Office blinds: vertical, sunscreen roller or wooden, room by room

Most offices don't want a dark room. They want one bright enough to work in, with no light in anyone's eyes or on their screen, and the glass usually comes as a long run of panes, not a single house-style window. So the blind that fits is one that can steer the light, cover a wide run and wipe clean easily. The three used most are the vertical blind, the motorized roller blind in sunscreen fabric, and the wooden blind. Each suits a different kind of room.

Which blinds for an office? Where to start

• Where the glare comes from. A screen facing the glass reflects the outside. A screen with its back to the glass leaves the person staring into the light. Both are fixed by redirecting or softening the light, not by shutting it out.
• How long the run of glass is. A long glass wall is easy for vertical blinds, because the weight is spread across individual louvres. A very wide roller has to be split into several units side by side.
• Who adjusts it. A blind shared by many people should be simple to operate and forgiving of misuse. Anything high or out of reach should be motorized.
• How it gets cleaned. Offices collect dust from air-conditioning and foot traffic all day. A surface you can wipe on the spot is easier to live with.
• How the room should look. Vertical louvres read businesslike, a roller reads flat and minimal, and timber adds warmth, which suits the places visitors see.

A vertical blind's louvres rotate through 180°, so you pick where the light comes from while the blind stays closed. A sunscreen roller is a tight open weave that takes the glare down while you still see out. Our GS sunscreen fabrics have a 5% openness, and the fabric types are explained in blackout vs sunscreen fabric. A wooden blind tilts its slats to move the light a little at a time without closing the window off.

Which blind for the open-plan area, the meeting room and reception?

For a meeting room, first ask how dark it really has to be. With a TV-type display, which is bright already, taking the light off the screen is enough, and verticals or a sunscreen fabric will do it. With a projector that washes out in a bright room, look at blackout fabric, knowing that every roller blind still leaks a little light at the edges. Where a meeting room has several blinds, one remote can run them together, so nobody walks the room adjusting each one before a meeting starts.

What do office vertical blinds cost, next to motorized rollers and wooden blinds?

All three are priced by the square yard with a minimum per unit, and anything smaller than the minimum is charged at the minimum. Where they part is the motor and the fitting. Vertical blinds are hand-operated, so there is no motor charge. A motorized roller adds a motor to every unit. Wooden blinds are manual as standard and can be ordered motorized, with the motor charged separately at the figure in the table. Fitting for rollers goes by the size of each unit, while the other two follow the shop's standard formula. We don't total it up on the site, because the real price depends on the fabric or louvre type, the number of units and the site. The real figure is in the written quote after the measure. The roller is broken down part by part in what a motorized roller blind costs.

How big can blinds go on a large office glass front?

The limits fall on different sides. Vertical blinds have a maximum height, because over-long louvres swing and twist. Wooden blinds have both a maximum width and a maximum height. Motorized rollers have a minimum size. A shopfront or glass wall wider than one unit can carry is handled the same way in every type: several units side by side, usually divided to line up with the columns or the joints in the glass. It still reads as one continuous run, and each section opens on its own. With verticals, also decide which end the louvres stack to, and keep that stack away from a door or a walking route.

How are office blinds cleaned, and which is easiest to keep?

• Vertical blind, PVC louvres: a well-wrung damp cloth, one louvre at a time, top to bottom. A good fit for a dusty office.
• Vertical blind, fabric louvres: a gentle pass with a vacuum brush head. No stiff brushes.
• Roller blind: one flat sheet, brushed down top to bottom in a single pass.
• Wooden blind: dozens of slats for dust to settle on, so it needs dusting more often, and wood doesn't get on with water, so no wet cloths. More in wooden blind prices and care.
• The habit that keeps verticals working: square the louvres to the glass before sliding them across, every time. Slide them while tilted and they twist against each other and work the top carriers loose. Tell staff this on fitting day.

One thing to know up front: we don't take cleaning or repair work. An office with its own cleaning staff should pick a material they can look after themselves. If it's something covered by the warranty, which is 6 years on the motor, 1 year on the installation and 1 year on wooden blind slats, message us on LINE as usual. The fabric itself isn't covered.

Can office blinds be fitted outside working hours, and can you issue a tax invoice?

Yes to both. We work weekends at no extra charge, so an office that doesn't want fitters in while staff are working can book a day off. Fitting after 17:30 costs extra. It takes about 20 minutes per unit, and someone from the office needs to be on site while it's done. The fitter shows how everything works before leaving. Many office buildings have rules on when contractors may work, so ask the building management ahead of time.

• We're VAT registered and can issue a tax invoice.
• Every price shown on this site excludes VAT.
• The on-site measure costs 500-1,000 THB in Bangkok and the metro area and is credited back in full when you order. Allow 2-3 hours, because we bring fabric samples with us.
• The quote arrives within one day. It lists the blind style, the exact fabric code you picked and every measurement, and the price holds for 7 days.
• Payment is by bank transfer, cash or PromptPay. The deposit depends on the job, 50% on some and full payment on others, and once paid it cannot be cancelled, because the fabric is cut to your windows.
• Made and fitted in 7-14 days from the day you confirm, depending on how many units.
• Motorized blinds need a socket near the headrail. We don't do wiring, so if there isn't one, the building's electrician has to add it first, or you can choose a rechargeable battery motor instead.