Patio Pet Doors are designed to fit most all sliding glass door systems. However, there is no guarantee that patio pet doors will fit every brand of sliding glass door. Additionally, there is no such thing as a 'standard sliding door', each manufacturer makes their sliding glass doors differently. So as a result, it becomes very important to properly measure your sliding glass door when considering a Patio Pet Door.

Taking the Measurement

First, open your sliding glass door and measure the overall height of the sliding glass door, from track to track. (This measurement will likely be greater than the actual height of your sliding door.) It is important to measure from the very bottom of the channel (track) on the bottom, to the very inside, top of the channel (track) on the top of your opening.

Typically, there is a thin rail in the bottom channel of your sliding door opening. This rail is what the Patio Pet Doors sets on or straddles, keeping the insert centered in the opening. In most cases this rail is 1/4" in width or less, as you look down for a top view. All Patio Pet Doors will fit on a rail 1/4" or less. If the rail in your sliding glass door is greater than 1/4", and up to 5/8" in width, than the Pet 1 Patio Pet Door is the only option that will work with your sliding glass door. If the rail is over 5/8" in width, then you unfortunately have a sliding glass door system that will not accept a Patio Pet Door.

Selecting the Correct Height & Pet Opening

Now that you have accurately measured the opening of your sliding glass door, you will notice that the Patio Pet Doors offered in varying height ranges. These ranges are the minimum and maximum heights that the patio pet doors will expand and contact.

Keep in mind that the Patio Pet Door must be able to contract enough to fit into the top and bottom tracks of your sliding glass door, and still be able to expand enough to fit the overall height of your sliding door opening. There are also sometimes side rails on the tracking, that you may need to fit under as well.

When choosing the size of the pet opening, it is important to consider the overall size of the opening, and the rise on the patio pet door. The Rise is the height of the pet opening from the floor or bottom of the patio panel. You want to select a combination of pet opening size and rise that will position the top of the pet opening 1" to 2" above your tallest pets shoulder height, but still keep the rise low enough that all your pets can move through the pet opening. 

Special Considerations

Each Patio Pet Door offers a different method of securing the sliding glass door locked when the patio insert is in place.  Some include a device that will allow you to use the existing lock on your sliding door, others include a brace bar or Charley bar that is mounted to the back of the sliding door. Most customers choose to cut a curtain dowel rod, or 'stick' to fit behind the sliding glass door in the tracking to create their own brace bar.

On most sliding glass door systems, the sliding or moving door is on the interior side of the stationary door. If it is not, and the sliding door is on the exterior side, it is near impossible to lock your sliding glass door when a Patio Pet Door is in place. Additionally, this can create problems with getting the weather stripping to stick properly as well.

As a general rule of thumb, the overall width of a Patio Pet Door can be determined by taking the width of the pet opening in a desired model, and adding 4 inches. Every Patio Pet Door is going to take up a portion of the opening you generally use to get in and out of your sliding glass door. The overall width of the panel is the amount of space you will lose in the opening of your sliding glass door, making it difficult to use for pedestrian traffic.

Sliding glass door systems with window partitions (made to look like a French Door), are not compatible with Patio Pet Doors. It is impossible to create an type of weather seal between the sliding door and stationary door with this type of system. This feature is most often seen on Pella Doors. 

Some sliding glass door systems do not have a channel that the sliding door follows. In this instance, we do not recommend using a Patio Pet Door as there is nothing to keep it in place on the bottom track.

Below we have included links to the measuring instructions provided by each manufacturer. Please feel free to call us at 866-583-0925 with any questions. We're here to help!

How to Measure for a Hale Pet Door Omni Panel

How to Measure for a Hale Pet Door Standard Panel

How to Measure for a Pet1 Product Patio Pet Door (Standard Height) 

How to Measure for a Pet1 Product Patio Pet Door (Tall Height)

How to Measure for a PetSafe Deluxe Patio Pet Door