Screen Doors
Are you looking for the right solution to keep pesky insects out when you open your patio or front door? A retractable or sliding door are both great solutions to let a cool breeze through without allowing bugs to enter.
Consider the pros and cons of both to help you decide which option is the right choice for your home.
Retractable Screen Doors
Pros
- Great
Views
Compared to a hinged patio door, a sliding door provides a more expansive view to the exterior. Not only are sliding doors twice as wide, but the window portion tends to be larger as well, providing a wide, panoramic view of the yard and scenery beyond.
- Natural
Light
More glass found in sliding patio doors doesn’t just let you see out; it also allows more natural light to enter. This brightens your home and makes it feel more inviting. And don’t worry – the right window covering allows you to block out the light when you’re watching a movie or napping during the day and want it to be dark inside.
- Function
Whether you’re moving a large piece of furniture into your home or carrying trays full of food outside for a backyard barbecue, a sliding screen door offers the best functionality. Throw the door open wide and keep it that way for as long as you need as you walk back and forth between the yard and your house.
- Beauty
Sliding screen doors are functional, but they’re also beautiful. They add a high-end feel to your home, both inside and out, and tend to make the space feel large and grand.
- Space-Saving
Benefits
A hinged door requires the area in front of it to remain unobstructed to function properly. If your patio connects to the kitchen, a sliding door allows room for a table within a few feet of it. This helps you get more out of every square foot in your home than a hinged door does.
- Ventilation
On fair-weather days, it’s nice to open the sliding door for a bit of fresh air. You could certainly open a hinged door for a breeze as well, but this tends to have an unprofessional look about it.
A stiff breeze could even slam the hinged door shut. Plus, there’s the issue of bugs. With sliding door, you can open the glass portion but keep the screen closed to enjoy a wonderful breeze without allowing any pesky insects inside your home.
Cons
- Higher
Price
Sliding screen doors tend to cost more than standard hinged doors. Custom options consisting of wider openings and exotic materials cost even more. Still, choosing a high-quality yet affordable manufacturer helps you overcome this drawback.
- Lower
Energy Efficiency
Windows are the least efficient component of your home’s outer envelope. With a larger expanse of glass, sliding doors tend to be less efficient than hinged patio doors. Fortunately, with today’s increased emphasis on home efficiency, it’s possible to find sliding doors that employ advanced technologies to reduce heat flow through the glass. These provide higher efficiency ratings, helping to make heating and cooling your home more affordable.
- Less
Durability in Extreme Weather
Sliding screen doors are more susceptible to wind storms, hurricanes and tornadoes that whip up debris and fling it toward your house. However, all windows and doors with glass panes share this drawback, since they’re equally susceptible to these extreme conditions.
Need help installing a new sliding screen door? Leave the job to us. To learn more about our installation procedure and other glass services, please contact us today. We’re here to handle all your home glass needs.
Sliding Screen Doors
Pros
- The
screen virtually disappears when not in use
Instead of pivoting outward or sliding sideways, a retractable screen door rolls up into a housing mounted into the recess of the door, where it’s virtually unnoticeable. This roll-up action improves the appearance of the entranceway and prevents your view from being obscured by the screen when you don’t want it there.
- No
need to remove the screen during the off season
Retracting the screen when you don’t need it helps prevent damage from UV light, dirt and inclement weather. This prevents the need to remove and store the screen in winter.
- The
screen creates a tight seal
Even with its light weight and ease of use, a retractable screen door does a great job of keeping out both crawling and flying insects. This is thanks to the tight seal it creates all the way around the door when fully extended.
- Wider
openings are possible
Have you always dreamed of a panoramic back yard view? A sliding glass door paired with a retractable screen could be the perfect option for a lightweight, easy-to-operate door and screen combination. With a screen that retracts into the wall, the entire opening is left un-obscured when you don’t want the screen there.
- Flexible
and customizable
No matter what you have in mind for your project, you can almost guarantee the ability to customize a screen to fit your needs. Large openings and odd sizes are no problem for retractable screen doors.
- Heavy-duty
materials allow for a long life
Retractable screen doors are made from durable mesh to allow for substantial airflow while still keeping insects at bay. Some versions are even designed specifically to reduce heat and glare passing through the screen for a more comfortable interior.
Cons
- The
cost is higher
As a more advanced type of screen door, retractable versions cost more than fixed screen doors. This is especially the case if you want a motorized screen door that opens and closes with the touch of a button. This feature could push upfront costs five times higher than standard fixed screens.
Clearly, if you have the budget for it, retractable screen doors could provide the durable, beautiful aesthetic you’re looking for. Need more help deciding? Contact us to learn more about retractable screens and the benefits they could provide your specific project.