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DEAR MAINTENANCE MEN
Dear Maintenance Men:
Our rental has a non-standard size sliding glass door that we’d like to replace. We would like to get a whole new door and track. How easy is that? We have siding on the house. What should we expect in the way of wall damage or ability to get a larger standard door frame into the space? What questions do we need to ask the installer?
- KWT
Dear KWT:
Replacing a sliding glass door and frame as a DIY job is not for the faint of heart! It is not really that difficult as it is unwieldy and the doors are large and heavy. You state the door is a non-standard size; this might be a good time to standardize your glass door. Start by removing the door, bottom track and frame. This will expose the rough opening in your door way. Measure the rough opening for a standard sliding door of your choice. It is sometimes easier to enlarge the rough opening to accommodate the new door. The reason for a larger opening is because you will not need to find or install new outside siding or stucco nor patch the inside drywall. “Rough opening” refers to the dimensions inside the trimmer studs and between the floor and the bottom header.
This opening will be slightly larger than the patio doorframe. The extra space allows a little fudge room for squaring the frame with shims. If you decide to have a contractor install the new sliding door, have the installer explain in detail what the job will entail, what the finish will look like and how long the job will take. Make sure they are set up for dust control as a job like this can cause a considerable amount of dust during the construction if the opening is enlarged.
By Jerry L'Ecuyer & Frank Alvarez
Dear Maintenance Men:
My apartment building was built in the 1950 and has no insulation in the walls or ceiling. What do you recommend as the most cost effective method of insulating the building?
- Sam
Dear Sam:
It is very common for older buildings to have no insulation whatsoever. As for where the best bang for your buck is concerned; ceiling insulation is the winner. The insulation ratio is 70% ceiling, 30% walls and 10% floors. This is the typical ration for helping decide where to put the insulations. For single story or top story units, ceiling insulation is very easy and inexpensive to install. Wall insulation is much harder
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APARTMENT MANAGEMENT MAGAZINE - SEPTEMBER 2021 CS-37