 | Bob Crager of Lewis Street Glass is a 26 year veteran in the glass business. Lewis Street Glass is a leading Wichita Glass company, serving the entire Wichita/Sedgwick County area since 1919. They do anything and everything having to do with glass, both residential and commercial. They also do Auto glass. They are located at 743 South Market, facing Kellogg on the South, and you can reach them by phone at (316) 263-8259. You can email Bob Crager at bcrager@lewisstreetglass.com |
Glass
2012-04-19 14:34:13
Sliding glass doors
A: Your question describes what we see pretty regularly…homes that have had, to some degree, the deferring of normal home maintenance by the current or previous owners. And when this deferred maintenance involves such high profile items as windows, doors, or storm windows and doors, it makes you wonder what else might not have been taken care of by the present owners, such as the HVAC (heating and air conditioning) units, electrical service, and/or plumbing. There can be a corollary in deferring the maintenance of home repairs.
Ignoring the operation of those sliding glass doors, and attempting to sell that home to someone who is predictably going to discover that non-sliding slider, as you did, is not smart by any stretch. Even if a prospective buyer failed to discover those sticking, hard to slide doors during a first or second look at the home, a home inspector most certainly will find the problem if the prospective buyer actually decides to sign a contract to buy that home. We find that a lot of folks let things slide, (pun intended) rather than having things done that will keep things that are supposed to slide, sliding. And it doesn’t matter if the sliding glass doors are the smaller 6’ doors, or the 12’ or larger, multi panel doors, sometimes comprising a full wall of the sliding doors. Absent ongoing maintenance, they will all develop sliding problems at some point.
Repair or replace? That’s a question that has several parts to the answer. Is the wood framework in good repair now? Will it have to be repaired or replaced in order to address the sliding door problems? Are the existing glass surfaces of multi paned glass, or are they the older single pane sliders? If they are single pane glass, the answer becomes obvious. With the prices of energy that we pay today, you just cannot leave those single panes in place…that costs you way too much! If they are multi paned glass, and the glass has lost its seal, fogging up during variables in temperature and humidity, that’s pretty hard to live with as well…and certainly will cost you money in the event you try to sell the property as described above. If you’re going to have to have them replaced in response to a home inspection when you sell the home, why not go ahead and have them taken care of now so that you personally get some enjoyment from having done that…rather than doing it at sale time for someone else to enjoy.
Storm doors, properly installed, work to keep the dead air space between them and the inside door, whether it’s the front or the back door. Storm doors also provide an additional measure of security for those living in your home. And, they give visitors either a favorable or unfavorable first impression while standing on your front porch. A well chosen storm door is a great and affordable way to welcome friends to your home.
As to the question of “is it cost prohibitive?” Let me ask about the “cost to you of the aggravation” of standing there trying to open a sliding door that won’t slide…or a door or window that is fogged up so that you can’t see through them. Or answering your door bell, and opening the front door to a stranger standing there with nothing between you and them. At that moment, the cost you could have made with the installation of a well constructed and locked storm door, but didn’t, could be insignificant to you. It’s kind of like the decision to have a security system installed in your home or business…after you’ve been violated. The horse is already out of the barn, as they used to say in describing this situation.
So, waiting till you’re ready to sell your home to make repairs and replacements for the enjoyment of someone else seems silly to me. We’ve found that most folks who get an estimate for these types of things are actually relieved, and go ahead and take those deferred maintenance things off of the deferred list. Maybe that’s something you want to do…More next month…
