Repairing Window Blinds

Window blinds, along with their smaller slatted cousin, the mini blind, are one of the most popular and practical window covering options in most homes today.

And while you should get years of use from your quality Venetian blinds, eventually the rigors of daily use take a toll.

Most commonly, the lift cords fray, become knotted and tangled or break altogether, rendering the blind useless.

Another common problem is that slats may become bent over time, needing replacement.

Many people, finding the blind no longer operable, pay a lot of money to replace their Venetian blinds once the lift cords no longer work properly.

But, you can quite easily replace the lift cords yourself by following our step by step guide, extending the life of your window blind and saving the expense of replacement!

What you’ll need to fix your Venetian window blind:
* Replacement lift cord, slats (if needed), ladder tape and ladders; you can purchase these from your blind manufacture and it is good to plan ahead and buy these when you buy new Venetian blinds.

• Adhesive tape
• Scissors and utility knife
• Large, flat work surface

Step by step instructions to fix Venetian blinds:

1. Fist, lower your Venetian blind all the way down. Adjust the slats open position with the wand or tilt cord.
2. Remove the blind from your window by unclipping it from the brackets. Place the blind flat on your work surface, using care to keep the slats and cords neat and untangled.
3. Next, if your Venetian blind has end caps on the bottom rail, remove them. Remove the bottom rail cover to provide access to the clips or knots at the end or the lift cord, as well as the string or ladder tape ladders.
4. If you need to replace the ladders, disconnect these from the bottom rail. If you are only replacing the lift cord, disconnect both of the lift cord ends that you should find tied or clipped to the bottom rail.
5. Pull the two lift cords up through the holes in the slats to remove bent or damaged slats and feed your replacement slats onto the blind’s ladders.
6. Next, you want to thread the cords back down through the holes in the slats, re-securing them to the bottom rail. Install the bottom rail cover and end caps.
7. To replace your window blind’s lift cords or ladders, simply pull the replacement cords through the holes in the slats up to your blind’s head box.
8. To replace your window blind’s ladders, first disconnect them from the tilt tube, which is in the head box. Then slide the old ladders off the sides of your slats. Slide the slats into the replacement ladders and attach them to the tilt tube and the bottom rail. Pull the lift cords through the holes in the slats, alternating the cords between the ladder rungs back and forth until the cord is threaded through all the rungs. Then secure the lift cords to your bind’s bottom rail.
9. To replace your window blind’s lift cords, pull the two ends up and into the head box. Pull the cords over the pulleys at the top, and back down and out. Unless you have an identical unit to use for reference, you might want to take a photo or sketch out a diagram before you disassemble things; each blind model may have a somewhat different configuration.
10. Next, feed both ends of your replacement lift cord into the head box and run them over the first pulley. Feed one end over the next pulley and the other end across the head box and over to the far pulley. Feed the two lift cords down through the holes in the slats and secure them to the bottom rail. Install the bottom rail cover and end caps.
11. Replace your window blind it its brackets.
12. If you have replaced the lift cords, be sure to re-level the bottom rail properly. This procedure varies depending on the manufacturer and model. You will need to either adjust the equalizing lift-cord buckle or else knot both lift cords together above the tassel once you have the bottom bar leveled. If needed, cut the cords to remove excess length.

By following these simple instructions you can give your Venetian blinds or mini blinds extra life and avoid the expense of replacing window blinds every few years!