Easy Fixes for Curtain Issues

Curtains are subject to heavy everyday wear, occasional spills, and tears. Most can be restored or maintained in good condition at minimal cost. The below tips will help you keep your home looking beautiful.

Strengthen the fittings and reattach the rail

A fallen curtain pole can mean that the original hardware fittings were too weak or that the plaster that they were screwed into had "blown" or crumbled with age.

Tap the wall above the window; if the plaster sounds hollow, it has probably blown — meaning that it has become detached from the wall.

• Screw a long batten to the top edge of the window and fix the rail brackets to the batten to spread the load.

If the plaster is sound, you can reuse the existing holes.

• Drill the holes deeper with a power drill so that they can accommodate a heavier-duty wall plug. Use a vacuum cleaner to suck any plaster dust from the enlarged holes.
• Squirt some quick-drying, strong adhesive into the hole, then push in the new plug and allow it to set overnight.
• Reinstall the curtain rail with new, longer screws.

Train your curtains or weight the seams with coins

If your curtains won't hang in neat pleats, it's time for a little training — "teaching" the fabric how to move.

• Hang your curtains on the rod or track and open them fully. Push the fabric into the desired wave shapes until you are happy with the depth and interval of the folds.
• Use a strip of plastic wrap to make a loop around the bunched curtain, holding it in position. Secure a band of plastic wrap every 0.6 metres (24 inches) or so down the length of the curtain, and leave the curtains tied in this way for three days. When you release the fabric, it should have "learned" its new shape.
• If you have a steam cleaner, close the curtains and direct steam from the nozzle, working evenly from the header to the hemline. Open the curtains before they have cooled and tie them with plastic wrap as above; leave for three days.
• If your curtains are lined, try sliding a coin or fishing weight into the hem, where the lining and panel hem meet. The extra weight will encourage the curtains to hang straight down.

Clean and straighten the curtain track

Curtains that run on tracks should open and close smoothly. If they stick, the track itself could be bent or the rollers and pulleys that carry the curtains could be jammed.

• Close your curtains to the point at which they stick. Using a stepladder, climb up and inspect the track at this point. If it is visibly bent, use some pliers to gently work it back into shape.
• Move the pulleys and roller with your fingers — if any of them is stuck, give them a squirt of WD-40 and manipulate it until it is free.
• Make sure there are no knots in the cords used to open and close the curtains, and use the brush attachment of a vacuum cleaner to clean any dust or debris from the curtain tracks.