How to Choose the Right Sliding Door

Choosing the right sliding door for your home or office will depend on a number of factors, including the size and style of your home and your budget. Here are some tips to help you understand some of the many available options:

1. Room around the door(s). If you are used to a traditional sliding glass door, you may want to consider folding doors instead. These provide a stunning connection between your indoor and outdoor living spaces. However, folding doors require more room than traditional sliding doors. This means they may not work with every home design. This problem is minimized when you choose folding doors from Expert Window & Door, since the products we use stack to the exterior, rather than the interior, of your home.
2. Material and finish. While it should go without saying, it is important to choose sliding door options that will complement, and not clash with, your existing or new decor plan for your home. Common sliding door construction choices include many popular woods, aluminum, fiberglass, steel, vinyl and clad-wood. Consider the potential upkeep involved with various types of framing and trim, and choose based on what will work best with your lifestyle. If your sliding glass door will be used frequently, look for more durable options.
3. Energy efficiency. Glass doors are beautiful, but they are not all created equally when it comes to energy efficiency. Different sliding door glass options include choices with different R-values, U-factors, UV coatings and Low-E options. If your sliding doors are not energy efficient, you could be wasting money on heating and air conditioning. Talk to our window and door professionals about energy-efficient options to help lower your bills and to protect against harmful UV rays that can cause your furniture and carpet to fade.
4. Safety features. Some sliding glass doors come with traditional single-point door lock, while others offer enhanced security features including anti-lift features and various sophisticated lock options. It is important to feel safe in your own home, so you’ll want to explore options that make the most sense for your neighborhood and other home security measures you may already have in place.
5. Other considerations. Are screens important to you? Do you prefer gliding doors, folding doors, or a hinged (swinging) door style? Are you worried about water leakage? The answers to these questions and more will help you zero in on the type of sliding door that will be perfect in your home.

As you can see, there is a wide range of styles and quality when it comes to sliding doors. To learn more about how to choose the perfect sliding door, and to see why the sliding doors offered by Expert Window & Door have helped us earn our reputation as Georgia’s best door specialists, contact us online today, or call us at homelux@indalcorp.com.