Exterior shutters have long been a familiar concept to house designers, constructors, and owners. Should you be new to the term "exterior shutters" or intending to look for the ideal type of exterior shutters, the article below is a must-read as it would provide you with a board of necessary information, including definition, benefits, and most importantly the differentiation among types of exterior shutters.
What Are Exterior Shutters?
If you are wondering what exactly the term "exterior shutters" stands for, then here would be your fullest answer. Exterior shutters function as an extra protection layer for windows, which vary in styles and materials that come into acknowledgment later in this article.
Exterior shutters appear in numerous architectural orientations from many years ago. They dated back as early as the ancient Greek era. These exterior shutters are also believed to be developed by the ancient Greeks, and later, they have become what we witness these days as modern exterior types.
As early as it first appeared, it did not turn into an architectural decorator until the 1700s. They were extremely popular in the Victorian era in London. Up to the present day, there are six types of exterior shutters in terms of construction, and four in materials classification. The benefits of exterior shutters will be clarified in the following lines.
How Do Exterior Shutters Benefit You?
Before we go straight into the type differentiation, the benefits of exterior shutters would be briefly discussed. The three major gains from using exterior shutters in your house are listed below
Adding An Extra Protection Layer
On the first hand, applying exterior shutters would help to add an extra layer of protection for your windows from thieves and natural elements. This is also the leading reason why shoppers are more favorable toward exterior shutters. As they use them, the risk of their house getting broken into reduces remarkably, not to mention the situations when the inner glass windows are broken.
Moreover, an exterior shutter is a perfect protector from natural elements, specifically in extreme conditions such as storms or heavy rain. Thanks to an added protection layer, the inner window frames' lifespan will then last longer
Supporting To Cut Down On Energy Consumption Levels
Strange as it can be, adding exterior shutters to your windows can help reduce the overall energy consumption levels of the whole house. To explain this more clearly, we would start with two examples. For instance, in the middle of the summer, temperature levels would usually increase to extreme milestones. As a result, air-conditioning systems certainly have to work at excessive productivity rates, leading to massive energy consumption.
The same situation is happening during the freezing days of the winter. That is why it is advisable to use exterior shutters as a supporter of energy reduction for households. The saved energy may not reach a rocketing level, but the total amount is definitely significant, particularly for large houses.
Holding An Aesthetic Touch To The House
Last but not least, the exterior shutters can benefit your house by bringing to it an aesthetic touch in terms of decoration. As mentioned, these items became extremely popular as house decorators in the Victorian era, and the story goes on until modern times. In this era, we have already witnessed so many more styles and orientations of exterior shutters. The aesthetic vibes of each are distinguished from one to another.
Differentiating Types Of Exterior Shutters By Construction
Now it would be the most looking-forward parts, which include classification sections - by construction and materials. The first section would focus on the exterior shutters constructions and the following part is for material classification.
Raised Panel
One of the most-used exterior shutter types is the raised panel. This type looks quite similar to the kitchen or cabinet doors with a single or two raised panels. Exterior shutters of this type are well-blending when applied, allowing you to flexibly use them in different areas of the house. They are easy to mix and match with the surroundings and fast to clean up.
Louvered
The Louvered exterior shutter is the second type we want to inform you about. Louvered exterior shutters appear to be more defined, with spaces among layers on them, letting the light in. This type of shutter is popularly used in households, restaurants, and coffee shops. They vary in numerous styles from classic to modern.
Board And Batten (BnB)
The next one is BnB exterior shutters or so-called Board and Batten. They are constructed from multiple wood sheets with no space like the Louvered shutters. They are simpler to look at, and they are often in the rustic colors, as well as wooden materials, enabling them to match well with the vantage vibes of rural areas.
Bahama (Bermuda)
Bahama or Bermuda exterior shutters are pretty alike, compared to the Louvered type. They are constantly mistaken for the Louvered, actually. However, instead of being attached on the two sides, Bahama or Bermuda exterior shutters are located on the top, and they come with a different mechanism for shutting and opening.
Accordion Hurricane (Hurricane/ Storm Fighter)
This is a quite strange name for exterior shutters. Their functions remain, but their construction is more like a barrier, from our perspectives. However, if you equip this type, it would be an incredible layer of protection if your house is in an area that suffers from natural disasters such as storms.
Combined
The last type of exterior shutters is combined construction. This can be varying from style to style. The combined exterior shutters are usually between the raised panel and louvered. It would be ideal for people who love the simple look of raised panel shutters but still want to have natural light during daylight.
Differentiating Types Of Exterior Shutters By Materials
The other classification will be based on the materials used to manufacture exterior shutters. The three most common material types applied are wood, metal, and composite.
Wood
In the wooden section, we would have two minor groups, which are natural wood and engineered wood. You will not see many natural wooden exterior shutters in normal trading sites or stores, because they are expensive and quite considered a luxurious class. The other division is more popular with middle-class-income shoppers. They are good-looking, quite durable, and much more affordable.
Metal
In the metal section, there are up to three divisions: aluminum, steel, and iron. All three branches are durable, solid, and excellent for robust natural element fighting. The protection layer added is more powerful, and they are also simpler to clean. However, rusting may happen if you use exterior shutters of these materials.
Composite
The last one is the composite exterior shutters. Shutters made from this material classification are affordable. They come from a mixture of medium-dense fiberglass. They are sturdy to use, however, not so strong as the metal shutters.
Plastic
The most common plastic type to produce exterior shutters is PVC (polyvinyl chloride). Exterior shutters coming from PVC are scratch-resistant to use, and they are extremely durable. The price tag to own PVC exterior shutters is not expensive. Hence, it is no doubt that such shutters are the favorite type of shoppers.
Final Thoughts
We have finished our classification for exterior shutters. You can now consider which one is the most suitable for you based on the 6 types of construction and four ones of material. For shoppers with an unlimited budget, you seem to have the greatest freedom of selection. Nonetheless, choices of exterior shutters for limited-budget shoppers are still highly potential, as far as we are acknowledged!
