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Recently the handle broke off my patio door - I could replace that for a small amount but it got me to thinking about patio doors with internal blinds.
Does anyone have experience with blinds inside of patio doors - pros and cons? Also, if you really like yours, what is the brand/model and what really stands out about it.
I've seen some for under a $1,000 and some for triple that cost so there's obviously a wide range of quality.
Agreed. If the space wan't designed for that swing space it will tighten up a room in a hurry.
The deeper concern is that there are fewer attractive choices for swinging doors
that will fit into the existing rough opening of a sliding patio door.
But if you have the ceiling height without overhang issues (like in this pic)
doing some sort of bump out could be a very nice choice too.
I’ve bought both Jeld-wen French doors with the blinds in between the glass (about $800 at the depot) & Pella “therma star” sliders with the blinds between the glass (about $800 at Lowe’s). They were both quite nice & everyone that noticed them loved them.
Swing-space is definitely an issue with French doors, but if you have the space & like to open them up, with French doors & a screen kit, you get a 6 foot wide opening to air the house out. One set at each end of the house would air out our 1600 sq ft house in maybe a half hour.. pretty awesome in Arizona for cooling the house down on cool mornings/evenings..
The only thing that made me grumpy about the jeld-wen doors was the internal blinds had a label stuck to the blinds inside the glass & they fell off all four doors within about 3 months, and stayed inside the glass at the bottom irritating me for the next 8 years!
The Pella sliders were flawless- the screen kit is cheaper (cause you only get one panel) & the sliders operated with one finger. We put 5 of them in both our rentals and our primary residence. Pro-tip: buy an extra screen kit & stash it in the garage or attic- you can’t re-screen a slider for less than the cost of that kit (about $50).
You get slightly more glass area with a slider than with a French door, just because of the way the door is made. And I think the sliders are slightly more secure than French doors, just because there isn’t a big frame in the center for the door striker.
I definitely would insist on blinds between the glass on any house I was planning on keeping- if it was a flip or a rental, the extra $500~ish probably isn’t coming back at resale, though buyers do like them.
I’ve bought both Jeld-wen French doors with the blinds in between the glass (about $800 at the depot) & Pella “therma star” sliders with the blinds between the glass (about $800 at Lowe’s). They were both quite nice & everyone that noticed them loved them.
Swing-space is definitely an issue with French doors, but if you have the space & like to open them up, with French doors & a screen kit, you get a 6 foot wide opening to air the house out. One set at each end of the house would air out our 1600 sq ft house in maybe a half hour.. pretty awesome in Arizona for cooling the house down on cool mornings/evenings..
The only thing that made me grumpy about the jeld-wen doors was the internal blinds had a label stuck to the blinds inside the glass & they fell off all four doors within about 3 months, and stayed inside the glass at the bottom irritating me for the next 8 years!
The Pella sliders were flawless- the screen kit is cheaper (cause you only get one panel) & the sliders operated with one finger. We put 5 of them in both our rentals and our primary residence. Pro-tip: buy an extra screen kit & stash it in the garage or attic- you can’t re-screen a slider for less than the cost of that kit (about $50).
You get slightly more glass area with a slider than with a French door, just because of the way the door is made. And I think the sliders are slightly more secure than French doors, just because there isn’t a big frame in the center for the door striker.
I definitely would insist on blinds between the glass on any house I was planning on keeping- if it was a flip or a rental, the extra $500~ish probably isn’t coming back at resale, though buyers do like them.
Great! I'm surprised Pella is the same price as Jeld-wen just because I'd not heard of that brand before. Good tip about the screen - mine is shot on my current one and is another reason to just go ahead and replace the whole thing. Did you get e-glass or triple glaze?
I have a Pella slider also. I installed it seventeen years ago, and it still functions flawlessly. I also like how the screen is mounted on the inside with a nice glide track that supports the entire door from the top. No wheels to bind on the bottom. And boy does it seal nicely!
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