Shutter BoysPlantation shutters in Chesapeake
Homes in Chesapeake
Chesapeake is a city of houses: of its 96,816 homes, 67% are detached, 14% are townhouses and other attached houses and 17% are apartments or units in buildings of two or more homes.
The 1980s and 1990s built 39% of today's homes, more than any other period we count. 32% are older than that and 29% newer. The median home dates from 1989. Owners live in 74% of homes.
Of the 16 Virginia cities we have census figures for, Chesapeake has some of the newest homes. In nearby Portsmouth, 13 miles away, 68% of homes were built before 1980, so Chesapeake's windows are on the whole newer. Nationally, Chesapeake's homes are newer than those in 74% 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.
Rounded drywall corners
68% of homes here were built from 1980 on, and many houses of that era have rounded ("bullnose") drywall corners around the windows instead of square returns. A shutter can't sit flat against a curve: choose an outside mount with a frame that clears the corner, or an inside mount if the flat part of the opening is deep enough for your louvers.
Whole-house orders
With 67% of homes detached, most orders here cover a whole house: bedrooms, a patio door, perhaps a bay. Put every window in one list in the designer so the louver size and colour match from the street, and if you have an HOA, send it the drawings before you order.
Bought to stay
Owners live in 74% 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.
A whole house in Chesapeake
The most common home in Chesapeake has three bedrooms: 37% of homes. Large houses are common too: 37% have four bedrooms or more. The median home has 6.6 rooms.
Detached houses are the most common kind of home here. Across the US, the middle home among detached houses has 10 to 15 windows (EIA, 2020). Shuttering that many windows at a typical bedroom-window size comes to roughly $3,200 to $6,000. For scale, that's about 1.2% of the median home value here, $378,400 (owners’ estimates, 2020–2024).
Homes here are larger than in 85% of the 881 US cities we have figures for, so a whole-house order runs to more windows than most.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 (bedrooms B25041, rooms B25018, value B25077); U.S. Energy Information Administration, Residential Energy Consumption Survey 2020, Table HC2.1 (windows). EIA RECS 2020, Table HC2.1
A typical home10–15 windows
All of them shuttered$3,200 to $6,000
Every window priced as a 36 × 48 in opening in our basic build (flat moulding, paint stage 1, 3½ in louvers), before tax and shipping. Your windows will differ; the designer prices each one.
Price your own windowsPricing a whole house at once
37% of homes here have four bedrooms or more. For a house that size, list every window in one go: type or paste the sizes, or upload them as a spreadsheet saved as CSV, and the designer prices each window and the total.
Young children at home
6.1% of people in Chesapeake are under five, more than in 60% of the 881 US cities we have figures for. Shutters have no cords or chains at all: the louvers tilt with a rod or by hand, so there's nothing to hang within a child's reach. US rules for cords on custom blinds and shades are still being rewritten; ours never had any.
Ages (B01001), working from home (B08301) and value (B25077): U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. Rankings compare the US cities we have figures for.
Chesapeake weather and your shutters
At Fentress Naas, VA (9 mi away), July averages a high of 92.5°F and January a low of 33.6°F. Average highs reach 85°F from June to August.
About 66 days a year reach 90°F, 53 nights fall to freezing and 54.1 inches of precipitation falls, spread fairly evenly through the year.
Among the Virginia cities we have climate normals for, Chesapeake has the most hot days.
That's more 90°F days than in 66% of the 881 US cities we have climate normals for.
Daylight runs from 14 h 40 min on the longest day to 9 h 39 min on the shortest, and the midday sun stands 77° above the horizon in June and 30° in December.
Source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, Fentress Naas, VA (temperature) and Portsmouth 4.1 Sse, VA (precipitation, 9 mi away). Daylight and sun height: calculated from the city’s latitude.
Monthly figures
| Month | Average high | Average low | Precipitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 54.3°F | 33.6°F | 4 in |
| Feb | 57°F | 35.4°F | 2.7 in |
| Mar | 63.3°F | 40.9°F | 4.2 in |
| Apr | 73.5°F | 49.9°F | 3.9 in |
| May | 81.5°F | 59°F | 4.8 in |
| Jun | 88.9°F | 67.4°F | 5.6 in |
| Jul | 92.5°F | 72.7°F | 6 in |
| Aug | 89.6°F | 70.4°F | 5.3 in |
| Sep | 84.7°F | 65°F | 6.1 in |
| Oct | 75.9°F | 53.8°F | 4.7 in |
| Nov | 65.3°F | 43.9°F | 3.3 in |
| Dec | 57.5°F | 37.1°F | 3.5 in |
Humid summers
Hot days and 54.1 inches 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.
Summer sun
On the 66 days a year above 90°F, 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.
Fitting them in Chesapeake
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 Chesapeake
- Portsmouth 13 mi
- Virginia Beach 17 mi
- Norfolk 17 mi
- Suffolk 19 mi
- Hampton 25 mi
- Newport News 30 mi
More about shutters in Chesapeake
Each page takes one question further (fitting your windows, room by room, sizes and colours, louvers, or how shutters compare with other choices), using Chesapeake’s own figures.
For designers, contractors and stores in Chesapeake
Interior designers, contractors, window covering stores, realtors and property managers in Chesapeake can sell or refer Shutter Boys shutters: dealers buy at trade pricing with a protected area; referral partners earn a fee on each client they send. No fee to join.
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.