"Colbyt" wrote in message
...

"D. Bennett" wrote in message
m...
My wife and I are just finishing a remodel on our rec room (installed
4 new windows and 6' sliding glass door (all Milgard products). We
are considering wood and "faux" wood blinds from a variety of
companies (Bali, Levolor, Hunter-Douglas, and Kirsch) and were looking
for some answers to a few questions.

Here is a little more background info... We are located in the
Seattle, WA area (Maple Valley, WA)...2 of the windows (4'x4' and
5'x4') and the sliding glass door have direct easterly sun exposure so
we get a lot of sun after mid afternoon until sunset. As I stated
above we have new Milgard energy efficient windows. We are only
considering the wood blinds for the 2 easterly facing windows; the
sliding glass door will either get vertical blinds or have curtains.
Thanks in advance for any help...
-darren bennett

My business is window treatment installations. I sell nothing but my time.

I have to disagree, with no dis-respect intended to Bill & Ame posts. John
W
has a point to consider.

I will address each of your questions.

1) How do the wood and faux wood blinds handle a lot of direct sun
exposer (warping, fading, etc) and how are these issues dealt with in
the warranties?

The brand name products handle it quite well. The ready made garbage is
just that.
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I must disagree here. I have 2" hardwood blinds purchased from JC Penney at
a very good
price about 6 years ago (abt. $75.00 each). I do not know who the
manufacturer is. The blinds are like new.
No warp, no fade, no damage to the slats, cords, tapes or mechanisms. The
blinds, which I have installed
on the two most used doors in my house, have held up through 5 boys, two
cats and a German Shepherd. Unless JC Penney wood blinds are very different
today than they were a few years ago, they are an excellent value. Fact is,
I wish they hadn't held up so well. They are cherry stained to match my
cabinets and I'd really like to switch to white. My blinds have wide tapes
which I haven't seen in my most recent Penney's catalog, though.
(More Below)
===
All wood blind warranties state that some warping is a natural
result from a natural product (read that no warranty). The better faux
wood
products have additional ladders to support the slats and I have
experienced
no problems with them on any exposure.

2) How easy are the wood and faux wood to clean?

About all you can do with wood is vacuum, dust it off or wipe with a damp
rag. The faux products could be soaked in water if necessary. Score 1
for
faux.
===
OK, with all these boys, we do things differently here. I take the blinds
outside twice a year and spray
them with 409, rinse with clear water and dry thoroughly (I do not get the
mechanism wet). In between "baths" I clean them with "Cabinet Magic." I
haven't needed warranty service for the blinds so cannot vouch for that. I
am convinced that
these blinds will outlive me.
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