Salt Lake City's Frequently Asked Questions About Shutters

For more than 6 years, we’ve received every question about shutters imaginable from our customers in Salt Lake City. And we’ve collected the top ten of them here. Maybe in these questions and answers you’ll find answers to questions of your own. If not, please don’t be reluctant to contact Sunburst Shutters Salt Lake City directly. We’re here to aid you and happy to do so.

That depends on how you want the shutters to relate to your home’s décor. Do you want a shutter that contrasts your wall paint color and has clean lines? Polywood® plantation shutters are perfect for you. Or are you looking to duplicate the wood in your home as closely as possible? Ovation® wood shutters are the ultimate fit for you.

Plantation shutters are celebrated for being energy efficient. And to get the greatest energy savings, our Polywood Shutter Insulation System is the only choice.

For the budget-conscious, blinds can be temporary window treatments to cover your windows. Chances are, store-bought blinds will deteriorate over time, with its strings breaking and the loops that hold the slats in place falling apart. Not to mention, they might be troublesome to clean. Even if you're budget-conscious, Sunburst Shutters blinds have the durability and craftsmanship lacking in off-the-rack, store-bought, or online blinds.

Shades offer a variety of colors, materials, and unique patterns, transforming your window into artwork. Just by pulling up the fabric of the shade, your entire window is exposed and you can see out onto your Salt Lake City neighborhood.

Draperies also come in a wide array of color, fabric, and patterns. They are a traditional option for a window treatment. Installing thick panels between the drapes and the window allows for light and temperature block-out capabilities. And unlike other window treatments, you won’t have to clean draperies for five years.

If you are searching for a window treatment that lasts beyond 10 years, saves you real dollars on your energy bills, and looks charming on your windows, shutters are the choice for your home. Not only are shutters durable, but they’re also exquisite and energy efficient. Actually, Polywood shutters insulate up to 70% better than a similar wood shutter. That's energy savings you won't find with any other window treatment.

No other window treatment gives you control over privacy and light as plantation shutters do. And with their large louvers, Polywood plantation shutters give your space a clean modern feel whether they’re closed or open.

An improperly installed window treatment can be a hassle to open and can get damaged easily. We have a skilled installation crew that comes to your home and installs your window treatment precisely, ensuring that each one operates flawlessly – and doesn’t get damaged throughout.

But before we start installing your shutters, we bring shutter samples to your home so we can custom fashion your window treatment together. Learn more about our free in-home consultation.

Your plantation shutter slats – or louvers – can be moved without difficulty by pushing them up or down. Generally, a tilt rod mounted on the front of the shutters allows you to adjust the louvers. If you would like to move the louvers with your hand, we suggest buying shutters with hidden tilt-rods or rear-mounted tilt rods. This gives your shutters a clean, contemporary look.

Our Polywood shutters last over 50 years – more than any other shutter you can find. That’s why these plantation shutters are a permanent fixture that adds to your home’s resale value. Learn more about the durability of our shutters.

Plantation shutters are easy to clean because they have large louvers and their tilt bars are either hidden or mounted on the rear. Simply tilt them open and dust them like furniture – or wipe smudges with a wet cloth.

Plantation shutters are custom designed to fit your windows perfectly. They become a permanent fixture of your home, increasing its resale value. It’s not possible to move these shutters from one house to another.

Plantation shutters are an investment that gives you temperature control, energy efficiency, and privacy. They are custom manufactured and installed on your windows to become permanent fixtures. Not only are they beautiful and energy saving, but plantation shutters also boost the value of your residence. We’ve seen it first hand in Salt Lake City!

A half shutter lets you have privacy on the bottom and leaves the top open for light and view. It’s called a café style shutter. But is it the appropriate look for a plantation shutter?

Cafe Shutters Cafe Style Shutters With Divider

Ultimately, it’s a style choice – whether you like the look of a half shutter or that of a plantation shutter with a divider rail.

A full length shutter with a divider rail “completes” your window, giving it a polished look – and letting you close the bottom louvers for privacy while leaving the top louvers open for light. At night, you have the option of closing the top louvers as well for privacy and security. That’s also helpful during the day when the sun is preventing you from watching TV. And don’t worry about forfeiting any of your view. A 3.5" or 4.5" louver will almost disappear when opened flat and gives you a lot of room to look through.

Simple! Call us at 801-515-3598 or fill out the form below to schedule your free in-home consultation, and we’ll guide you from there. We come out to your home to measure the windows you want to shutter and bring samples of all of our shutter products and their available options. This way we can provide you with the best shutter price for your project. Schedule your in-home consultation today!

Absolutely! There’s rarely a need to take out or do work on your old window trim when you buy new plantation shutters. Natural Ovation wood shutters and patented Polywood shutters are offered in a variety of frame styles to fit naturally into your current window trim. If your windows are trimless, you can choose a specific frame style to install directly onto the wall around your window to secure your beautiful new shutters to your window opening.

Your shutter installer will measure each of your house’s windows during your complimentary in-home consultation to ensure that your window trim is perfectly complemented by the frame of your new shutters.

Sunburst Shutters Salt Lake City is proud to offer a collection of shutters made right here in the U.S. Our popular Polywood plantation shutters are 100% made in America, from the creation of our patented Polywood material to the building of the shutters themselves. Not only does that mean a lower final price without unnecessary shipping and handling costs, it also gives you the perk of knowing you’re choosing an all-American product for your Salt Lake City home.

And it’s not just Polywood that’s from America. Our stunning Reclaimed Wood shutters are constructed using lumber gathered from places across the country, from rustic Midwest barn doors to sturdy Texas ranch fences and more.

