What width actually changes
A louvre is a blade on a pivot; its width sets four things at once. Open light: wider blades leave bigger gaps at the same tilt, so more light and more view pass through. Blade count: wider blades mean fewer of them across the same glass, a calmer, more modern read. Closed seal: narrower blades close into tighter, more traditional lines. Cleaning: every blade is a shelf; fewer blades is less shelf.
Made concrete, on a typical 1200 mm-tall Newcastle bedroom window:
| Width | Blades in the panel | Character | Spec it when |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63 mm | ~19 | Fine-lined, traditional, busy | Small period sashes; privacy beats view; close neighbours |
| 89 mm | ~13 | Balanced; the default for a reason | Most rooms, most windows, any era; when in doubt |
| 114 mm | ~10 | Calm, open, contemporary | Views worth keeping; tall modern glass; light-hungry rooms |
The three honest verdicts
Privacy-first, small window: 63.
The narrow blade is not just nostalgia. It closes into the tightest line of the three, and on a small sash its proportions look right where a 114 would look like three planks. On a Cooks Hill terrace facing the footpath, 63 or 89 with a mid-rail is the working answer.
Undecided: 89.
The middle width exists because it wins most arguments. Enough open area to keep a room bright, tight enough closed for a street-facing bedroom, and proportions that suit both a 1910 sash and a 2020 stacker. If you spec one width for a whole house, this is the one.
A view, or big glass: 114.
Where the window frames the ocean or a garden, blades are the price of the shutter, and the wide louvre pays the least of it: fewest interruptions across the glass, biggest clear gaps when open. On full-height modern windows it also simply looks drawn-to-scale.
The mistakes we get called to fix
One width stamped across a mixed house. The whole-house order is right; the whole-house width often isn't. A period front room and a new back extension can carry different widths without anyone ever noticing, because rooms are read one at a time.
Narrow blades on a view window. Nineteen horizontal lines between a lounge room and the ocean is a decision you'll renegotiate every day. Wide blades exist for exactly this window.
Deciding off a brochure photo. Width reads completely differently at room scale than at arm's length. At the free measure we bring blade samples and hold them in your actual window, which settles most debates in about a minute.
Width is one line of the spec; tilt is the next. Read front tilt or hidden tilt, or skip the reading and draft your window schedule: it asks the width question for you, room by room.
Free in-home measure & quote
Every window is bespoke. The quote starts at your place, not ours.
A specialist measures each opening, talks through material, louvre width and tilt for your rooms and your exposure, and leaves you a written quote. Nothing is made until the figures are checked on site.
Form only. We reply to arrange a time that suits.