Shopping for a wall of glass, you will hear a dozen names. Here is what each one really means.
Folding family
- Bi-fold door — panels hinged in pairs that fold and stack to the side on a track.
- Accordion door — the same system; the name describes the zig-zag folding motion.
- Panoramic door — usually a folding system with slimmer frames and taller glass.
- Folding glass wall / retractable glass wall — the umbrella name for all of the above.
Sliding family
- Sliding patio door — two to four panels, one or more sliding past a fixed panel.
- Multi-slide (stacking) door — several panels stack behind one another.
- Pocketing door — panels slide into a wall pocket and disappear.
- Lift-and-slide door — hardware lifts heavy panels off the seals to glide, then seals tight when closed.
- Telescoping door — panels on parallel tracks that move together.
- Open-corner (90°) door — two walls meet with no post and open completely.
Which is right for you?
Choose folding when the widest possible clear opening matters most. Choose sliding or lift-and-slide when you want the largest glass panels and the slimmest frames when closed. Choose pocketing when you want the panels to vanish entirely.
See our folding doors and sliding doors, or ask us which fits your opening.