Do you ever have your venetian blinds raised apart from when cleaning? Update manufacturers response

turnitround

I have had some venetian blinds fitted. 2  different sized windows in the same room and the smaller window is perfect. The larger window though not so good. 

When the blinds are raised they droop in the middle giving a banana shape effect. I think its because the slats are too heavy for the width of the window.  I ordered them online and have since sent photos to the company at their request showing the problem.

The reply I got was that they dont advise that the blinds are raised apart from when cleaning. They say the blinds will naturally sag as they are heavy.

I have venetian blinds at every window in the house and always raise the bedroom ones in a morning. The ones downstairs I raise during the day as I like the room light and airy but drop them at night or if we are going out or for privacy reasons sometimes. 

Is it just me that likes them raised sometimes. Is it acceptable that they sag in the middle?


After numerous emails I now have this response

The material of these blinds is a polymer material, which due to the nature of this material does leave it susceptible in changes if left in the heat for long periods of time, as this would be environmental issues, this sadly is not covered by our warranty.

They have offered me a change of blinds to a better one but of course  would have to pay the extra and pay to have them fitted again. The blinds have not been left in the heat, they were faulty at installation so the above comment holds no water.
Any advice on next steps please.

flo22

Mine are rarely down as I find they block too much light and I can't be bothered with the faffing of tweaking the angle if they are down.  Never had a droop but mine are wooden.

turnitround

flo22 said:

Mine are rarely down as I find they block too much light and I can't be bothered with the faffing of tweaking the angle if they are down.  Never had a droop but mine are wooden.

Thanks for the reply. These are wooden blinds. According to the reply I got they sag because they are wooden and heavy!!!
I dont want to have them down all the time as I like the choice of when to drop/raise them but they look awful raised.

EssexExile

turnitround said:

I have had some venetian blinds fitted. 2  different sized windows in the same room and the smaller window is perfect. The larger window though not so good. 

When the blinds are raised they droop in the middle giving a banana shape effect. I think its because the slats are too heavy for the width of the window.  I ordered them online and have since sent photos to the company at their request showing the problem.

The reply I got was that they dont advise that the blinds are raised apart from when cleaning. They say the blinds will naturally sag as they are heavy.

I have venetian blinds at every window in the house and always raise the bedroom ones in a morning. The ones downstairs I raise during the day as I like the room light and airy but drop them at night or if we are going out or for privacy reasons sometimes. 

Is it just me that likes them raised sometimes. Is it acceptable that they sag in the middle?

I assume you mean the slats are drooping as the head assembly must be fixed in the middle. Can't you just pull the cord(s) that lifts the middle a little further to bring the middle up before locking in position?

turnitround

Sadly not, Ive tried all ways with the cords, no amount of adjusting stops the sagging in the middle. I'm amazed that the company are saying they are expected to naturally sag due to the weight. As I said the smaller window is fine, they look lovely. I feel the window is too wide for this particular blind because of the weight of the slats but there was nothing on the website to suggest this could happen.

stripling

turnitround said:

flo22 said:

Mine are rarely down as I find they block too much light and I can't be bothered with the faffing of tweaking the angle if they are down.  Never had a droop but mine are wooden.

Thanks for the reply. These are wooden blinds. According to the reply I got they sag because they are wooden and heavy!!!
I dont want to have them down all the time as I like the choice of when to drop/raise them but they look awful raised.

They are spinning you a line - they are not fit for purpose.
Of course blinds are used up and down or even midway up the window.  That's the whole purpose of them - they offer you choice. And they definitely shouldn't sag or droop. 
I would insist on a full refund and take your custom elsewhere. 

BlueVeranda

These blinds don't sound very good. The ones we have on wider windows have several 'threads' supported equally so they can't just sag in the middle. One of them is almost permanently raised to let in the light on that side, they still don't sag.

Brie

Ours are only down when it's extra hot in the summer.  No other time and certainly not daily.  

turnitround

Well it gets better. I have complained and the reply said that they will offer me a credit to the value of the blind to be used against a better blind (as mine are faux wood) but I will have to pay the difference in price. This would mean I had 2 different blinds in the same room if I was to change one of them

The reply says
 'The material is more malleable than real wood and the heat from September can potentially warp or slowly bend this kind of material which is why we always suggest you keep this material lowered'. 

Speechless does not cover it!

casper_gutman

Our venetian blinds only have two cords for raising them, one on each side. In the middles the slats are connected together but there is no pull cord. If yours are similar then I can see how they could droop when raised as you describe. In our case there isn't a problem as the blinds are wooden and narrow - about 600 mm or so tops.

We often have the blinds raised during the day, and if I bought blinds that couldn't be used like that I'd be surprised and disappointed. I'd look for a refund in your shoes, if this wasn't clear before you ordered.

turnitround

Latest update. 
They are now saying that they will allow me to change both binds for different ones at an additional cost. 

In the replies from them to my emails they admit the blinds can warp due to heat/sunlight etc but I have pointed out that they have not been subjected to these conditions, they were bowed on fitting.

I have asked to return them for a refund (although this will mean a hell of a job packing and sending plus having paid for fitting I dont feel inclined to do this) or I will keep them and put up with the appearance but I want a partial refund if I am to do this.

They are sticking to the line that they will change them if I pay more and have given me 7 days to accept. I have questioned why they tell me by email that the blinds are susceptible to changes in heat ( the are blinds and so will be used in sunlight!) whilst the website says they are suitable and completely contradicts what they say. The website also speaks about having them opened/closed to suit where the email replies tell me they are not supposed to be raised apart from when cleaning.

They have not responded to my last email so I think are sticking to the 7 days to agree to pay more option.

They will not respond to the questions and just keeping repeating the same mantra about paying more to exchange them. 

Any suggestions where to go from here please. I have been reading right to refund etc but nothing states your rights when blinds are fitted.