If you’re thinking of building your own shutters, we’ve just made your job a whole lot easier.
We now have pre-drilled stiles available for the 64 and 89mm louvre sizes.
Proper hole spacing is vital for properly working shutters.
So call us on 08454 890314 or 01 5065574 (ROI) for details.
Posted by Hugo Clancy. 5 October 2014
The most popular hinges used with plantation shutters are non-mortise hinges, also known as flush hinges.
These are loose pin hinges, so it is easy to connect panels to frames by simply lining up the two parts of the hinge and inserting the pin.
Frame hinges (shown on right in picture), have a slot hole in the larger leaf which makes it easy to adjust the panel up or down. The inner panel hinges come in two options;
90% of the hinges we use in our factory are white, however they are also available in chrome, brass and antique brass.
These shutter hinges, along with a wide range of DIY Shutter Components are available to buy in our online store
Posted by Hugo Clancy. 29 June 2014
A shutter tilt rod is the mechanism used in a shutter panel for opening and closing the louvres.
It’s either visible on the front of the shutter or hidden to the back of the panel.
A split tilt rod is generally associated with the hidden tilt rod. Instead of one rod connecting all of the louvres together, the rod is split, at whatever point you wish, allowing a section of louvres to open and close independently of the remaining louvres.
Posted by Hugo Clancy. 22 June 2014.
One of the most important parts of a shutter panel is the joint where the vertical stiles meet the horizontal top and bottom rails.
We use the Festool Domino mortise & tenon system for making our joints.
It replicates the traditional mortise & tenon joint but is a lot less expensive and time-consuming to machine.
The picture below from our workshop shows top, middle and bottom rails cut to size and mortised for the Domino joint.
Note the bottom rails on the left have an extra mortise bored, to allow extra domino tenons to be fitted, thus increasing the overall strength of the joints and hence the panels themselves.
For the DIY enthusiast, these are really easy to glue up and clamp together, and trust me, once left clamped overnight, that joint ‘aint coming apart!
Let us know if you have any queries on our range of ready-made shutters – available with a lead time of 3-4 weeks, or our flat pack shutters with a lead time of just 7-10 working days.
Posted by Hugo Clancy. 17 June 2014
Recently we’ve had a lot of inquiries from customers looking for shutters supplied in 3-4 weeks rather than waiting for Chinese imported shutters.
It appears the lead time for Chinese shutters is currently averaging around 11 weeks, which is an incredibly long time to wait to have something fitted in your home, even if it is custom-made.
I suspect this is an attempt by the shutter factories in China to reduce their production or shipping costs as wages and other inputs increase. Instead of shipping express in 30 days to Europe, it can be cheaper to ship 45 days, with the ocean vessel calling to a lot more ports en route.
On the factory floor, less workers are employed or overtime is reduced in order to keep costs down, and this inevitably increases lead times.
At Shutterplus, we can supply you with your diy custom-made hardwood shutters in 3-4 weeks and diy flat pack shutters in just 7-10 working days.
So there’s no need to wait on the slow boat from China!
Also if you need repair parts for shutters, or you’re looking for shutter components to build your own shutters, at Shutterplus we have everything you need; louver pins, shutter magnets and shutter hinges.
Contact us today to get your order under way.
Posted by Hugo Clancy. 12 April 2014
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, the saying goes.
I’m attending the International Window Coverings Expo and it’s a fairly tame affair so not much to disclose in terms of high jinks! That’ll be later, after dark!
There aren’t many new innovations on the shutter side of things. A stackable shutter was about the height of it and I’m not sure if that’s going to catch on. Too plastic for me, huge amount of engineering and parts and too much to go wrong with it. I’ll see if I can post a video of it in action but I’ve added a picture below for now.
Attending these shows is more about making contacts and meeting people you deal with but never got to meet or haven’t met for many years.
And of course there’s the chance you’ll see some fantastic new and innovative products.
As for the stackable plastic shutter, that will definitely be staying in Vegas.
by Hugo Clancy.
7 February 2014
Over the past number of months, we’ve noticed an increasing number of businesses in the interiors and small joinery sector who are interested in getting into plantation shutter manufacturing here.
And articles like this one indicate why!
Shutters Made In China??
The vast majority of shutters sold in the UK and Ireland are imported from China, however factory wages are rising rapidly as workers in the coastal cities especially, demand more remuneration for their efforts.
If you’d like to know more about how to get started in the rapidly expanding shutter market, and have the advantage of offering your customers custom-made shutters in weeks rather than months, please do contact me and I’ll be happy to talk to you.
Hugo Clancy.
Accidents will happen and some of the louvers on your beautiful plantation shutters may get broken.
Well don’t despair as we have replacement louvers available, cut to the exact length you need, drilled on both ends for the louver pins and stapled in the front if you have a tilt rod for opening and closing the louvers or drilled for a hidden tilt rod if that’s what you have.
These can be bought in our online store in 64mm and 89mm elliptical and in pure white and silk white.
Here’s a picture of a batch we sent off to a customer in London last week.
If you have any queries or need any help, don’t hesitate to contact me.
by Hugo Clancy.
08454 890314
More and more people are realising just how much money they can save by opting to measure and install their own plantation shutters.
At Shutterplus, we specialise in diy shutters, as well as shutter components for building your own shutters from scratch and spare parts for plantation shutters.
Visit http://www.shutterplus.co.uk/build-shutters.php to start designing you premium quality hardwood shutters.
And when you shop at Shutterplus for your plantation shutters,
We look forward to working with you!
Hugo Clancy
They may look difficult but shaped windows are really quite easy to measure for shutters and when using a Z frame, they’re also easy to install. http://shop.shutterplus.co.uk
If you need any help or advice, please be sure to call me.
Hugo Clancy
08454 890314
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