I have a friend who is looking at purchasing a circa-1979 townhouse, will be
having a pro home inspection of the place early next week. The home has a
bunch of aluminum-frame sliding glass patio doors, onto a patio and an
atrium/courtyard, and at least the two we opened didn't work well (the
others were locked, and a key wasn't available -- they'll have a locksmith
come to deal with one lock for which there apparently isn't a key now, at
the inspection).

I'm sure the inspector is going to flag the doors as needing repair, at
least (at least the bottom rollers need replacing, something my friend can
do himself), and I'm curious what sort of cost there would be typically to
have someone come out and do that repair (for negotiating a credit on the
final sale price).

I'm also curious what the labor costs typically would be for replacing a
sliding glass door like this. The townhouse is in Houston, the doors are
ground floor, on a slab, all standard six-foot units, I think, and the
exterior of the house is stucco (don't know if removing/installing the doors
is likely to tear up some of the surrounding stucco, which would then have
to be repaired).

If my friend decides to replace the doors, are there any substantial
advantages to going for something more than the base aluminum frame
models -- fiberglass, metal- or vinyl-clad wood, etc.? And double glazing,
in the Houston climate? Most of the doors open onto a private courtyard
where they will get relatively little direct sunlight, but he has a master
bedroom patio door that opens onto a patio on the southwest corner of the
property, where I think it will get lots of afternoon sun; it's also
adjacent to the parking area, so the noise abatement abilities of insulated
glass might be worth spending a little extra there.

Thanks for any advice.

--

Robert

"Robert E. Lewis" wrote in message

I'm sure the inspector is going to flag the doors as needing repair, at
least (at least the bottom rollers need replacing, something my friend can
do himself), and I'm curious what sort of cost there would be typically to
have someone come out and do that repair (for negotiating a credit on the
final sale price).

It may have nothing to do with the final price. Seller says, "I took that
into consideration to arrive at my selling price. Take it of leave it".
If the house is properly price, you pay what is asked. Smart sellers price
proerly and tell the nickle and dimers to just mve on. OTOH, the place may
be underpriced the the buyer can kill a damned good deal by trying to save
$200 on a $350,000 house that can fetch $20,000 more.



I'm also curious what the labor costs typically would be for replacing a
sliding glass door like this. The townhouse is in Houston, the doors are
ground floor, on a slab, all standard six-foot units, I think, and the
exterior of the house is stucco (don't know if removing/installing the
doors
is likely to tear up some of the surrounding stucco, which would then have
to be repaired).

Can't tell from here. 6' or 8' or 10' doors? Metal or wood? Doors can
cost from about $400 to $2000+. Labor can be from $200 to $1500 depending
on what is needed.




If my friend decides to replace the doors, are there any substantial
advantages to going for something more than the base aluminum frame
models -- fiberglass, metal- or vinyl-clad wood, etc.? And double
glazing,
in the Houston climate?

Double glazing save on utilities, be it heat or AC. The base models of
aluminum are crap. Probably what is worn out there now.

Most of the doors open onto a private courtyard
where they will get relatively little direct sunlight, but he has a master
bedroom patio door that opens onto a patio on the southwest corner of the
property, where I think it will get lots of afternoon sun; it's also
adjacent to the parking area, so the noise abatement abilities of
insulated
glass might be worth spending a little extra there.


I probably use Pella with the internal blinds or something similar there.

Not including the price of the doors here in the Midwest they charge $550.00
to install only.

I found a guy that removed and replaced mine at the slow part of the
building season for $260, had to remove the old doors, vinyl siding hauled
away the old doors installed swinging patio door, I bought a Jel Wen door ,
$800 not impressed with the quality.

Tom


"Robert E. Lewis" wrote in message
...
I have a friend who is looking at purchasing a circa-1979 townhouse, will
be
having a pro home inspection of the place early next week. The home has a
bunch of aluminum-frame sliding glass patio doors, onto a patio and an
atrium/courtyard, and at least the two we opened didn't work well (the
others were locked, and a key wasn't available -- they'll have a locksmith
come to deal with one lock for which there apparently isn't a key now, at
the inspection).

