California shutters in Cornwall

California shutters, also called plantation shutters or interior window shutters, made to the measurements you take and shipped to your door in Cornwall. Fit them yourself, or ask us for an independent installer near you.
Framed California shutters fitted across a condo window wall, in time-lapse.

Homes in Cornwall

Cornwall's 21,385 occupied homes are a mix: 49% detached houses, 34% apartments or units in buildings of two or more homes and 16% semi-detached and row houses.

More homes here were built 1960 or earlier than in any later period we count: 37%. Only 10% date from 2001 or later. 54% of homes are lived in by their owners.

In nearby Clarence-Rockland, 64 km away, 29% of homes were built in 1980 or earlier, so Cornwall's windows are on the whole older. Nationally, Cornwall's homes are older than those in 94% of the 167 Canadian cities we have census figures for.

Source: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population. Period of construction and tenure come from the 25% sample; counts are randomly rounded.

Plaster walls and deep casings

37% of homes date from 1960 or earlier, when walls were plaster on lath and windows sat in deep wood casings. Plaster cracks if you drive screws carelessly: drill a pilot hole, use fixings made for plaster, and fix into the casing or the framing behind it. A deep casing is good news for an inside mount; measure its depth before you choose a louver size.

How to install

Out-of-square openings

With 70% of homes built in 1980 or earlier, 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 6 mm, add a mounting frame in the designer, or choose an outside mount so the shutter covers the uneven edges.

How to measure

Semis and row houses

16% of homes share a wall with the next one. Their front windows face the street side by side with the neighbours', so many owners pick a louver size and a white or off-white finish that sit well beside the houses on either side. Bay windows on semis usually need a separate panel set for each face.

Bay window shutters

Cornwall weather and your shutters

At Cornwall (2 km away), July averages a high of 27.3 °C and January a low of −11.8 °C. Average lows sit at or below freezing from November to March.

About 14 days a year top 30 °C, 140 days drop to 0 °C or below and 1,006 mm of precipitation falls, spread fairly evenly through the year.

That's more 30 °C days than in 75% of the 160 Canadian cities we have climate normals for.

Daylight runs from 15 h 37 min on the longest day to 8 h 46 min on the shortest, and the midday sun stands 68° above the horizon in June and 22° in December.

Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020, Cornwall. Daylight and sun height: calculated from the city’s latitude.

Cornwall: average monthly low and high temperatures−20°C−10°C0°C10°C20°C30°CJFMAMJJASOND
Average daily low to high, by month.
Monthly figures
Monthly climate normals
MonthAverage highAverage lowPrecipitation
Jan−3.8 °C−11.8 °C80.4 mm
Feb−2.1 °C−10.6 °C63.3 mm
Mar3.5 °C−5.3 °C64.4 mm
Apr11.8 °C2 °C83.2 mm
May19.8 °C8.8 °C85.3 mm
Jun24.6 °C14.1 °C94.8 mm
Jul27.3 °C17 °C97.2 mm
Aug26.3 °C16.2 °C82.6 mm
Sep22 °C11.8 °C98.9 mm
Oct14.1 °C5.7 °C99.5 mm
Nov6.9 °C−0.3 °C81.9 mm
Dec0 °C−6.7 °C74.8 mm

Summer sun

On the 14 days a year above 30 °C, closed louvers keep direct sun off the glass and out of the room. In a window that takes afternoon sun, white and light paint finishes stay cooler to the touch than dark stains.

Cold winters

With 140 days at or below freezing 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.

Why poplar

Humid summers

Hot days and 1,006 mm of precipitation make for heavy summer air. Wood swells when it's humid, so give kitchens, bathrooms and laundry rooms some air: run the fan after a shower and tilt the louvers open so steam doesn't sit behind them.

Why poplar

Fitting them in Cornwall

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.

How to install · How to measure

Near Cornwall

More about shutters in Cornwall

Each page takes one question further (fitting your windows, room by room, sizes and colours, louvers, or how shutters compare with other choices), using Cornwall’s own figures.

Price your windows

Choose Canada in the designer, enter millimetres or inches, and we reply with your quote in Canadian dollars.

Design your shutters