Add a Pet Door to a Glass Door

Giving your pet access to the outdoors is great but what can do you if you have a sliding glass door facing out to your deck or backyard? Luckily, there are pet doors available for these situations. They’re easy to fit, requiring a bare minimum of tools and DIY knowledge, thus making it an ideal project for anyone to undertake. The most complex thing, in fact, is figuring out what size of pet door you need.

Step 1 - Establishing Size and Type

The size of door you buy is going to depend on the size of your pet and the size of your sliding glass door. Start by measuring the width of the slider so you know just how much room you have available for the pet door. Remember, since the pet door is fixed in place, you’ll still need enough room to get in and out yourself.

Next, consider what type of door you need. Most people will opt for a double pane pet door although this might well be determined by the climate where you live.

Step 2 - Measuring Up

Now, you need to measure your pet standing up. A good pet door should be at least as tall as the shoulder of your pet so it doesn’t have to bend or crouch to go in and out.

The final measurement you need to take is the track height on the inside of your door from top to bottom. This is vital to ensure you buy the correct size of door. Measure this twice to double check. Write down the measurements you’ve taken and go and select your door. This is effectively an insert that fits into your existing glass door at the edge so that the slider closes onto it.

Step 3 - Fitting the Pet Door

Open the slider on your sliding glass door all the way. Now clean all the tracks at the top, bottom and sides. This is essential to make sure the new door will fit properly.

Using your screwdriver, remove the lock mechanism from the track. If you fail to remove the lock mechanism, the pet door will not fit correctly against the track. Now, add the locking mechanism to the appropriate space on the pet door. There will be a gap where you can attach it and it should simply screw in.

At the top of the pet door, there should be a knob that will attach to the wall (not to the track). Loosen this prior to installation. If your pet door has a removable door that’s the same size of the opening, this should be used for extra security at times when you want to prevent your pet from going outside or to stop anyone else from trying to enter through the door. Make sure that this is located on the inside of the pet door.

Now, lift the pet door and slide the top of it into the upper track of the sliding glass door. It will fit comfortably into this track. Springs in the door will allow you to lift and settle the bottom of the pet door into the lower track of the sliding glass door. Put the bottom of the pet door securely into the track then push the pet door so it’s flush against the track at the side. Finally, tighten the knob at the top to hold the door in place. Close the slider against the pet door and lock to finish.