patio doors

sliding vs french doors

If one has the interior room for an inswing hinged patio door which looks exactly like double or French doors, that is what I suggest in most scenarios. Sliding patio doors save on interior room and cost less to purchase. I've never thought that French or double doors were as secure as a hinged patio unit in which one door is inactive and anchored and glazed into the frame when built. The real advantage to this type of door unit would be the exterior sliding screen for ventilation. One can configure the operation and placement of the "swing" of the active door either into the jamb or into the center astragal.

The advantage of double doors would be their allowance for opening both doors while moving large objects into the residence.

To add to Mikes great comments.
In a double active 6' french I like the Andersen doors, good price point and dual sliding screen system.
Most people do not like sliding doors because they have had cheap badly performing doors. Try a Pella wood sliding door or a Himark/Okna sliding door, both perform great.

TheWindowNerd...

I didn't even know about the double screen system what Wayne was referring too regarding the Andersen design. That would be a huge plus. With my ProVia line of entry doors, they only offer a collapsable double screen system (Invent Screen) that offers excellent ventilation, but really lacks in appearance and securing pets or toddlers.

In addition to the fantastic slider from OKNA/HiMark, Sunrise makes a highly respected vinyl sliding patio door with a lot of options.

Typically a French style door is taller than a sliding patio door. Atrium doors on the other hand are usually 79.5 high. So you might have to pay a cut down fee when choosing a French door over a slider or Atrium.

That is funny.
AW inswing french came in 79.5 and 82 3/8.
Pella come in 79.5, 80 1/8 and 81.5.
Go figure.

+1. I was thinking the same ... although I do have to admit, as soon as builders started using "replacement/insert" sized doors in new construction, all bets were off. I don't think that there is a hard and fast rule on "standard" height anymore.

Yep, similarly front entry doors.
Though widths are more standard 2/6, 2/8, 3/0
actual frame size for a 6/8 height is 81.5 or 82, with some offering a 6/6 at 80.

theWindowNerd