enclose the lanai with sliders?

[Boudicca]

I want to enclose the lanai with sliders which can be open in good weather, and closed when its wet. 9.0' wide sliders can be purchased through the major DIY stores. Our lanai is 9' deep, one slider would fit the existing screen frame. The only issue I recognize, is, are the existing aluminum frames sturdy enough to support a patio sliding door?

[784caroline]

We enclosed our lanai with 60" glass sliders over 20" transom windows. With 2 glass sliders Factory moulded over a 20" transom, let me tell you these units are very heavy. We had some contractors come in and wanted to install them on existing alunimun frames while others including the one we selected told us the windows may be able to withstand 120mph winds but they are only as good as the framing holding them in place. Dont believe someone that tells you we will install them to meet existing county standards...that person most likely does not know what he or she is talking about. They should be able to explain to you...to your satisfication....that the framing is as good as the window unit(s) you are instaling. Acrylic windows are not as heavy and require lighter framing but they are only rated for approx 70mph winds and REMEMBER....we do live in florida.

[ladydoc]

I want to enclose the lanai with sliders which can be open in good weather, and closed when its wet. 9.0' wide sliders can be purchased through the major DIY stores. Our lanai is 9' deep, one slider would fit the existing screen frame. The only issue I recognize, is, are the existing aluminum frames sturdy enough to support a patio sliding door?

I think I read somewhere that if you enclose with glass it is considered another room and impacts your property tax but this is not the case with acrylic. Is this true?

[mac9]

Ladydoc, We had our lanai extended and enclosed with glass sliding doors last spring. According to the building inspector that came here, we were told that adding an HVAC system to the lanai would be considered a house extension. By not having the system extended to the lanai, there has been no changes to our taxes. Our current system is more than adequate to handle the extra room. Any questions, feel free to PM me.

[Boudicca]

OMG, I had NO idea there were so many issues to enclosing the lanai. Thank you for your excellent input. We only wanted to close in two walls, and leave the lanai/birdcage open. Most of our storms blow through those two walls we'd like to close. Don't know how that would impact home value/taxes. :)

[784caroline]

LadyDoc

I highly suggest you be open minded to the Glass vs Acrylic issue for there are alot more factors to consider than property taxes. BTW you are already paying taxes for an screened in porch but it is only assessed at 45% of its value wheras a true room glass enclosed with heat/ac is 100%.

Cost wise glass vs acrylic depending on the type of glass and contractor you use will be very close . What glass does give you is better insulation and sound proofing, and better wind resistance. How each looks is in the eye of the beholder but over time acrylic will scratch and possibly yellow(think of hyour golf cart windshield) and eventually may have to be replaced. If "Sustatined" winds (not gusts)in excess of 70MPH are predicted for this area, acrylic windows should be removed. With glass you can also get a "LOW E " fetaure which is especially important if you have a western exposure at all during the summer months.

Just some things to think about.

[ladydoc]

Ladydoc, We had our lanai extended and enclosed with glass sliding doors last spring. According to the building inspector that came here, we were told that adding an HVAC system to the lanai would be considered a house extension. By not having the system extended to the lanai, there has been no changes to our taxes. Our current system is more than adequate to handle the extra room. Any questions, feel free to PM me.

Great advice; thanks so much!

[HelenLCSW]

Mac9 --or anyone --
Any recommendations --glass sliding door installers? --thanks for all the helpful info--

[Mark1130]

There is a product from PGT that is called Eze - Breeze that you should look into for your porch.

It is light weight and can be installed with your existing aluminum structure. What you describe is that you want protection from rains and such but does not have to be a Four Season room." This product is designed for what you are describing.

http://www.pgtindustries.com/Pages/Main.aspx?PageID=105

I sell these all the time here in NW Florida for people that have screened in porches but do not want to go tot he expense of sliding glass doors or windows that have to meet hurricane codes.

I hope this helps.

