Window shutters are solid & stable coverings which basically consist of frames of horizontal rails and vertical stiles. Set within the frames can-be louvers (which can be either fixed or operable, vertical or horizontal), glass, solid panels, fabric, and almost any other such items that can be easily mounted within the frames.
A shutter can be installed for various reasons like; controlling amount of light entering a room, providing privacy or security, and even protecting against bad weather or other such unwanted intrusion and damage. It can also be installed to enhance aesthetics of a house/building. Depending-on the application, and construction of frames, window shutters can-be mounted to easily fit within the window’s opening or overlap the window’s opening. The term window-shutter basically includes both the interior ines that are used on the inside-of the house, and the exterior ones that are used on the outside-of a building.
Interior shutters normally hinge on either-side of the window’s opening, and swing in-wards allowing access or allowing sunlight to enter the room. Operable louvered window shutters have slats which rotate closed or open to control the light, the visibility and the airflow.
Plantation-shutters have a slatted design and are specifically customized to properly fit a frame. They hang on the inside of window and they can be easily opened to allow in light via the slats, or can be closed to block out all light or to add privacy to a room/house. They are a rather common, contemporary-style of interior shutters. The louvers on them are usually between 2.5 inches and 4.5 inches-thick, with panels of 1.125 inches-thick. Plantation louvers are normally elliptical shaped, however there are some or certain styles which are flat.
They allow in little light when they are closed, a very small amount of sunlight gets to breaks through the seams between the louvers and the frames. They are considered to be more modern looking than the colonial ones and they’re often found in large rooms in modern houses. Manufacturers often make plantation style in larger quantities than the colonial ones , giving consumers more options to choose from.
Traditional style also known as colonial-shutters are thin, both in thickness of panel and in width. The louvers on these design are usually .75 inches-thick and 1.25 inches-wide. Although some colonial-louvers are flat, most of them are wedge shaped. Given their thinness when-closed, slats, which are generally an inch apart, allow slightly more-light when compared to the plantation style. Many homes and houses that are decorated-in quaint style usually adopt these type of shutters. Recently, various manufacturers have started to concentrate their main production on plantation style, making colonial style rather difficult to find.
Although most plantation styled or designed shutters are made-of wood, they also come in vinyl and also faux wood. These two materials, although nearly in-distinguishable from the wooden ones, are much cheaper, durable and moisture resistant. However, the wooden made type still remain more-traditional. Keeping with the older lineage, colonial style designs are normally constructed from wood and they’ve never been-made from faux wood, vinyl, or other synthetics.