louver, the bigger the space between them. Obviously, the bigger louvers are great to be able to create an unobstructed view; but the larger their size, the deeper the window jamb must be. This is to prevent the back of the louvers from hitting the window glass as they pivot. This is a very common mistake made by designers and installers. A great way to avoid this problem is to have a louver test kit on hand so you can easily check how the different-size louvers interact with the window while you are also measuring the size of the window. TILTING RODS: The most common style is the front tilt rod that is placed at the center of the panel and has every louver stapled to the rod, so the louvers all move together. However, manufacturers have also started offering a second design option: the off-set tilt rod. This allows for the placement of the rod at the edge of the louvers instead of at the rod's center (for a cleaner look). From this more modern design, a new style of tilt rod was developed: the hidden tilt rod. This uses a very thin metal bar (and screws) to link all louvers and allows for the elimination of the front tilt rod. Some manufacturers even went a step further and developed a gear system that eliminates the back metal link. The gear system is placed in a cavity inside the side of panel (called the style). This design style allows for the titling rod to have remote control capabilities. MOUNTING OPTIONS: This is another tool that offers many possibilities when specifying shutters. It offers a direct mount (when the hinges are attached directly to a window jamb), but the window must be deep enough and fairly square and plumb. There are also different frame options to assist dealers in creating the specifications for the shutters if the windows don’t have enough depth or when the windows are not square. In this case, the shutters are installed outside the window jambs or on the woodwork (if there is any). Frames can vary in shape from an L-shaped to Decorative and Z frames (which are used when the window opening doesn’t have wood around it). Each frame group offers slightly different size options and it is important to select the one that will work best for a given project.
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MAY + JUNE 2022 | wf-vision.com
