Shutter guide rail

The guide rail is the side channel, usually U shaped, along which the ends of the slats of a shutter or roller shutter door slide as it goes up and down. There is one on each side of the opening, fixed to the wall or to the window frame.

Its job is to keep the slats in place. When a guide rail gets bent by a knock, comes loose or fills with dirt, the slats rub, the shutter moves in jerks or comes out on one side and goes down crooked.

On the coast, sand and salt build up inside and are the cause of many jams. Cleaning it from time to time and not using thick oils, which trap the sand, greatly extends the life of the shutter. If the guide rail is distorted or a slat has come out, you will find it in roller shutter repair.