Anatomy of Sliding Glass Door

Have you ever wondered why so many residential burglaries involve an entry through sliding glass doors? Besides the obvious fact that most sliding glass doors are located to the rear of the residence where the bad guy can more easily avoid detection, they also have several vulnerabilities that make them an ideal point of entry into the home. One of those vulnerabilities includes the sheer size of the glass, which, when broken out with rock, provides a safer method of access and escape that limits potential cuts to the suspect. Others include the type of lock, the frame material, the absence of panel stops, and a lack of pinning.

Let’s start with the obvious. Sliding glass doors have vast panes of glass that, when broken with a large rock, brick, or a burglary tool, will shatter into small pieces rather than leave large jagged shards of glass. This outcome is by design. Tempered glass has a stronger heat tolerance than regular glass. This increased strength prevents tempered glass from spontaneously breaking due to the temperature difference between the outside and the inside conditioned air. When tempered glass breaks, it does so into smaller, less dangerous pieces. This type of glass is found in furniture, bath enclosures, and of course, doors and windows making these items safer. Imagine how many small children bang on the glass or how many people accidentally run right into a closed sliding door unexpectedly. If this glass breakage created sharp shards when broken, imagine the potential number of serious injuries. Since this type of glass provides a safer point of ingress and egress, it is also a logical point for our bad guys to do the same.

All sliding glass doors will eventually need some form of deep cleaning or repair. If the panels themselves do not become damaged, the rollers will likely need replacing at some point in the door’s lifetime. To properly remove a panel from a sliding glass door, the rollers need to be adjusted to their lowest position, and then the upper track lift prevention blocks (if present) need to be moved to the side, so the door is free to be pried up from the base and lifted over the lower track. You will have more difficulty removing the door if you don’t lower the rollers, but it still can be done. Prying is the second most common method to defeat a sliding glass door. By prying the panels up, one of two things will occur. The locking mechanism will disengage, or the door panel will pop out of the track system, thus providing access to the residence. The difficulty in separating the locking mechanism depends on the type of lock, single hook, or dual hook installed. Regardless of the lock type, entry is still relatively easy to accomplish.

If you want added security by strengthening and reinforcing a sliding glass door, you will see there is no shortage of aftermarket options. Besides a notable selection of handle locks, homeowners can install any number of aftermarket options, such as locking pins, door bars, and window films. Every one of these options will add a certain level of security to the door itself, but you are also adding mechanical devices to the framing, which some people feel detracts from the aesthetics of the design. Window filming definitely adds to the safety of the glass by keeping the window pane intact if broken, and most of us have all seen the videos of people striking the glass filmed windows and not making entry. However, in the end, you still have a broken window, and you have to replace the film at your cost. As for the other devices shown below, you will achieve the desired result of making entry harder or maybe even impossible. Of course, you can add them all and feel an, even more, heightened sense of security…and you would, but what would all of that look like hanging on your beautiful slider? The material from which a door is made matters when it comes to prying sliding glass doors. So does the quality of the construction. You will hear this a lot, but “you get what you pay for” in most cases. Low prices usually mean cheaper materials, fewer security features, and structural issues. To help minimize the ability to defeat the locking mechanisms or pry the door panels apart, ensure that you have a high-quality, structurally superior sliding glass door. While this alone won’t stop every entry, it may make it more difficult; thereby, providing a deterrence.

While everything I have discussed above will help you achieve varying degrees of increased safety and protection, none of them can compare to the quality construction and design of the Boss Security Screen system for sliding glass doors. This picture says it all. Boss combines elegance, beauty, and strength in their security screen designs. These doors provide you with the protection you want and need while enhancing the appearance of your home. You can keep your interior glass doors open to let fresh air in and never fear that someone can make entry through those flimsy bug screens that come standard on most sliders. And if you choose to open the blinds to let the sunshine in, you only see the smooth design of the original door without the added aftermarket hardware. OUR doors also provide an added bonus; solar reduction to help lower power bills. Top that with the only best-in-class “No Break In” guarantee, and you can’t go wrong. There is no risk to you. If someone attempts an entry into your home and he defeats their security screen, Boss will replace the screen and cover your theft deductible up to $3000. No one has defeated one of their security screens yet and they’ve done thousands of installs. So, what is stopping you from learning more about Boss’s outstanding product lines? Your path to better security is lies just ahead…so make the call now.

Until next time…be safe and be prepared!

Written by, Michael Johnston Chief Security Advisor at Boss Security Screens

*The author is a paid consultant and product representative for Boss Security Screens. The information provided in this blog does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information, content, and materials are the author's opinion and for general informational purposes only. It is recommended that you consult an attorney, certified trainers, or licensed providers before acting on any information provided. This website may link to other third-party websites.