"David Micklem" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

My sister has asked me to make up some (internal) shutters for a couple
of her windows. They are intended to cut down on dust (by getting rid
of the curtains - my niece is allergic) and also hopefully block some
noise from the road. I was hoping to tap your collective wisdom for
ideas/warnings over possible pitfalls.

Each shutter has to have three quite narrow hinged sections and I'm
looking for advice on where to get appropriate hinges (and what they
are called) and also on the best choice of material for the shutters.

I'd originally planned to try to make each section up to resemble a
panelled door but she would prefer a completely smooth appearance. So I
think the options for materials are either solid sheets of MDF or
plywood or to make up a frame of softwood and skin it with e.g.
hardboard. Any strong opinions or alternative ideas?

If you are making something as an answer to an allergy, I would avoid MDF.
There is a slight risk of vapours from the resin causing a reaction in a
sensitive person. My personal choice would be foamed PVC, which is available
from plastics merchants in 8ft x 4ft sheets, in a variety of thicknesses and
colours (also thereby avoiding the possibility of paint fumes). Something
around 10-12mm thick would be lightweight and give you enough to attach
hinges to. It can be worked with hand woodworking tools, but use power tools
with caution - they can melt rather than cut the plastic.

My feeling is that the solid sheets will be heavier and may thus be
better for sound insulation?

That is true, if you also seal all the air gaps around the edges. Otherwise
the noise will simply go around the shutters. However, I'm not sure that you
would get a noticable effect, unless you made the shutters quite heavy.

The alternatives, depending on budget, would be to go contiental and fit the
shutters outside the window, or to fit a roller shutter, also outside the
window. The latter can be hand or electrically operated from inside. I would
choose the type used in sunny countries, where there are thin slots between
each slat. When the shutter is just closed, the slots still allow some light
through, but give privacy from outside. By continuing further, the slots
progressively close off, from the bottom, until the shutter blacks out the
room completely.

Colin Bignell