Plantation Shutter Glossary

• Plantation Shutters

  • Plantation Shutters are a solid window treatment, that do not contain fabric. They are made with operable louvers in widths of 2 ½”, 3 ½”, or 4 ½”. The louvers are used to control light, control air-flow and to provide privacy, while allowing for maximum visibility. The following glossary describes the various parts of a plantation shutter and the various materials that are used.

    
    

    Wood: The two types of wood most commonly used in manufacturing plantation shutters are basswood and poplar.

    
    

    Polymer: Many manufacturers use a form of polymer (PVC) to make their plantation shutters.

    • Premium Poly shutters are made from all polymer components.

    • Salem Hybrid Shutters feature wood frames and polymer louvers. 

      
      
      
      

Plantation shutters can be designed to fit windows in several different configurations. 

• Single Hung: A single shutter that covers the entire height of the window opening from top to bottom.

  
  

• Café Style: Shutters that only cover the bottom half of the window opening.

  
  

• Double Hung: Shutters that cover the top half and bottom half of a window opening separately.

Cafe Double Hung Full Height

• Louver

  • Louvers are horizontal slats that can be adjusted to control the amount of light, air-flow and privacy in a room. We offer louvers in three sizes. 2 ½”, 3 ½”, and 4 ½” widths.

Louver Sizes

• Stile

  • Stiles are the vertical sections of the shutter frame.

• Top / Bottom Rail

  • These are the horizontal sections at the top and bottom of each shutter frame.

• Divider Rail

  • Divider Rails are optional horizontal frame pieces that allow the louvers at the top & bottom of a window to be controlled separately from one another. On extremely large / tall panels, divider rails may be required to ensure sufficient frame strength.

• Split Tilt

  • Split tilt allows the louvers at the top & bottom of a window to be operated separately from one another without the divider rail.

Divider Rail No Divider Rail

• Tilt Rod

  • The tilt rod is the vertical rod attached to the front, center of each panel that is used to control the position of the louvers.

• Clearview

  • Clearview allows the user to control the position of the louvers without having to have the tilt rod. This provides a cleaner, more modern look.

Tilt Rod Clearview

• Sliding Track System

  • A sliding track system is used for installing shutters on sliding glass doors or other very wide openings.

Sliding Track System

• Inside Mount

  • Inside Mount refers to shutters that are mounted inside the frame of the window.

• Outside Mount

  • Outside-mounted shutters are mounted onto your window trim. These are beneficial for homeowners who have windows that tilt in for cleaning.