Last week I explained how to measure your existing sliding glass door so you can order the vinyl replacement door. This week I am going to go over the steps required to remove the old sliding door before installing the new door.

First, you have to remove the sliding panel and the stationary panel. The vast majority of doors out there have the sliding panel on the inside half of the track, and the stationary panel is on the outside. Whatever the case in your particular door, the outside panel has to come out first. To remove the fixed panel, you need to remove the sill cap that snaps into the bottom track and runs from the fixed panel to the side jamb where the sliding panel locks. Force a screwdriver into the crease and pry the cap up. Then, look for screws on the inside side jamb holding the fixed panel in place. These screws prevent someone from prying up the sill cap and pulling out the fixed panel in order to gain entry into the home. In addition to the side jamb, be sure to check across the top header and bottom track for screws there as well. Once all the screws have been removed, you need to pull the fixed panel away from the side jamb. You can start by simply grabbing the side rail of the fixed panel and pulling as hard as you can. If you're lucky, the panel will pop free. Then you can lift the panel up as far as it will go into the top channel and swing the bottom away from the track, and remove the panel. Now, I said "if you're lucky", because in most cases the panel will be stuck in the side jamb, the bottom track, or both. Usually, you're going to have to use a pry bar to loosen the fixed panel before it will slide out of the side jamb. Once the fixed panel is out, removal of the sliding panel is usually easier. Just lift up and swing the bottom away from the track, then remove the panel. Sometimes the bottom rollers will prevent the bottom from swinging out of the track. If that's the case, you will need to find the roller adjustment hole in the bottom corners of the sliding panel. Put a screwdriver into this hole and turn the screw counterclockwise to bring the roller as far up into the bottom of the sliding panel as possible. This should allow the slider to come out.