[mac9]

Helen, we used T&D to enclose our lanai as we had a lot of other work done, including extending the lanai and adding a golf cart garage. The glass doors are low E with argon and able to withstand a category 3. We also brought the level up to the living room floor. We are very pleased with the work that they did and do recommend them. Any other questions, feel free to PM me.

[Ohiogirl]

Has anyone used this to enclose their lanai? You still get about 70% of screening when these are fully open (they stack at the bottom). Friends of ours in Wisconsin ordered them for their screened porch. They gave me a brochure but I've misplaced it. I think they are fairly new - their handyman told them about it and they found a dealer in Northern Wisconsin to see them and order from.

I'm still in Ohio and haven't really searched yet to find out if they're available to look at here or in Florida, but I liked the pictures and like that you don't lose half of the screen when they're open, only about 30-40 inches on the bottom (at least that's what it looked like).

[784caroline]

Have not used this but BE AWARE...products that are available up north may not be available or suitable for Florida. Windows from the same manufacturer that you use in PA or Ohio are different than the one used here in Florida. Its called Hurricanes......and Florida products need to meet certain minimum wind standards.

[KittyKat]

They are available at 2 places in Leesburg. Since we just used Ro-Mac Lumber to replace our plain interior doors with 6-panel doors I'm going to call them on Monday. 787-4545. Will post the cost for our Amarillo 9x15 lanai.

[mbikowski]

784Caroline

Can you give me the contractor you used for the glass enclosure. My wife and I are moving to TV in February and would like to eventually enclose the lanai with glass? We would appreciate any help.

Michael and Vera

[784caroline]

mbikowski

Just sent you a PM .....check your notifications.

[Joe Bo]

Does anyone mind sharing the cost to enclose a 15 x 9 Amarillo lanai with glass. Also who does a good job and who to stay away from
Thanks
Joe

[The Great Fumar]

We are in the process of putting in a pool (its like snooker) and am interested in these comments about glassing in the exsisting lanai instead of screen which will open to the pool.......It will all be covered by a birdcage but on cool days it would be nice to slide the doors closed.......

deep end fumar

[villages07]

Fumar and others... We are in the process of doing this now. Got several bids and went with White's Aluminum...best overall solution and value for us. Would love to have had T&D do the work, but they would be a month just to come out and bid the job.

We are putting in full glass stackable sliders for the part of the lanai under roof. We have a birdcage extension. One wall of the lanai will be a full view storm door and two glass windows. Three other sections are stackable sliders. The dimensions of the lanai under roof is 18x26. They have framed it out and will be back in two weeks to finish install once the glass is custom made. Cost is, gulp, little over $9K. Same reasons you stated fumar.... Keep out wind and cold,maintain openness and view, remain usable in summer months with sliders open.

[jane032657]

We are doing the same, putting in stackables, windows, as well as wood flooring, etc in the screened in lanai on the new villa we just bought at the Haciendas. We are also adding on a large birdcage, putting in two screen doors, new windows, etc. Our birdcage is almost 30 x 50, we are having the full cement slab covered. I just emailed my cobtractor a lot of questions raised here.

Also, we are taking out a sliding glass door from the kitchen to the lanai and opening it up. If anyone wants to buy a sliding glass door, let me know!

[784caroline]

Jo Bo

Its not as easy to just come up with a figure. questions to be answered

-- what type of windows will you use, will they be low e, insulated, tempered etc. Big difference in cost depending upon the brand and type of window.

-- are you going to raise the lanai floor to prevent having a step down from teh family room?

-- once you enclose the lanai, are you going to have electric plugs added to the outside walls, cable outlet relocated, How about heat/or AC for the new enclosure.

-- Are you going to leave the walls stucco or put in drywall.

-- the Fan, are you changing it from an outdoor to a more modern indoor fan? are you going to install overhead CAM lighting?

-- exterior door , you will need to replace the screen door.

