Plantation Shutters

[J. Greg Jones]

I have made plantation shutters for about 7 of the 8 windows on the front of my house. I will be making the last one in several weeks and another batch of shutters before too long (need to finish some other projects first).

Mike,

Those look great! We have a front window almost identical to that one that my wife wants me to make shutters for. I've bought the Woodline bits and pins, have Norm's video and plans, and have the wood set aside for the project. What has stumped me so far is how to handle hinging the center panel on the 3-pane windows. Could you give some details on how you did yours and perhaps post some pictures of the shutters in the swing-open position? I'd really appreciate it as I really like what you have done with yours. Thanks!

[Mike Forsman]

Mike,

Those look great! We have a front window almost identical to that one that my wife wants me to make shutters for. I've bought the Woodline bits and pins, have Norm's video and plans, and have the wood set aside for the project. What has stumped me so far is how to handle hinging the center panel on the 3-pane windows. Could you give some details on how you did yours and perhaps post some pictures of the shutters in the swing-open position? I'd really appreciate it as I really like what you have done with yours. Thanks!

Greg,

I'm having a late day at the office today. I will attempt to get home early enough tomorrow to take some pictures of the shutter in the open position and with some other details to help understand how it works together.

Mike

[Guy Germaine]

Ed,

The louvers are 3/8" by 2 1/2". This is seems to be a standard size for the louvers. They overlap each other by 1/4" on each side. So, the non-overlapped space when the louvers are closed is 2". The louvers are just bull nosed. The louvers will not be completely vertical when closed, but the ones in the stores don't either. I did route a relief in the stiles so that the louvers would close more.

The stiles are 2" by 1 1/4".

The top rail is 1" thick by 4" high. The bottom rail is 1" thick but the how high it is depends on the height of the window. It has to be sized up to make the opening space an even multiple of 2".

Hope this helps.

Can I ask why the rails and stiles are so thick? I was just assuming that one would use standard 3/4" material.

[BOB OLINGER]

I'm planning on making a good number of plantation shutters this summer. Norm's and most other plans show using mortise and tennon joints. Has anyone used biskets or other joints?

[John Guerra]

These instructions are free.

http://www.woodline.com/Download/Pla...20Shutters.pdf

If the link doesn't work, go to http://www.woodline.com/t-instructions.aspx

woodline.com and on the upper right click on "Instructions". Scroll down to the article on Plantation Shutters.

John

[Mike Forsman]

Mike,

Those look great! We have a front window almost identical to that one that my wife wants me to make shutters for. I've bought the Woodline bits and pins, have Norm's video and plans, and have the wood set aside for the project. What has stumped me so far is how to handle hinging the center panel on the 3-pane windows. Could you give some details on how you did yours and perhaps post some pictures of the shutters in the swing-open position? I'd really appreciate it as I really like what you have done with yours. Thanks!

Greg,

Here are the details about the hanging the plantation shutters when there are more than 2 panels. I included pictures of the 4 panel shutters first because the pictures came out better. This first picture is of a 4 panel window. It is quite a bit smaller than the big window in the earlier post.

IMG_1A_1288_resize.jpg

This picture shows the shutter in the folded open position. The hinges are installed on the window side for the panel that folds and on the room side for the side next to the window frame.

IMG_1B_1298_resize.jpg

The next two pictures show the panels as they are when they are in various stages of open.

IMG_1C_1292_resize.jpg

IMG_1D_1297_resize.jpg

This picture shows the trim that I installed around the window opening to provide a square opening with enough support for the hinge screws to bite into. The trim has a stop in it to prevent the shutter from swinging into and hitting the window. I used magnetic catches to keep the shutters in the closed position.

IMG_1E_1291_resize.jpg

The next post will show the larger shutters with the 3 panels.

[Mike Forsman]

These are some pictures of the larger shutters with 3 panels instead of 4. These are open pictures of the shutter from the earlier post.

IMG_2A_1299_resize.jpg

IMG_2B_1301_resize.jpg

IMG_2C_1302_resize.jpg

[Mike Forsman]

I'm planning on making a good number of plantation shutters this summer. Norm's and most other plans show using mortise and tennon joints. Has anyone used biskets or other joints?

Bob,

I used mortise and tennon joints because I wanted the windows to be strong, last for a long time, and have a good appearance. I also did research on the web and found that most custom shutters use mortise and tennon joints. I was concerned about the strength of using biscuit or other joints. The plans that John Guerra references shows the Stiles and rails attaching with screws and plugged to fill the holes.

