Welcome to Part 2 of our brand new Knowledge Hub series created to provide everything you need to know to help you find the best sliding doors for your project. This week we will be covering:
- Where sliding doors work best
- Why choose aluminium?
- A sensational sliding door showcase
- Sliding doors for a new home: one customer journey
- How to create a linked glass extension
- Go for UK manufactured sliding doors
1. Where sliding doors work best
Bespoke sliding patio door systems transform all kinds of homes, creating a seamless transition between inside and outside spaces. They let the light stream in with floor-to-ceiling panes of glass. The latest high performance sliding systems are an architect’s dream; it’s now possible to incorporate movable glass panels up to four metres wide and six metres high (15m2 or 1000kg maximum weight) into a glazing design to link your living space and garden. Here are some locations where sliding doors work beautifully:
Extensions for terraced homes
Looking for more space, light and seamless access to your outside? A set of sliding doors is the ideal glazing for a home extension.
A Hampstead townhouse with a small courtyard garden is transformed by a large L-shaped glass extension, sliding doors, and rooflights which houses a contemporary kitchen opening onto the patio garden. Many semi-detached and terraced homes have a path or storage area that runs alongside the ground floor. They make the perfect space on which to build a glass extension. Glazed with roof panels, glass walling and sliding doors a side return extension delivers a bigger kitchen and brighter, lighter open plan living space.
Open plan kitchen living areas
If you are in the exciting position of designing your own home, consider how minimal frame sliding doors will maximise light for its interior. A fixed window between the two sliding systems will create a continuous glass wall the width of the entire house, from living room to dining and kitchen areas.
Roof terraces
Going up into your roof is sometimes the only way to maximise your living space. Loft conversions can include a fully glazed non-load bearing sliding system. Combined with a terrace, walk-on glass rooflights and glass balustrading, sliding doors can deliver a fabulous high-rise view on the outside world.
Dormer windows and balconies for loft conversions
Smaller, lighter sliding door systems are perfect for high level installations like a bedroom dormer window and can be combined with a frameless Juliet balcony. Sliding doors are not just an option for ground floor living spaces.
Lower ground floor and basements
Gone are gloomy dark ground floors – sliding doors open up and transform previously underused spaces in family homes. Sliding doors can offer a bold glazing solution. In this project, the entire back wall of the house at ground level has been replaced with a wall to wall, floor to ceiling, slim framed ODC SL800 sliding system.
Gyms, garden rooms and pools
Sliding doors for home gyms and garden studios make these spaces a delight to use. Treated with solar control glass and opening with no intrusion into the room, a sliding door’s moving panels allow you to control breeze and temperature with ease.
Garage conversions
Thinking about maximising the existing space in your home? A garage conversion has the potential to be an additional living area, home studio, gym or office. Sliding patio doors, sometimes combined with additional fixed glass panels, create fabulous glass walls. So if your garage looks out over a great slice of the garden, we suggest you look at a sliding system such as ODC SL800.
5. Why choose aluminium sliding doors?
Aluminium is the optimum material for sliding door systems. Here’s why:
Allows for bespoke designs: Aluminium’s versatility allows us to construct customised contemporary and classic frame shapes and profiles, equally suitable for a single window, a large ‘glazed wall’ or glass sliding doors.
Durability: This incredibly durable and strong material means we are able to manufacture extremely large sliding doors and windows with minimal frames. And it’s good to know that long term, recycling rates for aluminium building materials are 92-98%.
Low maintenance: Aluminium sliding door frames are highly weather-resistant, even in coastal areas exposed to more severe weather. They need just a wipe with a damp cloth to keep them looking as good as new.
Lightweight: With assisted opening mechanisms even the largest sliding doors are easy to operate and manoeuvre.
Safety: Large sheets of glass in sliding doors are not a safety hazard. They are tempered, laminated and toughened to make sure they don’t shatter if anyone accidentally falls onto a pane. Anti-fall glass or fall protection glass for sliding doors has specifications set by European law EN 12600.
Security: Sliding doors offer excellent security. High quality systems should have PAS24 (either 2016 or 2022) to verify they been tested and approved to the very latest security standards. Doors that have passed the test have withstood attacks with pliers, sandbags and 50kg steel rams. There’s an independent police Secured By Design accreditation on doors and locking systems available for additional peace of mind.
Go to our Knowledge Hub to find out more about glazing suitable for coastal homes and how to check for quality in aluminium doors and windows.
6. A Sliding Door Showcase
Explore some of our most memorable sliding door projects:
7. sliding doors for a new home: A Customer journey
A couple in Dorset ordered four sets of sliding doors for their beautiful reverse living home in the hills. Here they reflect on the process and outcome for their home.
“ODC has just brought in windows with narrow sight lines which was absolutely perfect – that’s how our relationship started. What we loved was the construction quality and the way they flow beautifully. We also love the fact that they can open either way. And there’s one enormous pane of glass looking west which must be one of my favourite views.”
8. HOW TO CREATE A GLASS EXTENSION WITH FRAMELESS GLASS DOORS
Creating a glazed link structure or freestanding glass box is an exciting architectural proposition. Sliding doors, when combined with a glass roof structure and fixed glass panels, create innovative spaces filled with light. In the trade they’re known as wintergardens.
9. Why UK manufactured sliding glass panels and doors?
Sliding doors supplied by ODC are bespoke and made to order using high quality components in stock in the manufacturing facility. Many years of on-site design development means the team can problem-solve and create technical and aesthetic solutions for your project.
A UK manufacturing base for sliding doors in Poole, Dorset gives our customers real peace of mind. Design, glass quality, finishes, manufacturing process, lead times and a planned production schedule are all under our control. Delivery and installation are undertaken by the experienced ODC team, and not by sub-contractors.
Be sure to check back next week for Aluminium Sliding Doors: Advice from the Experts – Part 3 for yet more insights on how to transform your home with sliding doors
