HOW TO MEASURE BAY WINDOWS FOR PLANTATION SHUTTERS?

A bay window arises when three or more of the windows in a room meet. When we manufacture your plantation shutters for your bay window we can design them so that one frame occupies your entire window. We use special bay posts to connect all the panels together. Check out the instructions below for help with measuring up shutters for bay windows.

Bay windows are available to purchase from our overseas manufacturer only (not available for Aussie Made).

Measuring For A Bay Window

Bay windows are a little trickier to measure than stand-alone rectangular windows. We've tried to make the measuring process straightforward. However, if you get stuck, you can always reach out to our team with photos of your bay windows and we'll happily guide you through the process of completing your bay window measurements. 

Basically you can treat your bay window like three separate windows - LEFT (L), MIDDLE (M), RIGHT (R).

Choosing The Right Frame

To get started, you'll first need to work out which frame type you would like for your bay window. Will you be inside mounting or outside mounting your shutters? For bay windows, we recommend using either the Inside L-frame or the Outside L-frame.

Getting Started

To get started, you will need:

• Metal measuring tape
• Paper
• Pen

When designing your shutters, we will treat the bay window as three separate windows. First, design Bay Window L. Next design Bay Window M and finally, Bay Window R. Once you've placed your order, we will combine all three windows into a single bay window for you. 

Remember, we call every customer for a review before submitting orders for manufacture!

Check Your Angles (The 45° Test)

To ensure that the angle of your bay window will fit out 45 degree corner piece, you can simply fold a piece of paper like the below image. Place it in front of the corner of your window and see if the angle matches.

Measuring For An Inside L-Frame

Let's begin by separating your bay window into three separate windows - Left Window (L), Middle Window (M), Right Window (R). Remember, always start from the left when doing your bay window measurements. We're measuring for an inside mount, so we always measure from inside the recess.

1. 1. Measure the width of the left Window (L)

• Start inside and on the very edge of the left hand recess.
• Measure to the end of your left window recess (i.e. the point where L & M windows join). 
• Measure this distance in 2 different places.
• Select the smallest of the 2 measurements.
• Mark your Measure Point L with a pencil.

2. Measure the width of the middle Window (M)

• Start at Measure Point L and measure to the end of your middle window recess (i.e. the point where M & R windows join).
• Measure this distance in 2 different places.
• Select the smallest of the 2 measurements.
• Mark Measure Point M with a pencil.
  

3. Measure the width of the right Window (R)

• Start at Measure Point M and measure to the very edge of the right hand recess.
• Measure this distance in 2 different places.
• Select the smallest of the measurements.

4. Measure the drop 

• Measure from bottom to top in 3 different places.
• Select the smallest of 3 measurements.

Measuring For An Outside L-Frame

Let's begin by separating your bay window into three separate windows - Left Window (L), Middle Window (M), Right Window (R). Remember, always start from the left when measuring. We're measuring for an outside mount, so we always measure from the edges of your architraves. If you don't have an architrave, you'll be measuring as if you will be inside mounting and we will make automatic additions to your measurements (see above for measuring instructions).

1. 1. Measure the width of the left Window (L)

• Start at the edge of your left hand Architrave.
• Measure to the point where L & M  Architraves meet.
• Measure this distance in 2 different places.
• Select the largest of the 2 measurements.
• Mark your Measure Point L with a pencil.

2. Measure the width of the middle Window (M)

• Start at Measure Point L and measure to the end of your middle window architrave (i.e. the point where M & R windows join).
• Measure this distance in 2 different places.
• Select the largest of the 2 measurements.
• Mark Measure Point M with a pencil.

3. Measure the width of the right Window (R)

• Start at Measure Point M and measure to the very edge of the right hand architrave.
• Measure this distance in 2 different places.
• Select the largest of the measurements.

4. Measure the drop

• Measure from the edge of the bottom architrave to the edge of the top architrave in 3 different places
• Select the largest of 3 measurements.

Measuring is a critical part of the Design Process. Once your order has been processed, we will always call you before finalising to ensure measurements are accurate. If you’re confused or have any questions about measuring, please send us an e-mail or give us a call. One of our team would be happy to help out!

Multiple Panels

About Shutter Panels

Shutters are split into panels. If your window is wider than approx 950mm, you will be required to add a second panel. You can select as many panels as you like, provided the panels are between 350mm and 900mm. We recommend matching the layout of your window. If your window panes is split evenly, our Design Centre will  select the number of 'evenly split' panels automatically.

What If I Require Multiple Panels, But Have Uneven Sized Window Panes? 

You can customise your own panels widths to match the layout of your window, provided that each panel is less than 900mm. We recommend matching panels with the design of your vertical window panes.

Multiple Panels For Corner Windows

Shutters designed for bay windows have a bay post where the windows meet. The bay post will extend slightly into each side of the window. This may impact the width of the two panels closest to the corner. We need to keep this in mind when measuring for multiple panels. There are two options for multiple panels in a bay window:

1. 1. Equal width Panels

• This is a great option where each window only requires two panels or a T-post is not required.
• For shutter with more than two panels or where a T-post is required, the T-post won't line up with the vertical mullion in your window.

2. Custom width Panels

• If each window is broken up into more than two sections, you might want to put a T-post in front of each break in your window. To make sure that the T-posts line up properly, you will want to measure for custom width panels. 
• Remember, this will mean that your inner most panel is narrower than the others.

Measuring Custom Panel Widths

Begin each measurements from the far left:

• For an inside mount, start from the inside of the recess;
• For an outside mount with an architrave, start from the edge of architrave;
• For an outside mount with no architrave, start from the edge of your window.
• Measure to the breaks in each of the panels (i.e. where one panel will meet the other).

Learn more about measuring for multiple panels.

Surcharge

Fitting custom made shutters to bay windows takes additional effort and time and also requires specialty parts. Due to this, we charge a further 10% for the price of all corner and bay window shutters.