[Mike Forsman]

Can I ask why the rails and stiles are so thick? I was just assuming that one would use standard 3/4" material.

Guy,

I used thick material because of the research that I did before starting construction. All of the sizes that I found on the web and and I measured at local home centers and window covering companies seemed to indicate that this size seemed to be a relatively standard size. Also, the plans that John Guerra reference show this same size. I did make the rails a little bit thiner because I liked the look and I didn't have to get the mortise and tennon joints quite as accurate. Also based on th size of the windows I was doing, I was concerned about how strong the shutters would be and how they would look if they were made out of 3/4 stock.

Mike

[BOB OLINGER]

Mike,

Thanks for the reply; also for the many pictures and other info which raises another question. Our windows are casements with cranks. Even the newer low profile cranks appear they will prevent the plantation shutters from closing tight unless I come up with some unique engineering. A recent thought is removing and replacing all the window casing with a thicker casing to which I can directly attach the hinges for the shutters. This is instead of mounting the shutters on the inside of the window jambs. What do you think? It will add quite a bit more expense, but if the casings are milled correctly, they should blend in and not look too bulky. Thanks,

bob

[Mike Forsman]

Mike,

Thanks for the reply; also for the many pictures and other info which raises another question. Our windows are casements with cranks. Even the newer low profile cranks appear they will prevent the plantation shutters from closing tight unless I come up with some unique engineering. A recent thought is removing and replacing all the window casing with a thicker casing to which I can directly attach the hinges for the shutters. This is instead of mounting the shutters on the inside of the window jambs. What do you think? It will add quite a bit more expense, but if the casings are milled correctly, they should blend in and not look too bulky. Thanks,

bob

Bob,

Here are some links to web sites that have information about plantation shutters. This is some of the information that I used when I designed and made my shutters. I did not directly copy anyone specific shutter design or approach. I looked at the various options and made modifications to what I thought would look best and work for me and my home.

This site has quite a bit of information about plantation shutters. I found them helpful also. This is the site that helped me make up my mind about trying to use staples or brass eyelets.

http://www.diyshutters.com/specs.HTM

They also show sizes on this page:

http://www.diyshutters.com/CSISpecs.HTM#dimensions

This site shows ways to install plantation shutters on various types of windows. I found this page helpful when I was trying to determine the strategy I would use to mount my shutters.

http://www.buyplantationshutters.com...tallation.html

Also the FAQ on plantation shutters.

http://www.buyplantationshutters.com/shutters/faq.html

As I said earlier, these are some of the sources that I used to help me determine the size of the shutter parts and also, the way to mount the shutters. I also looked at plantation shutters in the local stores and window treatment shops. Helped me figure out that there are many ways to build plantation shutters. All of them have their pros and cons.

Hope this helps.

Mike

[J. Greg Jones]

Mike,

Thanks for posting the additional pictures-that's very helpful! I had thought about making the the center panel a hinged off of one of the side panels, but I was concerned that the weight of two tall panels hinged together could possibly sag. Did you encounter this at all, or is it a non-issue?

Thanks again,

Greg

[Mike Forsman]

Greg,

Over the years, there has been a little bit of sag. But not much and not really enough to be concerned about. I believe that if I would have used higher quality hinges, this would have not been any kind of issue.

[Michael Weber]

David, I built some plantation shutters many years ago before I had any real tools. I used brick mold for the stiles since I didn't have any way of making them. Anyway, I used a long narrow staple in each louver. Pushed them in by holding the staple in a pair of pliers. Once all the louvers had staples in I laid the rod on top of the louvers (the louvers were installed between the stiles by then) , and one by one used the pliers again to press the stables into the rod after looping it through the appropriate louver staple. Slow, akward, and hard on the hands but they still work. I did use short piece of hardwood dowels for the pivots. I clamped a hand drill in a Workmate and using a board to guide the louvers, fed them into the drill bit one at a time to drill the dowel holes. I forget exactly how I beveled the louvers but did that somehow. Had no way to thickness the louver material at the time so looked around until I found some thin salvage material at a surplus store.

[Tim Malyszko]

Does anyone else make a similar louver router bit like the one in the Woodline set? I have all the other router bits in Whiteside and I would hate to spend $50 for a cheap router bit. Specifically, I am looking for the louver profile in either Whiteside or Freud, but have been able to find it.

Thanks.