Vertical Blinds – The Best Choice for Patio Doors

Nothing is set in stone these days. Despite the fact that the styles, colors and materials used on vertical blinds are numerous, decorators and home consumers often seek ways to be “different” when covering their patio doors. Certainly, if you’re trying to be “different”, you can use horizontal blinds on your patio doors – but there is a very good reason why most people choose vertical blinds for their sliding glass and even French patio doors. The Stack.

When blinds are opened fully, the slats fold together to form the ‘stack.’ The stack may be as small as an inch or as large as several inches, depending on your blinds’ material (wood stacks thicker than metal, vinyl or fabric) and length (2 feet long blinds have a thicker stack than 1 foot of the same material). The horizontal blinds on a 3 foot-high window (a typical bedroom or kitchen window) might have a 2-inch stack at the top. Most people don’t notice a mere two inches stacked at the very top of a window, however. But imagine installing horizontal blinds on your patio doors, where the height of the door is at least double that of the average window. With 6, 7 or even 8 feet of vertical space, the stack at the top of your patio doors would exceed 6 inches, and that’s assuming you have a “thin” material that stacks closely together. Besides the unattractive look of having a large stack hanging down from the headrail, you’ll encounter other problems when you use horizontal blinds on your patio doors: Pulling the cord to raise/open those horizontal blinds might take a bit of muscle (especially if your patio door’s blinds are wood or vinyl, which are heavier than fabric). And with a large stack dangling above your head, you’ll lose part of the opening (you might even need to caution your taller guests to duck as they go through your patio doors).

The solution is simple. Choose vertical blinds for your sliding glass and French patio doors. You won’t have to forgo the look and feel of wood or the practicality of vinyl. The weight and size of vertical blinds are not an issue as vertical blinds slide along a track and gather off to the side. In fact, unlike horizontal blinds, you can choose how your vertical blinds gather: one-way draw, spit draw, right or left stack. While both horizontal and vertical blinds allow you to control the light, vertical blinds are perfect for sliding glass patio doors. You can open your blinds half way, covering the stationary patio door while leaving the sliding portion uncovered.

And if you still want to be “different”, try a bold color or textured fabric. Whatever colors or materials you ultimately choose, you’ll never regret having vertical blinds for your patio doors.