How To Trim Ladder For 2" Faux Wood Cordless Blinds Better Homes And Gardens

Best cordless blinds units give you the flexibility to control the lighting in your room. They provide an effortless way of deciding how much light comes through your windows.

Regardless of the name "cordless," it still has cords that go through the slats for a smooth operation. They are easy to operate, if you are looking to lower them, for example, simply pull down the rail at the bottom and angle the bottom rail backward and forward so that the slats tilt. One question, however, is can you shorten cordless blinds?

Yes, you can shorten cordless blinds. Although shortening cordless blinds is not a walk in the park, as in the case of corded blinds, you can reduce them. All you need is extra effort and a bit of acuteness in the process. You should think of it as a fun DIY project. Besides, it will save you the additional coins that you would have otherwise spent on a handyman.

Much as you can shorten the cordless blinds, it might come with some drawbacks here and there. The ease at which you shorten those blinds depends on the types of blinds.

can you shorten cordless blind? Yes, the photo shows a child adjusting a blind to control the light in the room. The blind has been shortened to fit in the desired window space

Types of Cordless Blinds

There are three main types of cordless blinds:

Wood Cordless Blinds
Vinyl Cordless Blinds
Faux Wood Cordless Blinds

You have probably noticed that the only difference between the cordless blinds above is the material from which they are made. Each type of cordless blinds carries a different aesthetic appeal.

Note: The process of shortening the blinds is the same regardless of the material.

Tools for Shortening Cordless Blinds

Fortunately, shortening cordless blinds does not require power tools. All the tools you will need for this project are staples in many homes. If you are new to DIYs, you will need the following tools for your quest.

A pair of Scissors
Pliers
A flat-head screwdriver
Sticky tape or push pins.

With all the tools in place, you can comfortably move to the process of shortening the cordless blinds.

How to Shorten Cordless Blinds

The below video provides a step-by-step process of shortening a vinyl cordless blind

Step-by-step guide to shortening cordless blinds.

1. Have your tools ready

Have all the tools you will need for this exercise within arm's reach. The tools my include the pairs of scissors, pliers and even the flat-head screwdriver.

2. Install the blinds

To install the blinds, follow the procedure below:

Fasten the brackets to each corner of your window by drilling two tiny holes into each corner and then insert the provided screws into the wall's holes using a flat-head screwdriver. If you have extra brackets, insert them along the top window sill between the two corner brackets.
Install the trim brackets to the blinds by snapping them on.
Fit the trim brackets to the brackets inserted on the wall. They should click into position with little force.
Push the trim piece onto the brackets.

If you prefer, you can refer to the user manual provided by the manufacturer.

3. Lower the blinds

Lower the blinds to full length and rotate the slats to open them. Lowering and opening the blinds will help you establish the ideal length of blinds to complement your window.

The ideal length should be even with or one slat below your window sill. Make a mark on the new last slat as an indicator of the slats to be removed and those that remain.

4. Take off the end caps/bottom rail buttons

There are two designs for the bottom part of cordless blinds.

The blinds can have the bottom rail housing the last slat and covered with caps on each end. Alternatively, they can have a thinner bottom rail in direct contact with the last slat and rail buttons on the bottom side of the rail.

At this point, both the end caps and the bottom rails are removed. There are different ways to remove each of them.

End caps: If the end caps are installed, remove them by twisting them off.
Rail buttons: Remove the rail buttons by popping them out using a flat-head screwdriver.

Be careful not to break the slate in the process.

5. Take out the bottom slat.

If your cordless blinds have the design that includes end caps, slide out the slat from the bottom rail after removing the end caps.

6. Remove the connector cords.

You will need to be very careful at this point because snapping the wrong cord might cost you the whole blind.

Below the designated last slat, cut all the horizontal connector cords. Be extra keen not to cut any vertical connector cords; otherwise, you will ruin the blinds.

7. Remove all the excess slats.

Once you are through with the cutting of the horizontal cords, you can now easily and safely remove all the slats below the designated last slat.

Note that some people interchange step six above with this step. They first remove the excess slats by cutting them and then cut the horizontal connector cords immediately after. If you find it easier to reverse the steps as well, feel free to do so.

8. Raise the bottom rail to the new slat

Depress the lift button and slowly raise the bottom rail until it touches the new last slat. With dangling cords all over the place, you should take your time doing this to avoid any damage.

9. Insert the ladder cords into the bottom rail

Insert the ladder cords into the top side of the bottom rail. From the open bottom side of the rail, pull the ladder cords as far as possible. Be gentle with the tagging, though.

10. Check the desired length of the blind.

Inspect the newly shortened blinds by double-checking to ensure that the desired length has been achieved.

1 1. Trim the ladder cords

If satisfied with the new blind length, trim all the ladder cords to four inches below the bottom rail.

12. Threat the ladder cords through the eyelets

The eyelets should be in the parts bag. From the underside of the bottom rail, thread both ends of the ladder cords through the eyelets. Repeat for all the ladder cords.

13. Slide the eyelets into the bottom rail

To keep the chords firm, slide the eyelets as into the bottom rail then crimp the eyelets tightly using pliers.

14. Trim excess ladder cords

Trim the ladder cords by another two inches. To further reinforce the eyelets, tie double knots with the remaining cord below the eyelets.

15. Slide bottom slat into the bottom rail

Ensure that all the cords are appropriately tucked inside the bottom rail before sliding the bottom slat into position

16. Final step

Install the end caps.

You can buy the best cordless blind units at amazon.com. One of the most sought after model is Redi Shade 3511069 Trim-at-Home Light Filtering Fabric White. This unit has a cordless lift mechanism for easy operation and clean appearance. The fact that it is cordless makes it safer for your crawling children and pets, another reason to fancy having this exemplary unit for your window covering.

Click the link below to buy at amazon.com

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Notice:

If your blinds have the design with the button rails at the bottom, you can pop the button rails right back in after step 11 above. Steps 12 to 16 only apply for blinds with end caps on the bottom rail.

Warnings on shortening cordless blinds

While shortening cordless blinds to suit your window is quite simple, there are a few things to consider before embarking on the project:

For most manufacturers, any form of alteration on the blinds voids warranty. If you would like to utilize your cordless blind warranty in the future, perhaps shortening your blinds is not the best option.
Removing more slats than necessary could also interfere with the cordless blind's lift mechanism. Research into the maximum number of slats that can be removed from the specific type of cordless blinds you have before starting your project.

Another sort after cordless blind unit you can buy at amazon is Achim Home Furnishings Cordless Morningstar 1″ Light Filtering Mini Blind. Click the link below to buy.

Buy On Amazon

CONCLUSION

Cordless blinds can be shortened to fit your window better. Shortening these blinds is simple, fun, and does not take up too much time. It can make an exciting DIY project for both DIY newbies and veterans. The use of readily available tools is also a plus. Besides, there are plenty of online resources to refer to just in case you get stuck.

It is important to remember that shortening cordless blinds might void the product's warranty. Secondly, if you are not careful, you could also end up ruining the blinds altogether.

If you are not entirely on board with shortening cordless blinds, then buying blinds that are an exact fit for your windows is another option.

With our detailed instructions on how to shorten cordless blinds above, you should have no problems doing it yourself.