Traditional sliding glass doors have two panels with one that slides along rollers to cover the other.
French doors vs sliding doors.
French doors really open things up.
Also often one has to step over the track to prevent stubbing the foot or tripping.
French patio doors are mostly made of glass and look similar to windows.
The track can be unattractive in appearance.
Although don t forget that they meet in the middle and can let air in.
French doors have a wider door frame.
A sliding glass door frame is typically narrower than a french patio door.
A classic model has two side by side panels that swing in or out from hinges on the sides of the frame.
Design differences between french patio doors and sliding patio doors.
A considerable difference between french doors vs sliding doors is the track involved with sliding doors.
Sliding doors overlap which is a more efficient design and creates a tighter seal where as french doors come together with no overlap and an increased chance for air infiltration.
French patio doors can be considered a little more energy efficient as the central glass panels can be smaller by being set into wider frames whereas sliding doors are almost exclusively created from glazed panels.
French doors quickly give you a large opening to move through.
That large opening is also nice if you have a large number of guests moving back and forth between two rooms.
Because sliding doors and french doors operate.
If you want to move something large through sliding doors you re going to have to take them out.