I'm sure the inspector is going to flag the doors as needing repair, at
least (at least the bottom rollers need replacing, something my friend can
do himself), and I'm curious what sort of cost there would be typically to
have someone come out and do that repair (for negotiating a credit on the
final sale price).

I'm also curious what the labor costs typically would be for replacing a
sliding glass door like this. The townhouse is in Houston, the doors are
ground floor, on a slab, all standard six-foot units, I think, and the
exterior of the house is stucco (don't know if removing/installing the
doors
is likely to tear up some of the surrounding stucco, which would then have
to be repaired).

If my friend decides to replace the doors, are there any substantial
advantages to going for something more than the base aluminum frame
models -- fiberglass, metal- or vinyl-clad wood, etc.? And double
glazing,
in the Houston climate? Most of the doors open onto a private courtyard
where they will get relatively little direct sunlight, but he has a master
bedroom patio door that opens onto a patio on the southwest corner of the
property, where I think it will get lots of afternoon sun; it's also
adjacent to the parking area, so the noise abatement abilities of
insulated
glass might be worth spending a little extra there.

Thanks for any advice.

--

Robert

In alt.home.repair on Sat, 16 Jul 2005 16:36:19 GMT "Robert E. Lewis"
posted:

I have a friend who is looking at purchasing a circa-1979 townhouse, will be
having a pro home inspection of the place early next week. The home has a
bunch of aluminum-frame sliding glass patio doors, onto a patio and an
atrium/courtyard, and at least the two we opened didn't work well (the
others were locked, and a key wasn't available -- they'll have a locksmith
come to deal with one lock for which there apparently isn't a key now, at
the inspection).

I'm sure the inspector is going to flag the doors as needing repair, at
least (at least the bottom rollers need replacing, something my friend can
do himself),

I'm not a repairman and I only know about my house and its two SGDs,
not this one, but I'll say that when my doors wouldn't roll easily, I
was able to solve most of that by tightening the screws that control
the height of the wheels at each end of the door. Clockwise raised
the door. Unscrew the little covers to see the screws.

Still, later I wanted to check it out and oil it accurately so I did
take out each door that moved. The wide one was quite heavy
(thermopane, for one thing) and working alone, I had to be careful not
to drop it.

(Some electronics stores and appliance parts stores sell plastic
bottles of oil with a simple, built-in, plastic, telescoping 9 inch (5
inches plus 4 fixed) tube. I don't remember if I tried to oil the
wheels with that. It's certainly long enough.)

Tell your friend to, before he tries to take out the door, look atop
the door and see if there is a piece of broomstick in place. Although
maybe the latch would do as well, it keeps the door from being lifted
out by a burglar. (Of course the crash when he drops it (since he's
working from the outside) would likely be no worse than the crash if
he just used a hammer, but people told me it was a good idea.)

and I'm curious what sort of cost there would be typically to
have someone come out and do that repair (for negotiating a credit on the
final sale price).

I just dusted it, oiled it and put it back. One door was near my
plants and the other in the kitchen and they both got a lot of crap in
the channel. The wheels attracted a little of that, or spider stuff.

I'm also curious what the labor costs typically would be for replacing a
sliding glass door like this. The townhouse is in Houston, the doors are
ground floor, on a slab, all standard six-foot units, I think, and the
exterior of the house is stucco (don't know if removing/installing the doors
is likely to tear up some of the surrounding stucco, which would then have
to be repaired).

He should be able to tell if the stucco is over the door frame. I
haven't worked with stucco, but wouldn't the guys here say that a
straight firm knife cutting the stucco just outside the door frame
(the wider of the two doorframes, the old one and the new one.) would
enable removing and replacing the frame without any further damage.
if the cut is good, would it be necessary to replace any stucco later?
Use a metal straight edge and it might require several strokes.

If my friend decides to replace the doors, are there any substantial
advantages to going for something more than the base aluminum frame
models -- fiberglass, metal- or vinyl-clad wood, etc.? And double glazing,
in the Houston climate? Most of the doors open onto a private courtyard
where they will get relatively little direct sunlight, but he has a master
bedroom patio door that opens onto a patio on the southwest corner of the
property, where I think it will get lots of afternoon sun; it's also
adjacent to the parking area, so the noise abatement abilities of insulated
glass might be worth spending a little extra there.

