What are Pleated Conservatory Blinds?

Pleated conservatory blinds can be used on both the window and ceiling of your conservatory. For conservatory roof blinds, they close concertina up, pull downward to close, folding up at the bottom when open. Pleated window blinds on the other hand, do exactly the opposite, which pulls up from the bottom and when open be folded up at the top.

Pleated blinds are mounted in place close to the glass by wire guides. Some comes in frames to keep the pleated blinds boxed in nicely and neatly. This would ensure more sun and glare is blocked out with the boxed in frames. But of course, it will cost a little more for greater black out functionality.

A Multi Prong Approach To Temperature Control For Your Conservatory

Pleated Conservatory blinds work much harder than your usual home blinds. Your conservatory which is mostly built of glass, take the bulk of the brunt from the sun. As the first and only layer of sun blocker, your conservatory blinds needs to be able to control the harsh temperature both within and outside of the room. It needs to block out the sunlight, the glare and most importantly the harmful radiation. The sun facing directions tend to wear and tear your pleated conservatory blinds the most. Hence, controlling your conservatory temperature, you need adopt a multi prong approach which include a cooling and ventilation system like mounting a ceiling extractor fan to regulate the air inside the space. For the hotter locations, you might even have to consider air conditioning. Conversely, since the blinds themselves can be thermal insulated and this means they also act to reduce the amount of heat loss from the conservatory during the winter months.

Key Types of Pleated Conservatory Blinds

There are several popular types of ways to manage your pleated conservatory blinds namely, the most common cord pull, the wand, the pulley as well as the all too popular motorised approaches, all in order of increasing costs. Hillary’s has an extensive selection at Hillary’s Pleated Conservatory Blinds. The cord pull method is most suited as window blinds as they are the most convenient and easy to use method. This approach however, is not suitable for ceiling blinds. The wand approach is also a common sight amongst your usual window blinds, with a pole used for hooking the end of the blind which works well for straight conservatory blinds but badly for odd shaped ones. The crank approach works on the rotation gear mechanism, opening or closing your conservatory roof blinds efficiently. The motorised approach is very much fashioned after the crank gear option, powered by electricity.

Always bear in mind that your pleated conservatory blinds need not be boring and conventional in look and feel as there are a wide variety of colours and materials which are pre treated to handle glaring and hot summers and harsh winters.

There are a good range of conservatory window blinds available to match the ambiance of your conservatory, be it a sophisticated or fun loving theme. You have to conservatory roof blinds, the pinoleum blinds, pleated conservatory blinds and Awning or Exterior Blinds. And you do have to some considerations to make before deciding on which to choose from.

Pleated Conservatory Blinds

Pleated conservatory blinds are not exactly the cheapest option and are probably the most common design nowadays. As the name says, it is made of pleated materials, with fabric folded permanently into a fan shape when closed and opens straight up like a fan. Pleated conservatory blinds are available in a wide range of color, fabrics which are pre treated for harsh weather fairing tasks.

Pleated conservatory blinds reduce the temperature of the conservatory in summer and keep it warmer in winter. They are held in place using wire guides to prevent from sagging. They are usually mounted on a frame and can be opened using a cord, wand, crank or remotely using a motor, granted, these being the more expensive types of conservatory blinds. They can be used either on the roof or the side windows of the conservatory.

Pinoleum Blinds

Pinoleum Blinds are essentially Roman blinds, but are made wood or bamboo strips. But if your objective is to keep cool, they might disappoint you as the gaps do let more sun into the space. Exactly the fact that the gaps lets in more sunlight, it gives the entire room textured lighting effects. This works best for those of you who do not need to have a complete sun block yet wish to keep away the harsh glare and some daylight out. Pinoleum blinds comes to you in two options, made to measure and ready made and with a little more money, you could easily customize by trimming them to suit the aesthetic and functions of your space. Being woven in nature, pinoleum blinds are made in a wide variety of colors, styles and designs to fit all ages, all purposes, and almost all decoration, from the rustic to the chic look and feel.

The roller blinds can become a popular component of your conservatory décor. Them being the simplest type of blind to install and to use, these blinds are most suitable for side windows, and can also double up as roof windows as well. For the roof roller blinds, most are treated on their sun facing side to help deal better with harsh heat and sunlight.

The most traditional type of blinds, the Roman blinds are often used not only in conservatories but almost in every home due to it being light weighted, easy to install, maintain and clean, as well as use. All you need are drawstrings and cords.

Awning / Exterior Blinds conversely are placed outside of your conservatory, covering the roof and hence help to better ventilate the entire conservatory. They keep it cooler than interior blinds, serving as a barrier from the sun’s heat. Obviously they are made of extra tough materials to weather the elements.

The latest option is to cover the interior of your windows with films of shades. Some come with reflective functions, and tend to bounce off a great amount of heat. But bear in mind these do not block outside view.