What is a turn button (wervel)?
A turn button, in Dutch “wervel”, is a small pivoting plate, disc or hook used to hold a window, door or fly screen in place. It is fixed with a single screw or pin and turned over the edge of the moving part. In Dutch the usually iron fitting in the facade that holds an open window shutter back (a shutter dog) is also called a “wervel”.
Types
- Turn button: a flat disc or bar of timber, brass or steel that turns over the edge of a small window, cupboard door or screen.
- Shutter dog: a pivoting iron plate or hook in the brickwork, sometimes decoratively forged, that holds an open shutter against the wall so it does not bang.
Uses
- Fly screens clamped into a rebate.
- Small casements, cupboard doors, meter cupboard doors and access hatches.
- Open shutters on historic facades.
- Simple catches on sheds, chicken coops and garden buildings.
Tips
- Not a security device: a turn button keeps something shut but offers no resistance to forced entry.
- Correct position: fit it so it just turns over the edge with slight pressure. Too loose rattles, too tight damages the paint.
- Rustproof outdoors: use brass, stainless or galvanised steel with a stainless screw.
- Historic shutter dogs: old wrought-iron dogs are worth de-rusting and conserving rather than replacing.
- Use two: a screen or small door sits flatter with two turn buttons than with one.
Related terms
- Shutter
- Espagnolette bolt
- Ironmongery
- Fly screen
- Listed building
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