Anderson Sliders and French Doors

[evodawg]

I have to say Anderson Patio Sliders and French Doors are the best on the market. I Installed 2 Patio Sliders and a French Door this weekend and I have never seen a door that was this easy to install and built this well. I have installed plenty of other brands which I will leave nameless and none compare to the craftsmanship and Engineering that went into these doors.

They slide like their on air and talk about tight, just amazing! The lockset on the French Door is a wonderment and a snap to install. The latch on the Sliders locks the door tighter than any other door I have ever installed. The retractable bug screen on the sliders goes together easy and painless.

From now on if the folks can afford them, I'm pushing Anderson!

Thanks Anderson for a GREAT PRODUCT! And no I'm not affiliated with them I just enjoy well built products in this day and age.

Rich

[Art]

I looked at both and went with Pella. I did not like the Andersen metal thresholds which dent easily.

[evodawg]

I've installed tons of Pella's, a good door but they don't compare in quality and engineering. I don't know how you could dent them unless you plan on driving a truck over them. I've never seen a threshold dent, unless when taking an old one out.

Rich

[PDQ]

Be careful, Art, last time I went looking I found Andersen and Anderson were different companies.

[evodawg]

Well now you know I'm not a rep or a salesperson. I can't even get the spelling right. Anyway you get the jest!

Rich

[m Ransley]

I have 2 Anderson sliders, the thresholds cant dent if instaled on wood flat in normal use. Anything can dent with enough force. They are well built, worth the extra $$

[louie]

Sorry for a partial thread hijack here, but I have a question about sliders/french doors. I have to replace an existing slider. I have a budget of around $400 - $500. The "Great Evil" Home Depot has some french doors within that price range. I don't particularly like sliders, but I would install one instead of a french door if it saves a significant amount of money. I'm basically looking for suggestions/advice, what to look for, brands to steer clear of... etc. I don't know if Andersen is going to be within my means, though I've heard many good things about them. In the price range I'm looking at, I can see two french door types that HD sells: steel and fiberglass (with the fiberglass being about $150 more than the steel). I'm guessing the pros of fiberglass will be lighter weight, corrosion and scratch resistance, lower heat loss? Anyway, info would be appreciated. If I'm out of line for jumping into another's thread, speak out and I'll move this to a separate one.

Thanks!

[Art]

My neighbor has a gorgeous Andersen French door and the threshold is full of dents.

[Art]

I think Lowes carries Andersen low end so check their prices. Sliders are cheaper but from Pella still above your budget. My house has Andersen windows but I've been replacing cheap doors with Pella and some cheap basement windows with Pella. One other problem I have with Andersen is after 8 years on the south side of the house, the vinyl on the windows is yellowing. Pella uses aluminum.

[Todd H.]

My 8' anderson Oak slider is a joy. The rest of my windows are Alside and they're good too, but that big ole Anderson slider operates like it's levitating, just as you said.

I was lucky enough to get it as a special order return tipped off to me by a buddy who worked at HD in the millwork dept, and saved a bundle on it to boot.

-- Todd H.

[Banty]

Curious - why don't you like sliders?

I'm considering replacing a couple of side-by-side double-hungs with a slider. It would be a Marvin new construction window.

TIA, Banty

[Todd H.]

Correction: I too was tripped up by the spelling and it's an Andersen door I have that I like so well.

-- Todd H.

[louie]

I don't like sliders mostly because of my experience in the past with them sticking, binding, tracks clogging up with dirt, leaking, poor energy efficiency, poor locks (requiring a broomstick behind the slider to jam it shut), etc.

To be fair, these have been apartments and probably very poor representatives of sliding doors. I also like the idea of being able to open both halves of a french door to aid in moving large furniture or other objects in/out of the house (though this doesn't happen often enough to make a real criteria). I think french doors are just aesthetically better in appearance, but that's just my opinion and $$ will overrule that as long as the quality is there.

[m Ransley]

How can a thick threshhold dent if it is firmly sealed to a solid base, answer it cant.

[boden]

I'm happy you like them, but wait. I have about 45 Andersen windows and several Sliders in my home. They look fine until the barometric pressure rises and then the inside and outside glass touch in the center of the window. Of course this is where I see condensation and frost. I will never again buy an Andersen product. From the outside these windows look strange, as in not good. Non-planar panes of glass look strange.

Boden

evodawg wrote:

[evodawg]

That was my exact question. I've never seen one dent! Except for the ones I rip out. And yes they are very bent and dented. Rich

[Art]

French doors often don't seal well unless they are a top brand like Pella or Andersen.

[Art]

I have a couple of leaking Andersen windows. They only show condensation in certain weather. I'm going to check to see if the 2 layers of glass are actually touching. By the way the glass is guaranteed a long time.

[Robert Ferris]