Description

This section is from the book "A Treatise On Architecture And Building Construction
Vol2: Masonry. Carpentry. Joinery", by The Colliery Engineer Co. Also available from
Amazon: A Treatise On Architecture And Building Construction.

Blinds
98. In order to prevent the strong sunlight from streaming through the windows of a
dwelling or other structure, these openings are usually provided with "blinds, or shutters,
which may be of several different forms, or combinations of two or more forms. Blinds
are divided into two general classes, namely, inside blinds and outside blinds. The former
may be either folding blinds, or rolling or Venetian blinds, while outside blinds are nearly
always of the same general pattern, and are known as shutters. The method of
construction in each case is influenced largely by atmospheric conditions, but the general
principle is the same in all cases. Inside blinds are usually made of hard wood to match
the trimming of the room containing them, while outside blinds are nearly always framed
of pine and painted to protect them from the elements. Outside blinds must also be
constructed with consideration of the fact that they are likely to be subjected to rather
rough usage through the influence of high winds and rapid changes of temperature.
Fig. 61.
99. Inside folding blinds make a very neat, as well as a most useful fitting for the inside
of a window, and they should be so arranged that, when closed into their box, the
exposed blind will show a panel finish on the inside of the room, as shown at d, Fig. 61
(a). These shutters are usually built in a square jamb, as shown in the plan, Fig. 61 (b),
though, when circumstances will permit, they may be built in a splayed opening, such as
is shown in Fig. 61 (c), in which case the panel work shows up to better advantage, and
the room is rendered lighter.

In Fig. 61 (b) the full plan of the window is shown with the shutters closed into the box at
a, while the dotted lines at b indicate the position of the shutters when opened out of the
box and closed over the window sash. The extreme width of the shutters between the
outside hanging stiles n is 1 1/2 inches more than the width of the window between the
pulley stiles, and is divided into four parts, each one of which represents the width of a
leaf, or wing of the inside blinds. Two of these leaves are usually paneled, as shown at g,
and the other two are provided with fixed or movable slats, as shown at j. The slatted
portion is hinged to and folds behind the panel, as at A, and the two then revolve on
hinges connecting the paneled leaf to the casing and close into the box with the panel on
the exterior as shown at B.

These blinds are framed together in one piece, from the inside sill to the window head, in
the same manner as the rails and stiles of a door, except that the outer leaf j of the blinds
is filled with fixed or movable slats of louvers, instead of paneling, as is the inside leaf as
seen at d, Fig. 61 (a).

The space between the sill of the window and the floor is usually covered by a panel back
shown in section at a', Fig-. 61 (a), and its return under the blind box is shown at c. This
panel back is usually paneled similarly to the blinds above, and is constructed in the same
manner as the paneled shutters. At (d), Fig. 61, is shown a section through the panel back
and blind box; at f is seen the bottom of the box, housed into the lining c', which forms
the back of the inside of the blind box and is secured at the top by a tongued-and-grooved
joint into the soffit piece d. This soffit piece d is paneled to match the blinds and panel
back in the jambs, as shown at g', Fig. 61 (a), and is secured by a tongue worked on its
edge and let into the window casing at f. The inside lining e of the weight box, Fig. 61
(b), in the window frame, forms the outer lining of the shutter box, and the inner lining of
the latter, as shown at h, is attached to and forms a part of the interior trim. The paneled
blinds g are hinged to the hanging stile as shown at ft, while the slatted blinds j are
hinged to g, so that the knuckle of the hinge is entirely within the edge of the stile of g.
This method of hanging permits the blind j to swing back sufficiently from the edge of
the stile to secure it against any danger of catching on or against the edge of the
architrave, or the blind stop v, when the blind is closed into the box as shown at B. This is
still further accomplished by making the blind j 3/4 inch narrower than g, so that there
will be no tendency for it to become jammed in the box. The rabbeted joint between the
two blind flaps gand j is only 3/8 inch deep, and is provided simply to secure a light-tight
joint.
100. When the jambs of the window are splayed, as shown in Fig. 61 (c), there is but a
slight difference in the construction of the blinds themselves, though the box requires a
little extra attention. At the outside edge of the box, on the side next to the window, the
extra hanging stile b' is introduced, to provide at the front edge of the box a proper depth
for the paneled shutter k' to shut into, as without it the blind would close back no further
than in the square jamb shown in Fig. 61 (b). The box jamb d' is also necessary at the
inner side of the box, to form a satisfactory stop for the blinds, and to make a neat finish
to the box itself. In splayed window jambs, the blind e' which folds inside, must be made
from 1 1/2 to 2 inches narrower than the exterior blind k'.

