Replacement
Sliding glass door replacement, done once.
Most of what we take out is a 1970s or 80s aluminum patio slider that has swollen, pitted or stopped rolling. Most of it comes out and goes back into the same opening, without structural work — and the door that replaces it has a three-quarter-inch sightline instead of a three-inch one.
Why doors fail
It happens slowly enough to ignore.
A patio door is the largest moving part of a house, and it fails slowly enough that most people stop noticing. The rollers go first under panel weight, so the door drags. Then the weatherseal loses its compression set and stops sealing on all four edges, which on the Gulf coast means conditioned air leaving the building for most of the year. Then water sits at a sill whose drainage has silted up, and an untreated frame pits.
By the time a door is hard to move, the thermal loss has usually been running for years. That is the actual cost of putting it off, and it is invisible on any quote.
We replace with a thermally broken Cortizo system built to your opening. In most cases it goes into the existing structural opening with no work to the lintel or header — we confirm that at survey, in writing, before anything is ordered.
Before you buy anything
Repair, reglaze, or replace
Three genuinely different jobs. We would rather tell you which one you have than sell you the biggest.
| Repair | The frame and glass are sound and only the rollers, track or hardware have worn. By far the cheapest outcome, and if that is what you need we will say so. |
|---|---|
| Reglaze | The frame is sound but a sealed unit has failed — usually visible as misting between the panes. Worth doing where the frame has years left in it. |
| Replace | The frame is corroded, not thermally broken, or has failed in more than one way at once. Putting new glass into a dying frame is money spent twice. |
How it runs
Four stages, one team.
The same people survey, specify, install and come back if it needs adjusting. There is no dealer in the middle of this.
Survey
We measure the structural opening, confirm we can hold the head height with the new frame depth, and check the opening is square enough for a system with this little tolerance in it.
Written specification
Configuration, glazing make-up, finish and performance figures confirmed in writing before anything is ordered. No verbal specs.
Removal
The old door out and disposed of, the opening prepared. Usually a day for a like-for-like replacement.
Install and calibrate
Our own team, not a subcontractor. The calibration is the part most often skipped and the part that decides whether you are still happy in year three.
Coverage
Where we replace doors.
Four Texas metros, one team. Pick yours for what is specific about glazing there.
Questions
Replacement, answered.
The things people ask before they book. Still unsure? Send the opening and we will give you a straight answer.
Can a new door go into my existing opening?
Usually, yes. Most replacements go into the existing structural opening with no work to the lintel or header. What we check at survey is whether we can hold the head height with the new frame depth, whether the sill can take a flush threshold, and whether the opening is square enough. If it cannot be done without structural work, you will hear that before you commit, not afterwards.
How much does it cost to replace a sliding glass door?
It depends far more on what is going in than on what is coming out — panel count and size, the glass make-up, and whether anything structural is needed above the opening. Send rough dimensions and a photograph and you will get a real figure rather than a range that means nothing.
Can you replace just the glass?
If the frame is sound and only a sealed unit has failed, yes, and it is much cheaper. If the door is dragging, the sill has corroded or the rollers have gone, the system has reached the end of its life and glass-only work is money spent twice.
Do you replace doors you did not supply?
Yes — that is nearly all of our replacement work. Usually an aluminum or vinyl patio slider from another manufacturer that has reached the end of its life. We do not need to have supplied the original.
How long does it take?
For a straightforward like-for-like replacement into an existing opening, typically a day on site. Wider openings, structural work or difficult access extend that, and the expected duration is in the quote rather than sprung on you on the day.
Who actually does the installation?
Our own team. A great many suppliers in this category sell through a dealer network and subcontract the fitting, which means the person who quoted you is not the person who fits it, and neither is the person you call when it needs adjusting. That is the difference we would ask you to compare on.
Start
Send us the opening.
Rough dimensions and a photograph are enough. You will get a real answer from someone who installs these across Texas — including, if that is the answer, that you do not need a new door.