Best Blinds Value, Home Owners Value, Saint Petersburg


	Installation & Common Sense:

	It might seem obvious, but the simplest procedures are followed to ensure your install date goes smoothly.

	If a scheduled installer is ill in some way and cannot be covered this situation will be carefully handled to ensure the safety of all parties involved. Our installers are not just people: They like are family. Not contractors, not slick salesmen.

	Ladders of necessary height eliminate bad accidents. Skylights can be rather high, but our ladders can safely reach 18 feet for measure. For anything more than twelve feet, installations are completed using a rented platform.

	Blind boxes can be large, so they're kept briefly against walls, not in the center of a room. Boxes are side marked by window number. Placement of materials takes less than ten minutes, and that's working slowly.

	Cords are never looped, and usually short, near the top of a window. This dramatically reduces choking risk.

	Verticals can be quite long. I usually call out "prop clear" or some loud Scottish conquering proclamation *before* spearing someone behind a door.

	Delicate breakable items like glass lamps need to be moved away from windows. Drilling can cause dust to fall around a window, and onto everything near it. I will usually put an old towel on the floor to capture it.

	I keep first aid gear in the van near the rear door. Every vehicle of mine has a fire extinguisher.

	Your safety, and my safety are both my priority.

	All of my installations have gone smoothly since inception.

	"I'm describing this in first person, because safety is personal." Bruce MacFarlane - Proprietor, Home Owners Value


	Tax Credit:

	With some time and due diligence, its possible to claim a significant tax credit that will help pay for your new window treatments. IRS: Tax Credit


	Windows and Florida construction:

	Occasionally windows will be drastically off center, sometimes because of age and settling. For the blinds to make it all the way up and down, they will have to fit inside the shortest opening, and that point may not be at the headrail. If the window is no longer moving up or down with some small resistance, a simple repair will be necessary. As a blinds installer, I'm not licensed to *repair* your window, yet, but I can provide some simple advice about what can be done to re-align the window with shims and material removal. We are registered with the State of Florida as a Window Treatment Company, and carry Contractors Liability Insurance.



	Its not usually necessary to check the top of a window for level, but I will do that just to see if level is more than a quarter inch off. Shims can be placed above mounting brackets to compensate for level, and leave room for a valance. If the valance is installed without shims, it might fit on but be rather hard to remove later. Only Graber offers adjustable valance clips that can compensate for those little differences.

	With some careful measurement it should be possible to fit the return ends of a valance nice and exactly even with the wall, completely hiding the headrail.

	We almost NEVER use the installation screws,or mounting materials that come with a shade. Sometimes, wallboard material along a wall is too soft to support ANYTHING having any weight. The only solution is to mount a strong enough hidden sheet of plywood to the wall against the studs behind the wall first, THEN mount the shade hardware to the plywood. The trick is to make sure the plywood is completely hidden. No more sagging, no more mysteries, none of that.

	The actual brackets from the manufacturer are important. Are they made of stainless steel and aluminum that doesn't rust? Of course, our shades are hung with quality brackets, and we have all of them to show you, if that concerns you.

	An example of using a hanging strip for additional strength is provided by this excellent video here: Cornice Installation

	Some GOTCHA options with window treatments are "expected" and then don't arrive that way:

	Color to the street:
	Unless you are familiar with roller shades, you might expect the outside to look the SAME as the inside. Sometimes the shade color specifies WHITE to the street. This is done because it protects more elaborate delicate fabric. It changes the entire look of your house from the outside. You might order something online and get this surprise. That WON'T happen here.

	Pullout Windows:
	Many windows on a second floor or above are called "pullout windows." Pullout windows allow you to completely remove a window from the inside. Shutter panels installed with the WRONG FRAME will not allow your "pullout windows" to pullout at all. The only alternative is to get a crane and clean them from the outside. That WON'T happen here.

	Shutters & Caulk:
	Usually shutter panels are already mounted on hinges to something called a frame. The frame should slide into your window with minimal resistance. Sometimes, something called a shim is necessary between this shutter frame and the window, in places where the window is slightly wider. The shim helps make the frame more stable in the opening, however with long deck screws, or even Tapcons, the frame won't be moving much anyway. For white shutters there must be at least 40 different white caulk choices to fill small gaps between the shutter frame and the window. Most any will do the job temporarily, but keep in mind that when a window is open, a shutter is exposed to rain and temperature. Any caulk will fill the small gap, but a poor caulk won't last as long as a PVC shutter. The right caulk twenty years ago used to be called forty year Elastomeric, but times have changed. The best caulk now is fifty year DAP POLYURETHANE Construction Sealant. The right stuff won't need replacing for a really really long time. No shrinking or sagging. That WON'T happen here.

	Customers are hiring us to take care of these little details but I've chosen to reveal common secrets to our magic tricks here. BTW, "John Builds It" is a fantastic channel! Scan to 7:20 where he briefly describes the hanging strip.

	Everything we are using on site is battery powered and portable. The GRABER custom cornice, similar to the one in the above video, is designed to exactly match shutter and blind wood finishes. It will likely be installed exactly the same way, with a hanging strip.

	These are some of the little benefits you gain from having someone install your blinds for you that cares about how your windows will look. You may never find ALL my tricks on youtube because I guess most people are just not all that particular about much more than whether the blinds go up and down.

	After installation. You are not forgotten. More than a wallet that has just been emptied. We are supporting Warranty Service. Its called something like RESPONSIBILITY. A word long forgotten these days: GRABER lifetime warranty