Sliding doors are highly popular choices in so many existing and upcoming property developments. Residential estates, new office buildings, and even commercial properties are being kitted out with robust, convenient sliding aluminium and glass doors. Unfortunately, all sliding doors will begin to show signs of wear eventually. In this article we look at a few common sliding door issues, and what you can do to solve them.
A few types of sliding doors
1. Bypass sliding doors
These simple sliding doors are ideal for smaller spaces where a hinged door won’t work. Like the name reveals, bypass sliding doors slide open with the door passing in front of the wall or glass pane to the left or right of it. Simple versions of these doors can operate with only a top rail, but most will have rails at the bottom too.
2. Cavity sliding doors
Like bypass doors, pocket sliding doors are opened by rolling the door left or right to open it. The difference here is that pocket doors are designed to slide away into the wall of the building. For space saving purposes, these sliding doors are very popular among property developers.
3. Vista folding stack doors
These sliding doors are also known as stacking doors. They don’t disappear into a wall and out of sight, but they do offer their own space saving benefits. This is thanks to the way the door’s panels “fold” onto each other in a zig-zag pattern, stacking them neatly to the left or right of the entrance.
4. Patio sliding doors
Much like bypass sliding doors, patio doors slide open by rolling along a rail that runs parallel to a wall or fixed glass panel. Instead of just one sliding door that open to the right or left, palace sliding doors feature two moveable doors that join in the centre and can be rolled in separate directions to create a wider entrance.
Common sliding door issues
– Faulty rollers
This happens very commonly in domestic patio doors when the rollers ceases and “jams” or stops the door from operating properly and sliding freely. This is commonly due to a lack of maintenance or a build-up of carpet fibres or pet hair in the door’s rollers.
– Misaligned wheels
A sliding door’s wheels don’t work in isolation to make it slide open and closed. There are also rails that the wheels need to sit flush on to ensure correct operation. Misaligned wheels cause excess friction when in motion, making it harder to operate the door. Eventually, misaligned wheels will cause the door to come off the rails and cause an even bigger issue.
– Faulty locks
Another common sliding door problem is a locking mechanism that either breaks or is unable to latch to the door’s frame properly. Unfortunately, cheap sliding doors have cheap locks, which are very simple mechanism that aren’t known for their safety. A faulty sliding door lock can just be because of wear and tear, or the sliding panel not making enough contact with the door frame for the latch to secure correctly.
– Cracked panes
Sometimes people walk into closed sliding doors. Sometimes a rogue cricket ball ends up hitting the glass. There are many ways a sliding door’s glass panes can crack. The problem with cracks is that they spread over time, and will negatively affect the structural integrity of the sliding door.
Sliding door maintenance tips
- Regularly sweep out any dirt or debris from your sliding door’s rollers.
- Call sliding door technicians when you notice that your sliding door’s wheels are causing sliding troubles.
- Lubricate your sliding door’s lock regularly, and make sure that the door can slide right up against the frame.
- Replace glass sliding door panes soon after they crack to avoid further damage and possible injury.
- Use the right rollers for your environment e.g. 304-grade stainless steel rollers for coastal applications.
Get quoted on sliding doors in KwaZulu-Natal
ParaGone is known throughout the province for our quality products, excellent installations, and top-notch customer service. We have installed sliding doors for countless existing and in-development residential, corporate, commercial and industrial properties. Get a sliding door quote for your next big development today!