Here in Arizona every home seems to have at least one set of sliding glass doors.  Unless you are blessed with a large wide patio overhang, having light and heat control is necessary.  Gone are the old days of vertical blinds.  Why choose this outdated option when there are so many others?

S Interior Design was asked to post this guest blog on the subject of some of those alternatives.  At the end of the guest post, we discuss an additional option that we do for  our clients on a regular basis—layers of drapery.

Guest Post

Choosing window treatments for sliding glass or patio doors can be a bit more involved than picking out a treatment for your bathroom window. In bathrooms

usually the main concerns are privacy and moisture resistance. On sliders privacy and light control can be issues but also how if functions is important.

You may use the door quite a bit and you might want something that’s easy to operate.  Or maybe you don’t use it that offend and just want something to block

out the sun a little.   As far as esthetics the sliding glass door is a bigger treatment and is going to make a statement. You want a treatment that is going

to go along with your style and decor. What’s out there if I want a soft elegant look, more rustic, contemporary or traditional?

Hopefully this article will provide you with the knowledge to choose a treatment that not only looks great but functions great as

well.

Before we get into the different types of treatments lets first go over some basic measuring specific to sliders.

 Few Tips on Measuring

When discussing measuring I am only referring to outside mounts since the majority of this application is outside mounted. Whenever you’re measuring for

sliding glass doors for the width you want to measure from trim to trim and add about 8 inches. The 8 inches is for 4 inches of overlap on each side. The

overlap is for privacy and light blocking.

The more overlap you will have more privacy and less light. There are a few exceptions to the rule. You may have obstructions that won’t allow that much

overlap like a counter top coming right up to your woodwork or an adjacent wall.   But you get the idea if you have the room add the 4 inches to each side.

Measure from the floor to 3 inches above the top trim for height. The 3 inches is to give you enough room to get the bracket above the trim (don’t mount on the

trim). Look for other obstructions such as cabinet doors. When open will they hit the new treatment? Will the treatment prevent the cabinet door from opening

all the way?

Now on to the treatment options for sliding glass doors.

First up is a Vertical cellular shade.

This is a cellular shade in a vertical position that slides back and forth on a rod that is similar to drapery rod but on steroids. Many companies make these

each one having a little variance. Most popular is the Vertiglide made by Hunter Douglas and The Ovation made by Comfortex.

I find that there is little different between the two except for price and Hunter Douglas puts their name on the handle. Spring Window Fashions, which is

the parent company to Bali and Graber, make Slide-vue and Verticell.

The  distinctive feature for these brands is you can slide either way, left to right or right to left.

Pros: Very energy efficient, thin stack usually about 6 inches so doesn’t cover

up much of your view.  No cords

Cons: Material at bottom can get dirty. Pets can or will damage material trying to move material out of their way to see squirrels.

Second up is Vertical Sheers:

This is a vertical blind with a sheer material attached over it. Most companies have their own version and operate just as a vertical blind.  The sheer is one piece that is fabricated so it attaches onto each vane.

Pros: The sheer material can be removed for cleaning. Offers a soft look with the function of a vertical blind.

Cons:  Because of added thickness of sheer material over vanes, the vanes won’t close as tight. This is true for most brands except for Levelor.
Levelors’  design allows the vanes to close the tightest.

Third is Sliding Woven Woods:

This is one of my favorites though not many companies make one. It is a woven wood material in a vertical position that is attached at the top to a rail that allows it to easily slide back and forth. Sometime you will find it with grommets at the top in which it will slide on a wood pole.

Pros:  No cords, safer for children. It can be lined for more privacy and light control

Cons: There are either open or closed, cannot control light like a vertical blind. Forth is Panel Tracks:

Referred to as sliding panels and valance. Panel tracks are strips of material about 18 to 35 inches wide that hang from a rod and slide like a drapery. The number of panels depends on the width of your patio door. When you slide them to one side they stack over one another. The material these are available in range from woven wood to sun screen. You can find them to fit any decorating scheme. Most companies make their own version and the difference is usually in how the rod is constructed and how the panels attach to the rod (mostly with Velcro).

Pros: Creates a dramatic look on a larger window like sliding glass doors. More pet friendly since they can easily move to panels out of the way to see outside. Safer for children

Cons: Panel width can cover a good portion of your glass. If you have the wall space you can have the treatment wider so the panels hang over your wall and not your glass door.

Fourth is the Luminette:

Only made by Hunter Douglas. It’s like a very fancy and pricey vertical sheer. It’s kind of hard to describe but I’ll give it a try. Picture this vertical blind with the vanes made out of a firm but softer material and each vane is connected by sheer to create a continuous treatment the width of your slider. It has two controls, one to draw it to one side and the second to rotate the vanes to control light and privacy.

Pros: Very soft look of a sheer with the functionally of a vertical blind.  Sleek design

Cons: Hard to install, Expensive, Keep the cats away.

Last but not least are Roller Shades:

I mention these because I see more people putting them on their sliding glass doors. There’re not using the more traditional solid material over there sliders but sun screen fabric. They want to filter out the sun but still want to see out and this offers a good solution.

Pros: Not too expensive Don’t have to tug on it to make it work. It raises and lowers by a beaded chain control.

Cons: They’re either up or down, so every time you want to use the door you have to raise them. Drawing them up will take two hands since they will have some weight to them.

Do You Have These Concerns

These are good questions and real concerns that you should take a minute and  think about when choosing a treatment.

Is energy efficient important to you?

Do you have young children?

Which are the safest?

Which stand up best to pets?

Do you have an extra wide slider with 3 or 4 panes of glass, or maybe a transom above, do you cover it or leave it open?

Which won’t take away from my beautiful view?

Most Popular

Well there you have it, treatments you can use on patio or sliding glass  doors. All of them will work on either two, three or four panes of glass. The only exception is roller shades. They have limitations on how wide they can be made. They can be made to fit over standard sliders (2 panes of glass). As far as popularity I would rate them in this order with the most popular being vertical cellular’s, then panel tracks, followed by roller shades, vertical sheers, laminates and finally sliding woven woods only because they aren’t as available and not too many people know about them yet. Choosing something that is going to make a big statement can be a bit scary. At least now you have some knowledge to make a more informed choice.

 About The Author: Robert is a window treatment installer who blogs about all things window treatments at bobtheblindguy.com. There you will find helpful information about various types of window treatments as well as tips & advice. Visit Him today at http://www.bobtheblindguy.com

By S Interior Design

Don’t forget about the option of custom fabric window treatments.  Options include Roman Shades and Drapery.  A favored option is to have a bottom layer of sheers to filter light, but not block views, with a second layer of heavier weight fabric that coordinates with the other furnishings, bedding and upholstery in a room.
S Interior Design has eleven years experience in design of custom window treatments for all windows including the sliding glass patio door.