Sliding Patio doors or PVC French doors are designed to enhance any room, a balcony or a conservatory. Patio type doors are smart and highly practical and will fit nicely into any house type whether it is a traditional type house, contemporary, within a town environment or located in the countryside. They are elegant in style allowing you to enjoy your patio, balcony or garden at any time of the year and make your room feel bigger and brighter.
Sliding doors can transform a room. With the large areas of glass the light comes flooding in and are very pleasing on the eye and open effortlessly transforming the inside and outside living space into one bringing the outside inside.
UPVC patio doors, once installed, will provide high levels of performance with the minimum of maintenance required for many years. Sliding doors are perfect choice if space is limited. The sliding patio door operate in two basic styles. The first is ‘In Line’ sliding type. This usually comprises a pair of doors with one door fixed and the other sliding on rollers to the left or right. This arrangement of one panel fixed and one sliding has been about for numerous years and has stood the test of time. Both doors are contained within surrounding sub frame allowing a smooth sliding motion.
The second type is ‘Tilt and Slide’ type. When in the closed position the panels are in line with each other. To open a panel simply tilt and pull the panel inwards and slide to the rear of the adjacent fixed panel. The panel can also be left in the tilt position allowing ventilation.
Sliding type doors do not protrude therefore they required a lot less room to operate compared to swinging type doors.
If space is not a problem uPVC French patio doors can be an option. UPVC French doors swing inwards or outwards in the same way as traditional doors. Also other door options are folding uPVC patio doors or uPVC bifold patio doors.
Most manufacturers will custom build a made-to-measure set of doors specifically to meet with your exact requirements. Off the shelf DIY uPVC patio doors are available for those who wish to install the doors themselves.
Example of sliding patio doors in place
Glazing Options for uPVC Patio Sliding Doors
Double glazing units – Two or three panes of glass arranged with a hermetically sealed air space between. Multiple glazing helps to reduce thermal loss and the build up of condensation ,resulting in lower energy costs. Greater energy savings can be achieved by installing argon gas in the sealed units instead of the traditional air. Argon is an inert gas that produces better thermal properties than dry air.
Types of glass used for thermal efficiency:
Low-E (low emissivity) coated glass is specially coated to filter long wave radiation i.e. infrared heat but will let through short wave radiation i.e. visible light. The short wave radiation which passes through the glass is absorbed by the carpet and furniture etc within the room. This short wave radiation is then transferred to long wave energy in the form of heat.
In winter time the heat energy radiating from objects e.g. radiators, carpet etc. wants to escape via the window but the Low E glass reflects the heat back inside keeping the room warm.
In summer time the reverse happens. Outside its warmer and the heat want to radiate through the glass which is the weakest point to the inside of the building. The Low E glass filters the heat from getting through reducing the effects of solar heat gain and therefore lower cooling costs.
Radiation deflection internally and externally
Types of glass used for safety reasons:
Laminated Safety Glass – The area of glass in sliding uPVC patio doors is large therefore safety is very important. Laminated glass consists of a sandwich of two layers of glass with a membrane of plastic in between. This reduces the risk of the glass smashing if someone falls against it. Should the pane break the integrity of the glass pane is held by the plastic layer. This type of glass should, however not be used in a situation where the pane needs to be knocked out in the event of an emergency e.g. fire as it will take much longer to kick the glass out for escape purposes. Laminated glass is also thicker (normally 6.4mm) than toughened and therefore heavier increasing the wear and tear on door opening units. It is also more expensive than toughened type.
Advantages include:
- Increased security – takes longer to break through
- Can withstands blows from objects
- The plastic layer helps the integrity of the pane when broken
- If broken the glass can stay in place until replaced
- Building code requirement
Toughened (Tempered) Glass – This glass is stronger than standard glass (about 4 times). The tempering process produces additional strength and therefore resistant to thermal stress and impact from say a football. If broken the glass shatters into small pieces of glass (dice) reducing the risk of injury unlike the dangers created by large sections of broken standard glass. If large areas of glass in a building are required e.g. conservatory, toughened glass is usually specified.
Colours Available (see colour platter)
They are now available in a range of colours and finishes to suite everyone needs and tastes.
- Polar white
- Cream
- Cherrywood
- Light oak
- Mahogany
- Rosewood
Range of colours
If you would like a colour other than that above nowadays there is a huge range available. Over 150 RAL colours are now available – click here to see examples of REHAU colour range.
Frames can be installed with same colour of framing inside and out or a combination for example of white inside and light oak outside.
Benefits of UPVC Patio Doors
UPVC is an excellent, insulated material used in the manufacture of patio doors. A patio door set is defiantly a brilliant choice to the rear of any house and will probably increase the value of the asset. The doors are manufactured in a rigid plastic material and unlike wood uPVC (which is an abbreviation for unplasticised polyvinyl chloride) does not rot, doesn’t require regular repainting, will not absorbed water and performs well in all weather conditions. Problems with discoloration of the uPVC are rare nowadays.
Example of sliding polar white patio doors
When installed they look fantastic particularity in wood grain effect. They will fit in with an existing traditional or contemporary environment easily. Windows and doors manufactured from uPVC are easy and quick to install and if looked after will last many years.
UPVC patio doors prices are much lower than the equivalent in aluminium or timber and therefore affordable.
There has been some bad press over the last few years regarding the locking cylinders used on uPVC door locks. With this in mind be sure to used the updated anti tamper cylinders on your new doors.
Sliding Doors Inside
Sliding doors internally is also possible. If the structural opening is small and maybe the space to open the doors is limited a set of interior doors folding to one or two sides may be a better solution. These doors are great for closets.
Door Security
Security is very important these days especially in the home. You need to know that your family are safe when at home so it is vitally important that your entry doors are secure. Make sure that the patio doors and if you have an uPVC front door fitted that these doors are fitted with the latest key cylinder technology. The cylinder is quite often the weakest link in the locking system. If would be burglars can bypass the cylinder they will have full access to the inner locking system allowing them to open the doors easily. Be sure that all the cylinders fitted are anti tamper type.