HD room black out shades (1 Viewer)

[PatrickD]

Anyone know of black out shades that can be rolled up or down and installed inside venetian blinds? Wife likes blinds already in place which she can open or close to let in light when not watching TV (but let in light anyway even when closed ). Thanks
Patrick

 

[ace peterson]

Patrick-
A while back, I saw a guy's theater on this website and he had some contraption in which he had black material spanning his windows. He applied a velcro strip at the bottom and tops of the window sill, and likewise a velcro strip on his material. He was therefore able to remove that stuff whenever he wanted and replace it with ease. I thought it was a neat idea, but I can't remember which guy on here did this.
Ace

 

[Deane Johnson]

Patrick:
How much mounting space do you have behind the venition blinds? I'm sure we can figure out something to solve your problem. I have total blackout shades that no one knows exist until I push a button and they lower. When not using the home theater, all people see are our regular decorative blinds.
Deane

 

[Graham Perks]

Deane,
Please describe your solution a little more!
We have blinds right now, with very little room (maybe an inch, a little more at a push) between them and the glass. However, my wife wants better blinds anyway - these are the oldest we have from when we first moved in. So... in the process of upgrading the blinds I would love to also install some sort of black out! I would hate to put in new blinds and miss the opportunity. Our window frames are about 4 inches deep.
Do you use fabric? Felt?
Cheers,
Graham.

 

[Deane Johnson]

Graham:
The easiest and most complete solution are the HunterDouglas Opaque Honeycomeb blackout shades. They stop 100% of the light. You have to consider light leak around the edges. This can be done with soft treatments (curtains or draperies) that cover the edges, or wood baffles.
If I am seeing your situation correctly, you have the 4" deep windows with no woodwork. It's plasterboard return to the windows. If so, these are by far the easiest to work with. With that much mounting room, you can have two layers of shades if you want, something decorative and something effective.
We have two layers. The one people see is either a HD light filtering Duette or a mini-blind, depending on the window. The HD blackouts come down in front of them. We use a combination of draperies and woodwork to mask the edges. There is not even a sliver of visible light.
I have started a web site to show this stuff, but it isn't finished. You can visit it if you like. Work your way to the "blackout shades" section. If you click on one of the small pictures it will take you to a larger picture. You can click the button beside the picture and actually operate the shades.
http://www.kathiejohnson.com/HomeTheater.html
Ours are the motorized Easyrise version which operate from a central 24v. power supply and are the more expensive models. The same blackout fabric is now available in the PowerRise version which is battery operated IR remote control. The batteries are in the headrail and last about a year with once a day up and down operation. The PowerRise shades are fairly economical with the motorization and remote control only adding about $100 to the cost of the shade.
The IR receiving eye is in the headrail, so it needs to be in view. You can also get a remote eye and also a wall cube power supply. Neither item adds much to the cost, but does add wires.
If you inside mounted an HD Opaque Honeycomb, it would be very simple to put a piece of 1x2 vertically at each side of the shade. Place the 1" part towards the wall and have the 2" part stick out towards the center of the window. Paint the visible part of the 1x2 the color of the wall and the backside toward the shade flat black. You want the light coming around the edge to stike the black back of the 1x2 and not reflect back onto the shade.
We are a HunterDouglas dealer with a major focus on home theater applications, but we don't sell outside our own city. You would want to contact a dealer in your area who can give you the kind of technical service you need when something doesn't go right. Also, to help with installation. I'm always happy to help fellow HT Forum members solve their problems with our experience, but then send them to their local dealer to make the purchase.
Let me know if I can help further.
Deane

 

[Josh O]

Deane,
I just wanted to jump in here and say thanks... this has been very helpful info for me, too. We're building a house, and have decided to convert the living room (which we'd otherwise never use) to a media / theater room. Now I know exactly what I need to get to cover the big windows! I also now know that these blinds are going to blow our budget!!

Thanks!

 

[Graham Perks]

Deane,
Thank you! I am off to visit your website now.
I will show my wife

 

[Paul E V]

The house I used to live in had a streetlight across from a window (which was behind the system) so I got some blinds (I forget the brand -- Delmar or something) that made it pitch black at night with only minor daylight coming around the sides during the day.
The string ran on the outsides (instead of through the center) so the 'attaching hole' was covered by the next slat.
The new house has a glass (exterior) door at the rear of the theater but it will soon be an interior door when I build a shop in that area.
No windows are planned in the shop and there are none (other than the door) in the theater.
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