The main differentiator between paints and stains for shutters is how the material of the shutter interacts with the color. Paint sits on top of the material it’s coloring, covering the surface. Stains on the other hand seep into the shutter, becoming a part of the natural wood or faux wood material.

Both methods come with their individual benefits. There are usually more color choices for painted shutters. With stained shutters, the color doesn’t obscure the natural wood grain, so you can see the natural grooves and ridges of the material without a layer of paint masking it.

During your in-home window design consultation, we’ll bring samples of all our color options right to your door so you can easily match and complement colors with your existing interior design.

The entire plantation shutter process, beginning with your initial consultation through installation, will take around four to six weeks. The reason it takes this long is because we strive to build shutters that are completely customized to your windows. To do that, we need to take precise measurements, make use of sophisticated software to design your shutters, assemble your brand-new shutters manually, and deliver them to you prior to installation. Real wood shutters will usually take longer than Polywood because of the extra steps needed to stain and treat the wood.

It does take a little time, but it’s a wait that’s well worth it.

We offer a start to finish in-home shopping experience. We typically send shutter expert to your door to get window measurements, discuss your options, and give you an accurate quote. The in-home consultation is 100% free. That’s the easiest way to start a shutter project. If you only need a ballpark estimate, you can send us your window measurements through our contact form, or give us a call at 801-515-3598.

Whether or not to remove the trim depends on your personal style. If you want to keep your existing trim, we can build your shutters to complement your current trim. If you prefer our shutter frames, then you can remove the trim—but it’s not a requirement. If you’re trying to go trimless or replace your trim, we’ll help you find the right option to match your perfect vision.

If you’re an experienced handyman, you might be familiar with what goes into installing shutters. However, taking on DIY shutters can be a little complicated for most Salt Lake City residents. We would suggest leaving the installation to our certified and insured professionals, so you won’t risk damage to your shutters, windows, or any other part of your house.

By far our most in-demand shutter products are our classic white Polywood® plantation shutters, and Ovation® real wood shutters.

Beyond that, the most common shutter configuration we sell is a 3 ½” louver, smooth finish, with a Z-frame. If those words don’t mean anything to you, that’s ok. We’ll be delighted to show you what all that means in person. Schedule a free in-home consultation and we’ll help you figure out what would look best in your space.

Shutters with a smooth finish tend to look more modern and sleek, whereas shutters with a textured finish look more natural and historic. However the benefits to both types of plantation shutter finish are a little deeper, and in the end come down to your own personal preference.

Benefits of a smooth finish for shutters – A smooth finish to your shutters offer a clean, sleek, sophisticated look. If you don’t have many other wood surfaces like hardwood floors or furniture, you might not want a smooth finish. A smooth finish is easier to see when it needs dusting, in comparison with a textured finish. We typically recommend a smooth finish for faux wood shutters like Polywood.

Benefits of a textured finish for shutters – Shutters with a wood grain finish give you a more natural look to your windows. That’s ideal if you want to bring the look of nature inside, particularly if you want to accentuate the look of your hardwood flooring. A wood grain on your shutter louvers will also make it more difficult to see dust, meaning you won’t need to wipe them down as often as you would if they had a smooth finish. A wood-grain finish looks especially great on real wood shutters in Salt Lake City.

Usually, the larger the window, the more shutter panels you’ll want on it. Our recommendation is to use a single panel for windows up to 26 inches wide, two panels for windows up to 50 inches wide, and four for windows up to 98 inches wide.

Single wide panels are not as room-friendly as multiple panels. Oftentime, wide panel shutters won’t fit flush against the wall because of their width. Multiple smaller panels don’t have that same issue.

For windows that you may want to open or shut regularly, you’ll be better suited with multi-panel shutters, since they’re easier to open and get additional support from the shutter frame when you do operate them.

With Sunburst Shutters Salt Lake City, any and all shutter measurements will be done by one of our installers for free as part of your in-home consultation. Even if your window is in a hard to reach place in your house or has a distinct shape, our shutter pros can get you an exact measurement so that the final product will line up just right with the windows.

At your complimentary shutter consultation, your Sunburst Shutters expert can help you narrow down your options from our extensive variety of Salt Lake City plantation shutters, including choices for finish, stain colors, and custom framing options.

So schedule your free consultation today by calling 801-515-3598 today.

Sunburst can help you pick the ideal shutter for your home, regardless of how thin your frame. We will utilize an outside mount installation that affixes to the trim or wall outside the window cavity . Your shutters will still have equivalent performance and energy efficiency, and will tie in superbly with your established decor.

If the louver is separated and drooping from the frame, you likely have a damaged louver pin. To fix this you should take out the pin from both the louver and the stile with a set of needle-nose pliers or a utility knife. Once the pin is taken out, insert the replacement pin base into the old hole in the shutter stile, then slide the louver onto the pin. To receive additional louver pins for free, just call us at 801-515-3598.

Pricing on plantation shutters depends on the chosen product line and window area. While we can present you a basic quote over the phone, exact costs are offered after our no cost in-person consultation. Call 801-515-3598 to schedule an appointment today.

Locate and pull out the snapped staple out of the louver with some of needle-nose pliers. Then apply some adhesive (like wood glue or epoxy) to cover the legs of a replacement staple. Thread the staple through the loop on the louver and slide its legs into the same staple holes on the tilt rod. For replacement shutter staples, call us at 801-515-3598.

Polywood shutters are seen as some of the safest window coverings in Salt Lake City. The cord-free, durable craftsmanship is safe for children and pets. The toxin-free and hypoallergenic paint, polymers, and materials will never chip, splinter, or peel. And since Polywood is moisture and pest resistant, you won’t have to wonder about mold, termites, or wood rot.