What makes Shutters real Plantation Shutters and not kindling!

The team from Plantation Shutters spent an interesting break from our work on creating bespoke shutters at a quiz night last night and learnt what the well known acronym for the company ACME actually stood for. For years I thought it was a good name for a company because it began with A, which alphabetically would be high up on telephone directory lists, but which was still considered a bit of a joke (often being featured in some of Gary Larson's cartoons when he wanted to give the impression of a slightly devious company trying to sell its wares to innocent unsuspecting passers-by.)

Plantation Shutters, established in 1982, was the first company in the UK involved in the shutters market and for us, like ACME, our company name has become something of a burden.  The reason for this is that there are now so many other shutter companies who are selling products which they call plantation shutters, but which frankly you would not even use as kindling! Their products might look the same as ours, but like most things in life, you get what you pay for. You should always make sure that the shutters you choose are engineered to a high standard and you should always look for the following features:-

*Non-twist cores on the side stiles to stop the shutters twisting

*Mortise and tenon joints, which are much stronger than a dowel joint

*Shutters which are sprayed 7-8 times are better sealed than those that are only sprayed 3-4 times

*Respected shutter manufacturers will have testing labs to regularly check different batches of paint against UV/fading

*Similarly, they will test different batches of screws and hinges for strength and corrosion, likewise the shutter panels will be tested for severe temperature and/or moisture conditions

Once you have found a shutter product that ticks the above boxes, you now need to choose a shutter company with experienced personnel who know how to measure windows for shutters properly and can install them correctly. At Plantation Shutters, we employ all our own staff so we can closely monitor the job from start to finish, without outsourcing or over-diversifying. In short, don't just pick A Company that Makes Everything - choose the experts, Plantation Shutters!