When you start looking for new plantation shutters for your home you have many options to consider. I have had shutters in all my homes and just recently went through the process of purchasing shutters for our new home. Shutters are an investment in your home and I hope this information helps you.
Wood Shutters
Having your shutter made from wood is the one of the first choice you may think of when looking for shutters. Although there are much new material that are available now each with its benefits and drawbacks wood is a great choice and gives you the most design options. Most wood plantation shutters today are made from a North American hardwood. Wood shutters allow you to paint or stain them to any color you would like. Wood shutters also are a very good choice when needing to cut out heat coming in the window. Wood is one of your best insulating materials for your window treatments. Wood shutters are available in a variety of finishes to complement your decor. You have a louver or slat sizes range from 1" to 5" wide. Typically you see a smaller slat in a traditional setting and larger slat take well with a coastal or modern decorating style. Wood shutter panels can be made wider than any of the other material available. You can make wood shutters up to 42" wide. Wide panels go great with big windows and smaller slats take well to a smaller window. Wood shutters are able to fit just about any shape window from arch windows to sliding doors. Motorization is available only with wood shutters. If you choose to go with the motorization option on your shutters I would strongly suggest the solar power option. The shutter has a small solar panel on the back that you can’t see form inside and constantly keeps battery charged. No need to ever change the batteries every year or so. When I shopped for my last shutter I was amazed at the finish that was offered from different companies. It basically comes down to how many coats of paint they use and is it baked on finish. I looked at some wood shutters when shopping that the finish was horrible. I would recommend staying away from national chains or franchise blind company’s because I found they all had poor quality and they were very expensive. I would suggest asking some of your neighbors that might have shutters in there home and always give 2-3 estimates from different companies. You can speed up the shopping process by simply calling around to different companies in town and ask how much does there shutters run a square foot. When calling around you will find big difference is cost. Most of the time a quality wood shutter in this area will cost anywhere from $24-$36 a square foot
Composite or Faux Wood Shutters
Composite material or as some may call it faux wood is the most popular material on the market now for having shutters made. Over the last few years they have really perfected the composite material to look very close to wood. There are a lot of advantages to using a composite material when having your shutters made. A big plus is the ability to wipe down or dust of the shutter easily. The composite material is non porous material so it can be wiped off with a damp rag so dirt and dust can come right off. It also is great for areas such as bathrooms and kitchen windows over sinks. I have had some of my wood shutters that didn’t hold up that well on rooms or areas where humidity and moisture was a factor. The finish on most composite shutters has a UV inhibitor in them so that they will not fade in the sun over time. That would be one thing I would discuss with the salesperson when you are shopping for your shutters. What does the warranty on this shutter cover and does it cover them discoloring or fading over time? One thing you will find is that the composite shutters weigh twice as much as wood shutters. I know it’s opposite of what you would think but composite shutters are very heavy. So the shutter panels can only be made up to a maximum of 30” wide per panel. If you want to go with a wide shutter panel look wood shutters might be a better choice depending on your window sizes. Composite is a pre finished product so it cannot be painted. I found there is a good amount of color choices available in the whites and off whites. But very limited in a stain colors and they were not very realistic either. Composite shutters typically cost less than wood shutters. When shopping around you will find prices vary from store to store. But you should expect to pay around $20 to $27 a square foot for a composite shutter.
Well I hope this information helps you when going out to shop for new plantation shutters for your home. There are many places here in south eastern North Carolina and the Wilmington area that you can look for shutters. Shutters are an investment in your home so I would just suggest for you to do your research and get multiple quotes to see what the different stores offer. You will find some stores are much higher and some that are much lower priced out there. Make sure you see a sample before you buy and don’t just assume that all shutters are the same. That way you know you made a good choice.
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