Sliding Patio Door Advice

[Irish]

Hey guys, has anyone ever installed a new sliding glass patio door? I have a large bay window in our kitchen, and I'd like to replace that with a sliding glass door out to our deck. Any advice on brands & types, or experience on how difficult it was? Is it something an experienced DIY can do? Thanks.

[Hirize]

You can do it if you just take your time and plan it out.

First purchase a name brand, pay the money for a good door.

Second, have the door on hand before making the opening.

Most of all when you install the door make sure the door is square (Measure corner to corner should be exact same measurement.) Make sure the measurement is the same top to bottom all along the frame, don't let it sag or bow in the middle.

The biggest thing is to make sure the door frame is not racked.
This is sort of hard to explain without pictures but I'll try.
Take a string line from one corner to the opposite corner and then take a second string line from other two corners. The two strings should just touch where they meet in the center of the opening. This is what will ensure the door will slide perfectly and not jam in the opening.
Have lots of wooden wedges on hand.

Aloha, Pete

[j p frog]

and some extra 2x4 or 2x6(depending on the thickness of your exterior walls) in case you have to make some adjustments to the opening.

[BTSyndrome]

I can't wait till I can get rid of our sliding door.
First chance I get there will be french doors going in to replace the slider.

Dislikes- every slider I have had on any house a seal goes bad and fogs the inside glass. 2 yr old door all the way to a 15 yr old door (15yr one has been the best one, still glides fairly well)

Main dislike- After putting in a gate out the back fence to walk around the lake.
My slider does not have a way to lock the door from the outside.
So we have to go out the front door, to lock the house up, then walk around the house to the water.:mad:

[Scuba_Dave]

My Pella slider the trim seperated from the glass on the outside on both doors after just one winter
I'm going to replace it with a fixed pane & single door that swings open
Slider does not give you as much room to move thing in & out as a 36" door
And the screens always seem to need adjustment after a while
I bought the Pella because the screen is on the inside
Never even installed the screen
I like this look

http://nicksbuilding.com/French%20Doors/n250-Chateau-patio.jpg

[390kid]

are you using the same rough opening as the bay window? if not you need to dig out the window header and make it bigger. if a slider unit will fit the existing rough opening you should be able to to do it no problems.try and find a standard size door to save yourself some coin.

[Irish]

Thanks for all the tips gents. I know the sliders can develop track issues, but I'm not a big fan of the french doors at all, plus I really don't have the room to have a large door swing open (either way), it would defeat the purpose of my putting in the door.

are you using the same rough opening as the bay window? if not you need to dig out the window header and make it bigger. if a slider unit will fit the existing rough opening you should be able to to do it no problems.try and find a standard size door to save yourself some coin.

Yeah, this is a big ? I'm looking into. I measured the bay window yesterday and it's ~64" wide based on the inside. I have to pop some of the trim off and take a look, but it looks like I may need to install a new header. :(

[390kid]

if thats the case then first i would find a standard door that i liked, becuase youre not stuck with an opening size. is the house one or two stories the floor or roof structure above needs to be supported during construction. hopefully the cieling joist run pependicular to the header in the area youre working in that makes shoring the exterior structure much easier.

[IslandHopper]

Irish,

If you're looking at a typical vinyl-clad patio door, you can have one built to whatever size you want. There are "standard" sizes that are definitely cheaper (i.e. a 72x80 standard door goes for around $435 + tax, vs. $681 for a "custom" 70x80 or 69-1/2x84-3/4, or whatever...) Basically, the ranges for a custom door are huge. Anything from 60"-72" wide by 80"-96" tall will cost you exactly the same amount. If you need something 72-1/2 wide, though, it's another $120. Stock door sizes for most companies are 60x80, 60x82, 72x80,72x81,72x82,72x96,96x80,96x82 & 96x96. Those are all rough openings, so if you can adapt to any of those dimensions with your framing members it'd be the cheapest option by far.
I'd suggest Ply-Gem/Certainteed or Summit/Jeld-Wen. (Different names for the same companies, depending on location.) Both have lifetime warranties on their products so if a seal fails and the glass fogs up it gets replaced for free. Milgard is also quality, but considerably more and not really worth the extra coin.

[390kid]

^^^^^ threre you go run a 5-0 unit and all you have to do is pad the opening to accomadate the new unit. a 5-0 slider is kinda small though imo

[Irish]

Irish,

If you're looking at a typical vinyl-clad patio door, you can have one built to whatever size you want. There are "standard" sizes that are definitely cheaper (i.e. a 72x80 standard door goes for around $435 + tax, vs. $681 for a "custom" 70x80 or 69-1/2x84-3/4, or whatever...) Basically, the ranges for a custom door are huge. Anything from 60"-72" wide by 80"-96" tall will cost you exactly the same amount. If you need something 72-1/2 wide, though, it's another $120. Stock door sizes for most companies are 60x80, 60x82, 72x80,72x81,72x82,72x96,96x80,96x82 & 96x96. Those are all rough openings, so if you can adapt to any of those dimensions with your framing members it'd be the cheapest option by far.
I'd suggest Ply-Gem/Certainteed or Summit/Jeld-Wen. (Different names for the same companies, depending on location.) Both have lifetime warranties on their products so if a seal fails and the glass fogs up it gets replaced for free. Milgard is also quality, but considerably more and not really worth the extra coin.

Awesome info IH, thanks a bunch. I was looking at a Jen-weld door online that looked pretty reasonable. Unless there's an overwhelming reason for it, I'd prefer to not drop 2K on a high end Anderson door.

I have to check out how the window is currently framed. I thought maybe it fit directly between studs at 64", but that would be a tight squeeze. My hopes are the header extends to the point where I can put a standard door in.... I'll update once I get the chance to investigate. I agree I think the 5' door would be a little small, probably around 27" opening I guess.

[390kid]

is your house stucco or siding? if its siding no big deal. i world peel some dry wall back and see whats hiding in the wall. if your house was built in the last 25 years or so see what hardwear you have to contend with, as long as you dont have any hold downs or straps you shouldnt have many problems making that opening 6 to 8 inches bigger on each side. if its stucco then changing out the header can be a real pain in the ass. i hate doing them on stucco houses

[Irish]

Vinyl siding.