The last decade has seen shutters made overseas flood the Australian market. The prices have gone down a bit, but when I've looked closely at many of these products the quality ranges from ordinary to very poor. They may be acceptable as a mass produced commodity for a mass market, a hard alternative to soft blinds and curtains. However if you could see what lies underneath the paint of a new imported shutter, you may discover that you don't actually get what you pay for.

It appears Chinese-produced shutters are pre-made to a lower standard than Australians often expect. Once you've gone to the trouble to install them, they tend to fail to stand the test of time. These photos show what is hidden under the paint of several samples of imports. Beware the inherent weaknesses and short cuts taken by many overseas manufacturers. Ask the retailer where your shutters were made – if they are Chinese, Indian or Russian you could be paying inflated margins for an inferior product.

Examine an imported shutter closely Poor paint coverage, colour consistency, fading	This Chinese shutters is inferior The paint didn’t last long before peeling and bubbling
Faults evident when new Paint cracking – instability/inconsistent coverage	What you don’t see matters Underneath the paint of a Chinese shutter
Jointed timber off-cuts Frames with no integrity, compromise strength	Jointed timber off-cuts Underneath the paint of an imported shutter
Blades bow in a short time Insist on solid cedar blades	Jointed timber off-cuts Even blades have multiple finger-joints
Chinese “Basswood” is not 100%  Multiple bits of different materials are seen here	Sold as "Solid timber" As you can see, these frames aren’t cut from one solid piece
Solid” cedar on the outside Even some natural finished cedar shutters aren't all that they seem	…is hiding laminated timber inside If you ask for solid cedar, make sure you are getting what you pay for

Buyers beware: just because you may be paying a lot for shutters doesn't mean you'll be happy with the end product if the installation is not up to standard. See pictures of what to avoid when installing shutters here >>