Do they make storm doors without glass? I need a storm door for insulation and is located on a dark side of my home. It would be added security without glass.
Doors – Storm doors without glass
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If the door can be reversed (and that's a big if) then I can't imagine it can be done without removing the entire door frame. The fixed pane is, well, fixed and unless you see a way to detach it from the frame and attach it to the other side then you may be out of luck.
So let's assume you can't remove the fixed frame. Well, you could try rotating the door. This should work, but it would put the rail on the outside of the door. I don't know how this exposure would affect the longevity of the product, and you'd certainly be prone to more things getting built up in the track. This also means that the exterior side of the glass would be facing the interior. A lot of modern glass has reflective coatings and treatments on the outside for energy efficiency purposes. You'd be losing this, and likely by making it worse in the summer (as energy would more readily penetrate and less readily escape). Lastly, if your door is flashed and sealed, and if it has a flange around the frame, it might not even fit the other way without sticking out of the siding, and if it's vinyl it likely has drain holes in the frame which would now drain into the house.
You'd then have to reverse the lockset and handle on the door. This is probably the easiest part.
But, in conclusion, you should recognize that you would likely:
- Need to remove the entire frame from the opening
- Likely lose energy efficient properties from the glass treatment being reversed
- Expose your rail track to the exterior and additional wear
- Need to reverse your handle and lockset (and lose the ability to use the "bar in the track security method)
- Need to re-flash and re-seal the door (provided that there is a flange and that it's still usable)
In my humble opinion, each of these together would warrant simply buying a new sliding door to replace this one. Because the door frame isn't really all that expensive. The issue is the labor of removing, replacing and resealing the door.... which I think you'd have to do either way.
Expanding on my comment: I think that the main problem with the proposed setup is lacking a slide or rail on the bottom. Without a slide on the bottom the glass door can swing perpendicular to the sliding direction. See the below explanation for what I mean.
I have a sliding shower door with a sliding mechanism on the top (a stainless steel rail with 2 wheels per door on top of the rail) and a tiny U channel on the bottom to keep the door from swinging. I know, I need to clean the shower a little...
The door is sliding in the direction of the blue arrows. The U channel on the bottom is keeping the door from swinging in the direction of the red arrows. This U channel is about 2 CM long and seems to be made from aluminium.
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Best Answer
What you are looking for, then, is a security door. These are essentially storm doors with metal bars that make entry more difficult. They come in a variety of styles and prices. If you need the "storm" protection as well, you can get some that include glass or plastic, or you can mount a plastic sheet to the inside.
It will look better than a solid non-transparent metal door, and provide significantly more security than any storm door, without a significant increase in cost.
Also, keep in mind that storm and security doors are relatively simple. If you cannot find what you want, you can buy the door hardware (hinge, latch, gas spring return), sheet metal, and metal tubing to create your own. A hacksaw, drill, and screws or rivets, plus metal paint, is all you need. It won't be as secure as a security door, though, unless you buy security door hardware. But if all you're looking for is a storm door without glass, this would provide the same level of security.
Also worth considering is buying a storm door with a plastic window. Some additional clips, or replacing the window with plastic, will provide slightly more security while maintaining the look of a traditional storm door.