Sliding glass doors that lead to your outside patio are always appealing because of the ease in which it slides open and closed and the fact that you can leave it open halfway if desired in order to get a breeze inside. On top of this, the full-length glass door gives in a great deal of natural lighting to your home that makes it feel like the outdoors is part of the indoors, as well. At some point, replacing your sliding glass door is going to be needed if you have an older glass door that doesn't slide as naturally as it once did or just appears outdated. Here are four things to look for when you replace it:

1. Double Pane Glass:  First off, energy efficiency in homes is becoming more desirable. In order to experience keeping your energy bills low, you will want to replace your sliding glass door with a double pane glass sliding door. The double pane is going to help ensure that the hot or cold weather stays outdoors and doesn't affect the comfortable temperature you have inside. This is going to ensure that your air conditioning or heater isn't working so hard to keep your home at the right temperature. On top of this, this type of glass is going to cancel out the noise from outside, which is especially great if you live near the highway. You can also reap the benefits of increased home value. 
2. UV Protected Glass: More and more homeowners are also installing glass that is UV protected, especially for sliding glass doors that bring in much sunlight to your home. When you install UV protected glass, you can be sure that your furniture won't become easily damaged by the sun coming in through the glass door and you won't have to worry about the UV rays damaging your health if the sun is hitting you while you are sitting inside. 
3. Double Lock: Having a sliding glass door that locks at both the handle and from the top is the best way to protect yourself from theft. Older glass doors that were only locked by the handle were easy to manipulate, which made it easier for theft to occur. Having a sliding glass door that has a double lock is going to ensure that your family and your belongings are much safer. 
4. Weather Protected Glass: If you live in an area where there are often heavy winds, severe storms, and even hurricanes, you are going to want to be sure that you install weather protected glass. This is going to ensure that the glass is strong enough to hold up against these strong winds. 

When you look for these four things when replacing your sliding glass door, you can be sure that you are getting the most out of the replacement. To learn more, contact a glass replacement company like Solar Shield Windows.