How to check for defects in shutters

Shutters are in almost every apartment. They are so useful, and so easy to overlook, that we forget how much they add to daily life at home. We take them for granted as long as they work, but poor function affects that quality of life directly.

It is one thing when a shutter in your own home breaks down over time. It is another to move into a new apartment from a contractor, or one you have just bought, and find that the shutter does not work properly.

That is frustrating, and it is entirely preventable. A home inspection (bedek bayit) engineer, the same person who checks the apartment for waterproofing, cracks, flooring and radiation, also verifies that the shutters were installed correctly.

If they were not, you have the right to demand a repair at the expense of whoever hands over the apartment: the seller of a resale apartment, or the contractor bound by the inspection period under the Sale (Apartments) Law for a new one.

You can check some shutter defects yourself Shutter defects fall into two groups: flaws in appearance and flaws in installation. The appearance flaws are the easy ones. A careful look at every shutter in the apartment you are buying will show you color changes, and slats that are scratched, dented, cracked or broken.

Report anything you find to the contractor immediately and ask for a repair or replacement at the handover protocol stage: the point where the contractor walks you through the new apartment and has you sign that you inspected it and found everything in order.

That signature matters to the contractor. It releases him from the duty to repair at his own expense during the inspection period he owes you under the Sale Law, so do not sign it lightly. You can also check the standards mark yourself: ask the contractor to show you where it appears on the shutter.

Most shutter problems come from faulty installation Installation defects, not appearance flaws, cause most shutter problems, and the assumption that the contractor checks every subcontractor's work is usually wrong.

Mistakes happen, and you do not want one of them in your apartment. This is why you need your own expert to check shutter installation at every window, and to do it before handover, at the "handover protocol" stage (or the first walkthrough).

Otherwise you may have the law on your side, but a contractor whose crew finished the job long ago and has no time to come back and fix it.

Installation defects are hard to spot unless you know the standards for shutter assembly and the work involved. A home inspection engineer checks, for example, whether the shutter's end sits deep enough in the vertical track (there are standards for this), whether gaps between elements are narrow enough to keep out birds or insects, and whether the slats and track are level, among other things limited only by how careless the installer was.

A poorly installed shutter usually will not show itself when you inspect the apartment. One that raises and lowers smoothly today can cause real trouble later, and can shorten what should be about a 10-year lifespan. The failure tends to arrive exactly when the warranty has run out, leaving the repair or replacement to you.

Warning signs of a shutter in trouble A shutter that works properly gets no attention, which is exactly how it should be. The trouble starts when it begins to fail. Some signs to watch for:

• It takes real force to raise or lower, and needs both hands: reason enough to stop bothering with it, and for the kids to keep calling you for help.
• It squeaks when opened or closed: an annoying noise that wakes sleepers and interrupts whatever you are watching.
• It works sometimes and sticks other times: never reliable exactly when you need it.
• It will not close or open all the way, leaving a gap: wind and rain get in, sealing suffers, and heating and cooling costs rise.
• A gap remains between slats even when fully closed: light gets in, glares, and disturbs sleep.
• The shutter box itself is installed badly: hard for technicians to access, open to birds nesting inside, or simply damp, which leads to mold and odor.

There are more ways a shutter can disappoint you, and all of them are easy to prevent: insist on what you are entitled to, with the help of someone who knows what that is. When you go to take possession of the apartment, bring a home inspection engineer who checks every element, not only the shutters: waterproofing, flooring, cladding, cracks, drainage, stairs, radiation, and more.

As with the shutters, many of these have parts you can see and many you cannot, and without experience you will not know what to look for or what the standard requires. A home inspection lets you demand repairs from the contractor while his crew is still available, so he cannot dodge responsibility.

Most apartments have defects that will not be visible while the apartment is new, but you will have to pay to fix them later if no one catches them now. You paid a great deal for this apartment: use your right to receive it in full working order, exactly as specified in the technical specification you paid for.

Arad Bedek Bayit has helped many residents get contractors to make repairs, both through the contractors' own warranty obligations and through court claims. Insist on your right to enjoy your apartment fully.

This article was written with the professional advice of Ron Arad, engineer at Arad Bedek Bayit.