Window Covering Products Levolor is the most recognized name in the window covering industry. It's no wonder through their product innovations, superior design, unsurpassed color selections and stylish appeal. Since 1914, Levolor blinds have set the industry standard for superior engineering and innovative design.

Preventive Maintenance for Window Covering Products

The main reason the string breaks in mini blinds is because the slats are not completely open when raising and lowering the blind. Blinds with slats should always be in the open position before pulling on the string. Another reason the string will break is because the shade is lifted to the exact same height every time it is opened, especially with pleated and cellular shades. Often, the shades are lifted open all the way to the top and then locked into place. The hardware, repeatedly, clamps onto the string at the same spot, which causes the string to wear through and then break. Be sure to always keep the blinds free of dust! Dust is the number one reason for gears and mechanisms malfunctioning in Venetian Blinds. When looking out of the window, Venetian Blind slats should never be bent or separated (while trying to peek.) Always use the cords to tilt the slats.

Venetian Blind

Venetian blinds are slatted blinds, consisting of a number of long horizontal strips attached in rows. Venetian Blinds usually are made of metal or vinyl. Wooden varieties do exist but are now referred to as wooden blinds. They can be adjusted to various angles thereby letting in as much light as is desired. Venetian blinds can be operated with just a string or with a wand that tilts the slats. Usually the turning of the slats is accomplished by rotating a metal or plastic piece found at the upper-corner of the blinds. A string or pull allows the blinds to be raised, keeping them from obscuring the window. Mini blinds are a type of Venetian Blind which use very narrow slats, often used to make a tighter connection and keep more light out.

Mini Blind

A mini blind is a type of non-vertical window blind made of long, narrow slats held together by string and ladder tape. Its slats are not as wide as venetian blind slats. A mini blind has more slats than a regular Venetian blind because its slats are narrow. The slats of mini blinds are less than half the width of regular Venetian blinds (although in the UK these blinds are still known as venetian blinds). They are usually made from 15mm or 25mm aluminum slats. The slats are opened and closed by rotating a rod or by directly pulling a string. They are raised and lowered by pulling other strings

Pleated Window Shade

Pleated window shades have been around for many years, yet they are not as well known as cellular window shades (honeycomb blind). Cellular window shades are a popular, energy efficient window treatment. Cellular design forms pockets of air that insulate windows from heat and cold. Cellular shades come in a wide array of soft, colorful window treatment fabric and opacity levels. The most common repairs seen in cellular & Pleated window shades are the re-stringing of shades and the replacement of cord locks and cord guides. We also repair RV pleated shades, commonly seen in conversion Vans and RV's.

Day-Night Shade Adjustment & Repair Most late model coaches are equipped with pleated window shades, commonly known as “day-night blinds” with a shear section for daytime use and a solid section for nighttime use. They are pulled up and down on two to four strings woven through the blind material. The strings on each side are attached to one end of a spring contained within the metal section at the top. The other end of this spring is attached to a string that runs down the inside edge of the covering valance beside the blind to a spool located on the bottom of each side of the blind. The spool has a retaining screw through its center and a tooth on the back, which holds it in position and provides a method of adjusting the spring tension.

These blinds do require some adjustment to operate properly and the adjustment is quite easy to do. The first step is to determine what needs to be done. If the blind is very difficult to raise then the blind needs less spring tension. To decrease the spring tension carefully loosen the spool retaining screw on one side, while holding the spool firmly against the valence so that it does not twist free then rotate the spool counterclockwise 1 turn at a time. Tighten the screw and repeat for the other side. Move the blind completely up and down a few times then check to see if it operates correctly. If not repeat this procedure.

If the blind goes up in a zigzag fashion then one side of the blind has more tension than the other. In this case you may be able to see which side is loose and tighten the spool on that side. If you are unsure I suggest loosening both sides and apply an equal number of turns on the spool until the blind operates correctly. If the tension is too loose then the blind will not stay in position. Again adjust both sides one at a time to place the correct tension on the strings.
My experience suggests adjusting the blind to have sufficient tension to stay in place and no more. This will give you the ability to increase tension should the spring weaken with age and it also places less tension on the strings If the string rubs against the blind mounting hardware it will fray and eventually break.

Restringing the blind is not difficult however you will need to remove the blind from its mounting base. There are a number of different retainer styles, so you will need to examine yours to see what method is required to detach the blind.

Remove the shade assembly from the installation brackets: Raise the shade all the way to compress the fabric. Loosen the tab screw on the back of each mounting bracket. Tilt the back of the headrail down to remove the rail from the brackets . Place the shade assembly on a clean work surface. Note: If you have a steel bracket without the tab screw, the shade may be removed utilizing the same tilting action shown . (If they do not include the stringing needle then get one as well).

Some blinds are held up by a spring steel clip maybe an inch long. One side will have a lip on it, the other side does not. That lip is the key. What I did was take a heavy screwdriver and tried to wedge it between that lip and the top of the blind until it released allowing the blind to drop out. Did the same thing with the other end clip.

Once the blind is removed, rest it on a hard surface. Cut the strings from both hold-downs then proceed to remove the plastic end caps on all rails with a flat head screwdriver. Remove the bottom and top rails from the blind by sliding them off then slide the bottom section of the pleated shade from the center rail. The rails slide off horizontally, and may get hung up on a knob rivet, so be firm, it will eventually slide off. Once the blind is disassembled, proceed as follows.

In the top rail, the cord will be attached to a spring on each side. The cord coming from the left will run down through the left side of the night material. The cord coming from the right will run down through the right side of the night portion of the shade. The cords will cross in the center rail, so that the cord that runs down the left hand portion of the night shade, will cross over and run down through the right hand side of the day shade.

Do the same for the right hand side of the night shade. It will cross over in the center rail and run down through the left hand side of the day shade. Now the cord coming down through the right side of the day portion will once again cross in the bottom rail and exit out of the left hand side of the shade through the end cap, use a threading needle to thread the cords through the holes. Inspect the holes for any burrs or sharp edges as they may damage the cord. After threading the blind, assemble the top rail including plastic end caps.

Remember to stay within the ridges of the PVC. Insert center end caps. Thread the cord through the bottom end caps. There is a right and a left end cap; please check before threading. After inserting end caps, measure and cut cords to required length. After required length has been cut, see illustration on how to tie on the spring tension spool. REMEMBER: Reset the drop of your shade by tying the cord retainers where you need them to be and adjust the tension as needed by wrapping the cord around the cord retainers.

My experience suggests adjusting the blind to have sufficient tension to stay in place and no more. This will give you the ability to increase tension should the spring weaken with age and it also places less tension on the strings If the string rubs against the blind mounting hardware it will fray and eventually break

RV Shades should be kept In the closed or the up position when not in use, to maintain pleat retention and minimize dirt and soil buildup. Do not store shade in the down position, this may cause some loss of a pleat retention if RV shade are not operate on a consistent basis.
Note: if your recreation vehicle must be in storage for an extended period time. Store RV shade in the up position and cover your window with an additional protection (example cut out cardboard).
RV Shade can be easily cared for by simply dusting or using a vacuum cleaner attachment. Do not use spot remover, or household cleaner or detergent to remove soiled spot, or as this may cause damage to fabric.