SAM KIT slats· 3 min read
Rotating Slat Privacy Screen: How Many Slats for 2.4 × 1.9 m
A privacy screen between terraces made of SAM KIT rotating slats: a worked 2,400 × 1,900 mm example with wooden and aluminium slats, counts and lengths.
A solid screen between terraces blocks the neighbours' view, but it also blocks light and air. Rotating slats work differently: at 0° they are closed for privacy, and tilted they let the breeze and light through. SAM KIT tilts them smoothly from 0 to 140°. Let's work out a screen for a clear opening of 2,400 × 1,900 mm (about 7 ft 10 in × 6 ft 3 in) between two posts.
The brief
- Clear width 2,400 mm — the distance between the posts the slats will span.
- Clear height 1,900 mm — from the bottom to the top of the space the slats fill.
- Horizontal slats, once in wood and once in aluminium.
Wood or aluminium: the result
| Slats | Sections | Slat length | Slats in total | SAM KIT pairs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wooden | 2 × 1,200 mm | 1,164 mm (buy 1.2 m) | 40 | 8 |
| Aluminium | 1 × 2,400 mm | 2,364 mm (buy 2.5 m) | 20 | 4 |
A wooden slat can be at most 1.5 m long. A slat across the whole opening would be 2,364 mm, so the calculator splits the opening into two equal 1,200 mm sections. Each section has 20 slats and 4 SAM KIT pairs, 40 slats and 8 pairs in total. An aluminium slat can be up to 3 m, so one section with 20 slats and 4 pairs covers the whole opening.
Where the numbers come from
- 1Slat length = section width − 36 mm for the SAM KIT bodies on both sides: 1,200 − 36 = 1,164 mm in wood, 2,400 − 36 = 2,364 mm in aluminium.
- 2Slats sit at a 95 mm pitch and fill the clear height minus 25 mm of clearance: 1,875 mm gives 20 slats per section.
- 3One SAM KIT pair covers 475 mm of height: 1,875 / 475 rounds up to 4 pairs per section.
- 4Slats are bought in the next stock length up — 1.2 m for wood, 2.5 m for aluminium.
Two sections need a post or upright in the middle for the SAM KIT bodies. Plan for it from the start: the clear width of each section is the distance from an outer post to the middle one, so subtract the middle post's width from the 2,400 mm first and run the calculation again.
How the height changes what you buy
| Clear height | Wood, 2 sections: slats / pairs | Aluminium, 1 section: slats / pairs |
|---|---|---|
| 1,600 mm | 34 / 8 | 17 / 4 |
| 1,800 mm | 38 / 8 | 19 / 4 |
| 1,900 mm | 40 / 8 | 20 / 4 |
| 2,000 mm | 42 / 10 | 21 / 5 |
Slats increase steadily with height, SAM KIT pairs in steps. Up to a clear height of 1,925 mm, 4 pairs per section are enough — the slats then fill at most 1,900 mm, exactly 4 × 475 mm. At 2,000 mm each section needs a fifth pair, so 2 more pairs in wood. If a few centimetres of height do not matter to you, it pays to stay below that limit.
And with the middle post? If it is, say, 60 mm wide, 2,340 mm is left for the slats, two sections of 1,170 mm. The slat shrinks to 1,134 mm (you still buy 1.2 m), and the count stays at 40 slats and 8 pairs.
SAM KIT slatsOpen this example in the rotating slat calculatorThings to keep in mind
- Enter the clear space between the posts — the posts or frame themselves are not part of the calculation.
- If the terrace floor is not level, measure the clear height at both ends and use the smaller value.
- SAM KIT takes slats 19–20 mm thick and 99–100 mm wide, so you can use your own. The mechanism comes in white, black and anthracite.
- Check which side the neighbours see you from and tilt the slats accordingly — they also hold any position in between.
Closed slats form a solid surface that catches the wind. Have a structural engineer or the maker of the structure check the post anchoring and sizes. Whether a screen on a property boundary needs a permit or notice is a question for your local building authority.
Flowgarden is the shop of the same team behind Planmero.