Shutter BoysPlantation shutters in Des Plaines
Homes in Des Plaines
Des Plaines's 23,856 homes are a mix: 59% detached houses, 30% apartments or units in buildings of two or more homes and 8% townhouses and other attached houses.
The biggest building period was 1950 to 1979, which accounts for 56% of homes standing today; 14% are from 2000 or later. The median home dates from 1966. Owners live in 78% of homes.
In Mount Prospect, 3 miles away, 39% of homes are apartments, more than here. Nationally, Des Plaines's homes are older than those in 79% of the 881 US cities we have census figures for.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. Estimates carry margins of error.
Replacement windows
56% of homes went up between 1950 and 1979, and most of them have had their original windows replaced since. A replacement window often sits further into or out of the wall than the old one, so the depth you have for an inside mount may differ from window to window in the same house. Measure every opening rather than copying one.
Out-of-square openings
With 71% of homes built before 1980, many openings have had decades to settle. Measure each one's width at the top, middle and bottom, and both diagonals. If the diagonals differ by more than about ¼ inch, add a mounting frame in the designer, or choose an outside mount so the shutter covers the uneven edges.
Bought to stay
Owners live in 78% of homes, and shutters are usually bought to stay with the house. Poplar takes paint well, so they can be repainted years from now if you change a room's colours. Keep your order list: it records every size if you add a room later.
Des Plaines weather and your shutters
At Chicago Ohare Intl AP, IL (3 mi away), July averages a high of 84.5°F and January a low of 18.8°F. Average lows sit at or below freezing from December to March.
About 17 days a year reach 90°F, 121 nights fall to freezing and 38 inches of precipitation falls, spread fairly evenly through the year.
That's more freezing nights than in 78% of the 881 US cities we have climate normals for.
Daylight runs from 15 h 15 min on the longest day to 9 h 7 min on the shortest, and the midday sun stands 71° above the horizon in June and 25° in December.
Source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, Chicago Ohare Intl AP, IL (temperature) and Chicago Ohare Intl AP, IL (precipitation, 3 mi away). Daylight and sun height: calculated from the city’s latitude.
Monthly figures
| Month | Average high | Average low | Precipitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31.6°F | 18.8°F | 2 in |
| Feb | 35.7°F | 21.8°F | 2 in |
| Mar | 47°F | 31°F | 2.5 in |
| Apr | 59°F | 40.3°F | 3.8 in |
| May | 70.5°F | 50.6°F | 4.5 in |
| Jun | 80.4°F | 60.8°F | 4.1 in |
| Jul | 84.5°F | 66.4°F | 3.7 in |
| Aug | 82.5°F | 65.1°F | 4.3 in |
| Sep | 75.5°F | 57.1°F | 3.2 in |
| Oct | 62.7°F | 45.4°F | 3.4 in |
| Nov | 48.4°F | 34.1°F | 2.4 in |
| Dec | 36.6°F | 24.4°F | 2.1 in |
Cold winters
With 121 freezing nights a year, warm room air meets cold glass for months. Shutters closed tight overnight hold that air against the window, so condensation can collect on the sill: tilt the louvers open in the morning, and wipe the sill on windows that often run wet.
Fitting them in Des Plaines
Shutter Boys shutters are made for you to fit yourself: an inside or outside mount takes a drill, a level and our step-by-step guide. If you'd rather hire someone, a finish carpenter or blinds installer can fit them; ask on your quote and we'll tell you if we know one near you. You arrange and pay the installer directly.
Near Des Plaines
- Mount Prospect 3 mi
- Arlington Heights 6 mi
- Skokie 8 mi
- Palatine 9 mi
- Schaumburg 9 mi
- Evanston 11 mi
More about shutters in Des Plaines
Each page takes one question further (fitting your windows, room by room, sizes and colours, louvers, or how shutters compare with other choices), using Des Plaines’s own figures.
Price your windows
Pick your look once, add every window, and see each one drawn and priced. Send it to us and we reply with your quote.