Can you put plantation shutters on sliding doors?
Our plantation shutters are hinged panels made for windows. Here is why they rarely suit a sliding door, and which blinds and curtains do the job better.
Can you put plantation shutters on sliding doors? Usually not with ours. They are hinged panels in a frame, made for windows, and they swing into the room, so on a sliding door they would have to be opened clear every time you use the door. We do not make sliding, bifold or track shutters. For a large glass door, vertical blinds, panel glide blinds, linked roller blinds and curtains are built for the job.
In short
- Our plantation shutters are hinged panels in a frame, made for windows. We do not make sliding, bifold or track shutters.
- On a sliding door, hinged panels swing into the room and must be moved before you can use the door.
- Vertical blinds, panel glide blinds, linked roller blinds and curtains are all designed to work with a sliding door.
- Shutters work well on the windows beside the door, and can sit alongside a different covering on the door.
- For an unusual layout, send photos and a labelled sketch before you order.
Can you put plantation shutters on sliding doors?
A plantation shutter is a framed set of hinged panels with tilting blades. The blades control light and privacy, and the panels swing open to give access to the window. That design suits a window, which you open occasionally.
A sliding glass door is a different kind of opening. It is wide, and it is used many times a day. Our standard online shutter method is for interior window shutters. Track-mounted sliding shutters exist as separate products from other suppliers, but they are not part of our range.
The same applies whether you ask about plantation shutters on sliding glass doors or shutters on sliding doors in general: hinged panels are made for windows, not for an opening people walk through every day.
Why hinged shutters and sliding doors do not mix well
Swing space. Hinged panels open into the room. The floor in front of a sliding door is often where people walk, where furniture sits and where the door's own handle needs room.
Daily use. Every trip through the door means opening and parking the panels. On a window you open them occasionally.
Width. An individual panel is about 900 mm wide at most, and an opening over about 950 mm needs more than one. A sliding door can be two or three times the width of a window, so a door needs many panels, many vertical lines and a lot of open panel to park somewhere.
Handles, locks and the track. Shutter frames need depth. An inside Z-frame needs 60 mm of clear depth for the blades, an inside L-frame needs 70 mm, and an outside L-frame projects about 65 mm. Door handles, locks and the floor track all have to clear the frame and the panels, and you still have to reach them once the shutter is in place.
For these reasons the shutter guide suggests that wide windows and sliding doors may be easier to manage with separate blind sections or curtains.
Where shutters do work near a sliding door
Plantation shutters are a very good covering for the windows around a door. A living room with a slider on one wall and a window on another can have shutters on the window and a different covering on the door.
- Match the tone. Compare shutter and blind samples side by side in the room. PVC shutters come in Glacial White, Shell and Antique, and timber comes in a range of stained and painted finishes.
- Use one family of colours. A white shutter with a neutral blind or curtain reads as one scheme.
- Check the clearances. If the window sits close to the door, photograph the layout so we can check the panel swing before you order. See PVC plantation shutters and the shutter guide.
Better options for a sliding door
Four products are built for width and for a door that is used every day.
| Option | How it works with a sliding door | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Vertical blinds | Adjustable vanes turn for light and privacy, and stack left, right or split | Face fit is common, and a recess needs room for the vanes to rotate. Lakeside and Shade are the available fabrics |
| Panel glide blinds | Broad fabric panels slide across the opening on a track | Face fit. Any roller blind fabric can be used. Follow the panel glide measuring guide for the stack space |
| Linked roller blinds | Two or three blinds share brackets, and each section moves on its own | Suits a door used less often, or a fixed panel beside the sliding one |
| Curtains | A track spans the opening, with sheer and blockout layers if you want them | Plan the stack-back and measure with our curtain measuring guide |
A few practical points apply to all of them:
- Open the sliding door fully and check that the parked stack stays clear of its whole travel.
- Park the covering on the same side as the stacked door panels, not over the opening you walk through.
- Recess fitting inside a sliding-door opening is generally unsuitable, because the operating space is limited.
- A centre-opening panel glide always has an odd number of panels, so a three-channel track has five.
Our guides to blinds for sliding doors and French doors and curtains for sliding and bifold doors cover each in more detail, and the blinds for sliding doors page lets you build one.
Tip: Start with how often the door is used. A door opened all day suits panel glide or vertical blinds. A door used rarely, with a view you want to keep, suits linked roller blinds in a Screen fabric.
If you still want shutters near a door
Ask before you order. Photograph the doorway, the handle and lock, the floor track and the wall either side, then add a labelled sketch with measurements. Contact us and the team can check the clearances. Our shutters are made exactly to the measurements you give, so an unusual layout is far easier to resolve before manufacture than after delivery.
Questions
Can you put plantation shutters on sliding doors?
Usually not. Our shutters are hinged panels in a frame, made for windows, and they swing into the room. We do not make sliding, bifold or track shutters. For a sliding door, vertical blinds, panel glide, linked roller blinds or curtains suit better.
Do you make sliding or track plantation shutters?
No. We make hinged plantation shutters in PVC and timber. We do not make sliding, bifold or track shutters.
What is the best covering for a sliding glass door?
Vertical blinds, panel glide blinds, linked roller blinds and curtains are the usual choices. Pick the one that clears your walking path and stacks on the side the door stacks.
Can I put plantation shutters on the windows next to my sliding door?
Yes. Shutters suit windows well. Send us photos and a labelled sketch if the window sits close to the door, so we can check the clearances before you order.
Find the right covering for your sliding door
Compare vertical, panel glide and linked roller blinds and build yours to your measurements.
Keep reading
Room ideasThe best blinds for sliding doors and French doorsPanel glide, vertical, linked roller blinds or curtains? Compare the best blinds for sliding doors and French doors, with the clearances that decide what works.
Room ideasCurtains for sliding and bifold doors: what to planCurtains suit sliding and bifold doors when the track is longer than the opening. Plan the stack-back, hem height and handle clearance before you order.
Plantation shuttersPlantation shutters: the complete guideWhat plantation shutters are, how they work, what they are made of and how to plan frames, panels and measuring before you order made-to-measure shutters online.
