efficient sliding glass doors

[irmanator]

is there such a thing? right now i seal mine off for the winter but would much rather have the ability to let the dog directly into the back yard instead of trying to get her to hold it till we walk around the house. I was also thinking of taking it out totally and putting a normal door but i like the view. Any suggestions? (whatever has to be done in a frugal way)

[PrincessPerky]

Oddly but possibly helpful I know someone who has a door, normal door, practically right beside a sliding glass door. I assume it is a quirk of design, but it might solve your problem. I have a HUGE bank of windows right beside my back door..nice view and easily covered up without ruining access to the back..might be an option.

Another friend has double sized 'French doors' in place of sliding glass..almost as good a view, but seals better IMO.

[Aleta]

You can buy the French doors without the mullions. They are called single-pane french doors. You still get the view. I have the other type of french doors and they are a pain in the neck to clean. The single pane is very elegant looking and would solve your problem and not compromise your view. There are wooden and aluminum doors.

[irmanator]

thanks i will stop at home depot for price comparison

[GrimJack]

The way my brother (who lived in Denver CO) solved the sliding door problem was to install a second set of sliding doors as storm doors. In the winter you just had to open 2 sliding doors. I don't know the economics of this but it is worth thinking about.

[LuxLiving]

We got a new slider when we had our windows replaced. The old one was a 1970's model that was basically just a big old money leak in the side of my house. The newer ones offered by window replacement companies are much better these days. You might check w/them.

In our nearby big-city there are all kinds of variance in pricing on window/door replacements. There are premium brands w/big $ticket prices all the way down. We found a happy medium and got ours installed. My living room is much warmer these days!

I wanted the French doors but as the man explained it there is much more opportunity for leakage with one of those than a slider.

[GrimJack]

Originally Posted by LuxLiving

I wanted the French doors but as the man explained it there is much more opportunity for leakage with one of those than a slider.

I wish we could get real French doors - the doors in my grandfather's home in Chatou were very tightly sealed. The design was similar to how the shutters sealed and locked - one side has an edge that looks kind of like a 'G' in cross-section, the other section is sorta hinged and the 2 doors interlock and the handle that works the interlocking also slips pins into the floor and ceiling. The shutters were designed to survive 100 years or so of war -- the French doors were designed to keep dust and people out.

[LuxLiving]

As he explained it to me, each of the two French door sides (top, bottom, left side, right side) has to seal tightly and there is much more opportunity for leakage at any one of those 8 points on repeated open/closes. Where as on the slider, there are only four sides to seal on the repeated open/close if the stationary portion is sealed effectively at time of installation.

[GrimJack]

Oh! -- I was thinking of something else -- that sounds right when broken down into points of leakage.