Fresh, white louvre shutters are a popular window covering for South African homes. They perfectly suit our bright summers, cooler winters, and our need for protection from home robbery, whether its petty theft or a more serious invasion. If they’re well maintained, louvred window shutters will give you many years of service. Here’s how to ensure that they do.
Tip#1 Choose Aluminium
When you purchase louvre shutters manufactured from industrial grade aluminium, you know that you are getting window and door shutters that are strong and durable. Aluminium is corrosion resistant, so shutters made from it are an excellent choice for coastal homes, where the atmosphere is very corrosive. They also perform well inland, where pollution and excessively dry conditions can negatively affect many fittings and fixtures in homes.
With the right care, the premium quality surface of aluminium louvre shutters can be maintained in harsh South African weather conditions. The shutters will continue to operate efficiently for many years. For these reasons they’re an excellent investment for any home, especially if they’re used as all-in-one blinds and burglar bars, with no need for curtains.
Aluminium window shutters are lightweight so you’re more likely to use them as they are meant to be used – regularly and to make your everyday life easier by controlling light, air flow, and weather. ‘Lightweight’ does not mean weak. Well-made aluminium shutters are as strong as any other security barrier, but easier to operate because they are not bulky and heavy.
To make sure that aluminium shutters like ShutterView TX and ShutterView Classic remain corrosion resistant, the components are put through additional anti-corrosion processes during the manufacturing process at the Trellidor factory. These processes are:
- Components are dipped into an anti-corrosion pretreatment before powder coating. This creates a protective layer on the aluminium surface to improve corrosion resistance. It also enhances the adhesion of the powder coating that follows.
- The components are then powder coated with a UV resistant polyester coating in the selected colour. This adds yet another protective layer on the aluminium shutters.
This two part anti-corrosion treatment gives the louvre shutters a hard-wearing, silky smooth surface. The finish is easy to keep clean so shutters can be maintained in top condition, giving many years of service.
Tip #2 Do Regular Maintenance
All fixtures and fittings in a home should be cleaned regularly to keep them in good working order and louvre shutters are no exception. In most homes, window and door shutters are opened and closed frequently, so they often get grubby. They are also exposed to dust, pollution, rain, and other weathering, especially if fitted externally.
External louvre window shutters fitted to coastal homes withstand the worst of corrosive sea air. Salty air can even damage interior window shutters when fitted in homes within a few kilometres of the sea.
Inland, weathering conditions are different but no less harsh. Pollution, dust, dry winds, and excessive heat are as wearing on home fixtures as coastal conditions.
Whether window shutters are installed inside the home or to the outside of windows and doors, at the coast or inland, the following cleaning schedule should be followed:
- In a mild environment, more than 10km from the sea, clean shutters every two months.
- In a moderate environment, 5-10km from the sea, clean shutters once a month.
- In a severe marine environment, within 5km of the sea, clean shutters once a week.
Tip #3 Develop a Cleaning Routine
Cleaning louvre shutters is an uncomplicated process, no matter whether they’re installed internally or externally. If you’ve purchased your door and window louvres from Trellidor, use the cleaning kit supplied with your barriers. If you don’t have a branded cleaning kit, contact your local Trellidor outlet to purchase one – they really make maintenance easy.
Here are the steps to follow using your Trellidor cleaning kit:
- Remove debris
Regularly clear out dirt, leaves, and other debris from the frame, tracks, and surrounding areas. Use a vacuum or sweep out the tracks to remove loose dirt before cleaning and lubricating. This will prevent any blockage or interference with the louvre shutter’s movement.
- Wipe the shutters
Clean the aluminium surfaces using a microfibre cleaning cloth and Trellidor Anti-Corrosion Cleaning Agent. Spray on the cleaning agent and wipe off the residue with the cloth. This will remove dust, grease, or contaminants.
- Stubborn Stains
Use the multi-purpose cleaning brush supplied with your cleaning kit for tougher dirt. The gentle bristles of this brush are strong enough to tackle stubborn stains but soft enough to protect the finish of your Trellidor ShutterView louvre shutters.
- Lubricate
Spray all surfaces with the lubricant supplied and wipe off the excess with a microfibre cloth. Make sure you don’t scratch the surfaces. Never spray into the lock because a buildup of any product can result in lock malfunction.
Tip #4 Do a Lock Check
ShutterView louvre shutters are fitted with strong, durable locks. You can lock and unlock them from both sides of the lock, inside the home or outside. This allows you to lock up your louvre doors as you leave home. It’s also convenient to open window shutters from the outside when you need to clean windows.
The strength of the louvre shutter lock is important because locks are often the first point of attack for criminals, so include them in your maintenance program. Here is your key check list:
- The keys are computer cut and have a key code so that they can’t easily be duplicated by criminals like other lock types. It’s important to check that you have all louvre shutter keys and code cards in a safe place where criminals can’t get to them.
- If any keys are missing, find them. If you don’t know where they are, consider calling in your Trellidor team to replace the lock with missing keys. This is far safer than risking someone using your shutter key to break into your home.
- Test all your louvre shutter locks regularly. Make sure the locking mechanism engages properly. Check that the locks are not stiff and difficult to use. If they are, do not spray anything into the key hole. Call Trellidor in to inspect the locks for you.
Tip #5 Look for Easy-Use Features
The ShutterView range has features that make them a pleasure to use as well as long-lasting. These are standard features in all shutters in the range. When window treatments are easy to use, they are less likely to be damaged and will therefore perform better and last longer.
Here are some of the unique ShutterView benefits:
- S-shaped louvres that create efficient rain run-off.
- Wool pile edging on each louvre for quiet closing and no damage to the smooth surface.
- Hand-tilted louvres create the perfect amount of privacy, light penetration, and air circulation and are quick to close when the weather deteriorates.
- A hidden indexing wheel keeps adjacent louvre panels at the same uniform angle.
- You can choose reinforced ShutterView Classic for extra strong security.
- Or ShutterView TX for affordable style as well as protection within a secure estate.
Whether you choose interior or external window and door louvre shutters, they will give you years of trouble-fee service if you use the tips outlined above. Your aluminium louvre shutters will keep their clean lined, elegant appearance and continue to add value to your home in so many ways.