-- what type of flooring are you going to use: Tile to match the family room??

Start answering questions like these and now you will be comparing apples to apples!

[784caroline]

Jane

We took out our sliding glass door in the family room and arched the opening to the now enclosed lanai. Before we did this we also raised the lanai floor 4 inches...money well spent.

WE place an ad on Craigs list Ocala section to sell the sliding glass doors and believe it or not we sold them for I think $200. The tracks will be worthless but just have your contractor after he takes them out, place the doors off to the side . I would put the ad in while the door are still up in your house where someone can come by and see them installed. If you get a buyer then negotiate a time frame to pick them up. If they dont sell have the contractor get rid of them before he finishes the job.

[rodie]

Fumar and others... We are in the process of doing this now. Got several bids and went with White's Aluminum...best overall solution and value for us. Would love to have had T&D do the work, but they would be a month just to come out and bid the job.

We are putting in full glass stackable sliders for the part of the lanai under roof. We have a birdcage extension. One wall of the lanai will be a full view storm door and two glass windows. Three other sections are stackable sliders. The dimensions of the lanai under roof is 18x26. They have framed it out and will be back in two weeks to finish install once the glass is custom made. Cost is, gulp, little over $9K. Same reasons you stated fumar.... Keep out wind and cold,maintain openness and view, remain usable in summer months with sliders open.


Sounds like a great idea. Do you have any pictures you could post? What home model do you have, isn't yours a very large lanai at 18x26?

Thanks
Thanks

[jane032657]

We are also raising our floor to meet the kitchen so it is a room off the kitchen that you just step out into. I do not remember the size of the lanai. We have a Somerville at the new Haciendas. So the lanai was a step down off the kitchen. We wanted to make it a FLorida room so we are having those doors removed and then the screening of the lanai removed and stackables and windows put in which will open up to a huge birdcage. The house itself is not huge, about 1560 without the lanai changeover. We have an almost 3000 sq ft farmhouse in Seattle now so big downsizing. We are not there yet, the work is just starting as we just closed last week. It will be done while we are in Seattle. We are also putting in a dog door in teh soon to be Florida room and in the birdcage. If you want to look it is the first villa on the view size at the Haciendas at Mission Hills but only painting and window trim is happening now until the permit is got. We are taking out all the carpet and putting in Brazilian wood floors, in the Florida room as well. Great view and perfect spot for our Irish and English Setters. The number of our house is 736 Avecilla and has a sign that says Bob and Jane Bloom with a wine bottle....

[villages07]

Sounds like a great idea. Do you have any pictures you could post? What home model do you have, isn't yours a very large lanai at 18x26?

Thanks
Thanks

Rodie... It's a Lantana. No meaningful pictures yet as it is just framed out. Project should be completed in a couple of weeks. Using clear eglass so if closed in summertime heat will be greatly dissipated. Also eligible for an energy tax credit...every little bit helps.

[rodie]

Rodie... It's a Lantana. No meaningful pictures yet as it is just framed out. Project should be completed in a couple of weeks. Using clear eglass so if closed in summertime heat will be greatly dissipated. Also eligible for an energy tax credit...every little bit helps.

Thanks for info. We are building a Lantana also. We want to extend lanai all across back of house, but not sure yet how deep to make it. Looks like you increased yours from 10 ft deep to 18 ft deep. That sounds great, does it help with shading in the summer? I think we can go up to 20ft deep on ours, but not sure we need all of that. Still trying to decide.

[villages07]

Oops,I may have misspoken. As I look out the door now, that ain't no 18 ft deep. It is more like 12. We have a NE exposure so get good shade protection in the summer. Sorry about the mixup. Bigger is better!!! Definitely go at least 12... And we have a decent size birdcage beyond the lanai that really opens things up. Good luck!!!

[NANCY58]

Where can we see this product? Anyone in the Villages have these installed for inspection and recommendations?