Indoor plantation shutters are a beautiful and timeless window treatment for any home or office. You have choices in the composition materials plus colors and you can also choose a louver size to complement your room and windows.
When you are seeking to upgrade your window coverings to indoor plantation shutters you should choose the material first, then the color and then decide with louver size you want. There are a few guidelines to follow when choosing the louver size so that you don’t overwhelm a window or space in your home or office.
What are Louvers?
Louvers are a set of angled slats or strips, which are hung or fixed in intervals of different sizes in plantation shutters. They open fully at 90 degrees and can close completely to control the amount of light and heat in a room. The main four sizes we see today are 1.5 inches or small, 2.5 inches or medium, 3.5 inches or large and 4.5 inches or very large. Each size louver can look fantastic in its own setting and there are no hard or fast rules on how to select the size that looks best in a window. Very often, the size of the window can dictate which size louver to use.
Small Louvers of 1.5 inches
The small 1.5 inches width in louvers aren’t as popular today as they were in the past when emphasis was placed on dressing windows with smaller louvers and narrower panels. One important thing to remember with small louvers is that the smaller the size is the more of them that are placed in a window. The smaller blades will tend to reduce your view out of the window when they are fully open and it also reduces the amount of light that passes through the shutters and into your home. This will cause the view to be of more of the louvers than what is noticed of the outside view. The outside view is obstructed by the small louvers. One great advantage of small louvers is that there is no clearance space needed between the frame and the back of the louver so it’s an ideal choice for windows with a shallow recess.
Medium Louvers of 2.5 Inches
In most homes and businesses, shutters remain closed at all times and you simply adjust the slats to dictate how much light is in a room so it’s probably better to choose at least a medium louver in most windows. The most popular louver size is 2.5 inches because it suits almost any window size and shape that you may have. Medium size louvers will give you a great view of the outdoors and let ample light into any room in your home or office. This size is also ideal if you want to darken a room that gets ample bright light or to darken a bedroom for peaceful morning sleep. In some cases, a window may overlook something outdoors that you don’t necessarily want to highlight, such as a power pole or an air conditioning unit and the medium size when closed will not show the view from the window. The 2.5 inches blades won’t protrude past the rear edge of the standard shutter frame so they are perfect for almost any situation.
The 2.5 inch louvers, as a rule of thumb, work best in a window sill that is shallow and in windows that are 36 inches tall or shorter. Smaller windows tend to look better with smaller louvers so they don’t overwhelm your space.
Large Louvers of 3.5 Inches and 4.5 Inches
If you have a beautiful picturesque view from a window and you want to maximize the light that comes into your space, then the 3.5 inch louvers are the best selection for you. The larger louver size allows you to have fewer louvers to cover the window with more space between them to let the maximum amount of light and air inside with the window open. The outdoor view is less obstructed and the eye is drawn more to the view outdoors than to the shutters themselves.
Louvers of 4.5 inches are usually only used in very large rooms that have floor to ceiling windows. Otherwise, they can overwhelm a space in a dominant manner if they are used in the wrong settings.
Other Considerations in Choosing Louver Sizes
When choosing a louver size on your plantation shutters you also need to determine whether the size you are leaning towards will be obstructed by any obstacles, such as the window pane or window cranks used to open and close them. Your louvers require a certain amount of dedicated space in order to function and operate properly. Larger louvers protrude past the back of a standard shutter pane so you may require a larger frame to make certain that the louvers don’t hit handles of the windows. This can be achieved easily when you have custom made indoor plantation shutters so they will fit your windows properly. The 3.5 inch size louver will suit large windows with wide single shutter panels better than smaller bi-fold window panels.
You should also consider the curb appeal from an outdoor view when you are choosing louver sizes.
When you have smaller louvers, you will likely need more panels in order to cover a larger window completely, but by choosing a larger louver size, you will usually only need two panels to cover a large window. The addition of too many panels on a window can appear very unbalanced in any room.
Your home’s architectural aspects will have an impact on the louver size you choose and remember that the beauty of shutters stands alone no matter what’s outside of the window. Window treatments and coverings work for any style of home to give a space a cozy, romantic and traditional feel with a beautiful design aesthetic as well.