101. When inside blinds are required for a window, it it, first necessary to lay out a
measuring- rod with the stiles, rails, and panels marked as described for the framing of
doors, etc. The entire blind, from the sill to the window head, is laid out and constructed
in one piece, and then sawed apart at the center of the meeting rails, as shown at h in Fig.
61 (a). The shutters are temporarily hinged and hung in place, so as to insure their proper
fit, and the marks are then made at the meeting rails, to which the blinds are afterwards
sawed, thus forming a separate set of shutters to cover the upper and lower sashes
independently.

102. Outside blinds differ from inside blinds only in such details of construction as their
more exposed situation requires. Fig. 62 shows at (a) the inside elevation of an outside
blind, and at (b) is shown its plan. The hanging stile for the blind on the window frame is
shown at c, and the form of hinge necessary to permit the blind to open around the angle
of the brickwork is shown at b. The shape of this hinge and its attachment to the shutter is
shown by the dotted lines at f. The angle in the hinges permits them to extend over the
joints at the top and bottom rails, and adds strength to the shutter, besides rendering it
more secure in high wind storms than would the ordinary hinge.

The extreme length of the arm o b, carrying the pin half of the hinge, permits the shutter
to swing around the outside of the brick wall clear of the opening, as shown by the dotted
lines, but the corresponding length od causes the blind when opened to move first in the
direction da, and is likely to cause the shutters to bind when they are opened. This
tendency, however, is compensated by the thinness of the metal of which the hinges are
made, as they can be easily sprung out of place a sufficient distance to permit the blinds
to open at the center and swing clear.
Fig. 62.
103. Outside blinds are laid out with a measuring rod, in the same manner as doors and
other framed work, the lengths of stiles and rails, the positions and lengths for tenons, and
the location of relishes, etc. being all marked on the measuring rod before any of the
actual framework is even started. The positions and proportions of the mortises and
tenons in this blind are shown by the dotted lines at e, as are also the tightly driven pins
which hold the joints in place.

As glue would be useless to secure the joints of outside blinds, owing to their exposed
situation, the fixed parts are put together with white lead, as described in Art. 193, of
Carpentry. The movable joints of the slats, however, require nothing to make them
secure, except a proper consideration for the accuracy of construction and the effects of
probable expansion and contraction.

104. Fig. G3 shows a section of the top rail of the shutter and four of the slats, or louvers.
The thickness ab of the stile varies, but is never less than 1 1/8 inches, and the holes
shown dotted at d are the same in diameter as the slats are in thickness, which thickness
varies with the size and weight of the blind. The holes are bored from 3/8 to 5/8 inch
from the outside of the stile, and should be exactly \ inch deep. The pins on the ends of
the louvers are exactly 11/32 inch in length, thus leaving at each end of the slats 3/32 inch
to allow for painting, and to permit freedom of movement.

The louvers are operated by a rod which is attached to each slat by means of two U-
shaped staples, one of which is forced into the middle of the edge of the slat, and the
other driven into the rod itself, as shown at e. Thus, when the rod f is pulled down, each
of the louvers is thrown to the horizontal position shown by the dotted linesj, thereby
admitting light and air through the blind.
Fig. 68.

The top stile c is cut out, as shown at h, to receive the upper end of the rod f and the
upper staple when the slats are closed in the position indicated in the illustration.

Blinds of this character are made with two, three, or four panels of louvers, according to
the height of the window on the stile of which they are hung, each panel being separated
by a horizontal rail from the one next above or below, and each set of louvers being
operated by a separate rod, as shown in Fig. 62, except in the case of an unusually high
blind, when the upper two sets are sometimes operated by one long rod extending over
both panels, and moving in a groove cut across the separating rail when the slats are
closed.