Cellular Shades

The Ups and Downs of Cellular Shades

To correct this condition, which is usually caused by a malfunctioning inner spring, start by pulling the shade almost all the way down to the sill. Then, while leaving the shade pulled down, lift the roller out of its brackets at the top.

Now, using your hands, roll the cellular shade up on its roller and then place the rolled-up shade back in its original brackets on the window. Next, pull it down slowly to see how the tension feels.

Unless the spring on the inside is broken, in which case you need a new roller, there will be more tension in the spring than there was before.

If the spring is still not wound tightly enough to give the desired tension, repeat the process, but this time pull the cellular shade down only halfway before taking it out of the brackets to re-roll it by hand.

If you end up with a cellular shade that is wound too tightly – that is, it if has too much tension and literally flies up when released – then simply reverse the process as follows:

Raise the cellular shade as high as it will go in the window, then remove the rolled-up shade from its brackets and unroll about halfway by hand. Then replace it in the brackets and try again.