Houston is hot. Double glazing is worth it.


Thanks for any advice.


Meirman
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"meirman" wrote in message
...
In alt.home.repair on Sat, 16 Jul 2005 16:36:19 GMT "Robert E. Lewis"
posted:

(snip)

He should be able to tell if the stucco is over the door frame. I
haven't worked with stucco, but wouldn't the guys here say that a
straight firm knife cutting the stucco just outside the door frame
(the wider of the two doorframes, the old one and the new one.) would
enable removing and replacing the frame without any further damage.
if the cut is good, would it be necessary to replace any stucco later?
Use a metal straight edge and it might require several strokes.

If my friend decides to replace the doors, are there any substantial
advantages to going for something more than the base aluminum frame
models -- fiberglass, metal- or vinyl-clad wood, etc.? And double
glazing,
in the Houston climate? Most of the doors open onto a private courtyard
where they will get relatively little direct sunlight, but he has a
master
bedroom patio door that opens onto a patio on the southwest corner of the
property, where I think it will get lots of afternoon sun; it's also
adjacent to the parking area, so the noise abatement abilities of
insulated
glass might be worth spending a little extra there.

Houston is hot. Double glazing is worth it.

Nobody else said it, so I will- the townhouse you describe sounds like a
condo situation, so check deed for who has to bless changes visible from
outside. The owners association may have a list of approved brands and
colors, etc, or even a 'regular' installer. People may be upset if you cut
back the stucco and infill with wide trim, for example. (If so, a good
installer will know how to Sawzall out the old frame, and use an old-work
no-flange frame setup on the new door.)

I'm suprised that a 1970s building in Houston didn't already have double
glass- in that climate that is a no-brainer. If CCAs allow it, tinted may
also be worth it.


aem sends...

"ameijers" wrote in message
...


Nobody else said it, so I will- the townhouse you describe sounds like a
condo situation, so check deed for who has to bless changes visible from
outside. The owners association may have a list of approved brands and
colors, etc, or even a 'regular' installer. People may be upset if you cut
back the stucco and infill with wide trim, for example.

Good advice, thanks. The condo association would seem to be pretty
laid-back, judging by the modifications some of the other owners have made
(several have taken down the fencing around their back patios and put in
screened rooms, for example). Also, none of the doors is readily visible
from outside the unit, so I doubt it will be a problem, but he'll go through
the proper channels.


I'm suprised that a 1970s building in Houston didn't already have double
glass- in that climate that is a no-brainer. If CCAs allow it, tinted may
also be worth it.

I've lived in the Houston area my whole life, and am surprised how slow
insulated glass has been to catch on here; I can recall a decade or so back,
a "home remodeling expert" on a local radio station saying they weren't
worth the added price. I accompanied my friend looking at a more upscale
townhouse built in the mid-80s -- fireplaces, whirlpool tub, stainless
appliances, but just basic aluminum-framed single-glazed windows.

Thanks to everyone who responded.

--

Robert

In alt.home.repair on Sun, 17 Jul 2005 17:16:46 GMT "Robert E. Lewis"
posted:


I've lived in the Houston area my whole life, and am surprised how slow
insulated glass has been to catch on here; I can recall a decade or so back,
a "home remodeling expert" on a local radio station saying they weren't
worth the added price. I accompanied my friend looking at a more upscale
townhouse built in the mid-80s -- fireplaces, whirlpool tub, stainless
appliances, but just basic aluminum-framed single-glazed windows.

Wow.

Somewhat similar: It's amazing how long it took Baltimore to build
garages with the houses. Well some houses had them in the 30's to the
50's or 60's but then came 2 or 3 decades where most seem not to, even
very expensive places. They might have carports.

There were fewer garages here than in Dallas, which I visit regularly.

I think they've caught on now.

But strangely, they almost all use two single doors, instead of one
two-car door. that means you can't pile stuff at both sides and park
one car in the middle, and it means that every time you go in or out,
you have to avoid hitting that post in the middle. How much more does
one double garage door cost than two single ones?

Plus you have to buy one fewer garage door opener, and carry one
fewer transmitter.

Thanks to everyone who responded.

--

Robert


Meirman
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If emailing, please let me know whether
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