Slim Sliding Glass Doors in Edinburgh for a Garden Room Extension

The minimal windows® glazing strategy centres around three sliding door systems positioned throughout the garden room extension. Together, they create large glass walls around the new kitchen and living space, introducing natural light and establishing broad views towards the mature gardens and woodland.

Two of the sliding door arrangements incorporate glass-to-glass corner connections. Each uses two fixed panels and one sliding panel, reducing visible framing at the junctions and allowing the glass walls to continue around the corners of the extension. The largest fixed pane within these arrangements weighs approximately 382kg.

The third and largest sliding system measures approximately 6.8 metres wide by 2.9 metres high. Its three track configuration comprises one fixed panel and two sliding panels, providing a generous opening between the garden room and outside. Each glass pane within this system weighs approximately 256kg.

A further minimal windows® system was installed within a separate garden studio during a later phase of the project. This two track bi-parting arrangement measures approximately 6.9 metres wide and follows the same general specification as the garden room glazing, with the addition of solar control glass.

The renovation was designed to modernise the house while preserving its historic fabric and distinctive architectural character. The former kitchen occupied a darker service wing at the rear of the property, limiting natural light and its relationship with the surrounding gardens.

The new garden room was conceived as a deliberately contemporary timber and glass extension. Its lightweight appearance provides a clear contrast with the original stone building, allowing the historic and new elements to remain individually legible.

The slim sliding doors are central to this architectural approach. Large panes of glass give the relocated kitchen and living space a more immediate connection to the mature landscape, while the minimal aluminium profiles reduce visual interruption across the garden views.

For architects, developers and private clients considering slim sliding glass doors in Edinburgh, the project demonstrates how premium sliding glazing can support a contemporary extension while responding sensitively to the setting and character of a historic property.

The three garden room installations were designed as coordinated minimal windows® systems, sharing the same framing, glass specification and finish to create visual consistency throughout the extension.

Two arrangements combine fixed and sliding panels with glass-to-glass corner connections. These junctions allow adjoining glass walls to meet with less visible framing, supporting the light and transparent architectural character of the garden room. The scale of the glass required careful engineering, with the largest fixed panel weighing approximately 382kg.

The largest linear system measures approximately 6794mm wide by 2933mm high. Its three track configuration contains one fixed panel and two sliding panels, allowing a substantial section of the glazed wall to open towards the garden. Slim 21mm interlockers minimise the visible aluminium where adjacent panels meet

The later garden studio system measures approximately 6901mm wide by 2801mm high. Its two track configuration incorporates bi-parting sliding doors that move away from the centre to create a broad central opening.

The minimal windows® systems were specified with double glazed clear toughened safety glass and a Low-E coating. This supports thermal performance across the large glazed areas while maintaining transparency and natural light within the garden room.

The glass was heat soak tested to significantly reduce the risk of spontaneous breakage caused by undetectable inclusions within the body of the glass. Solar control was also incorporated into the later garden studio system to help manage heat gain through its extensive glazed frontage.

The aluminium frames are finished in RAL 7022 Umbra Grey with a marine grade coating. This enhanced finish provides additional durability in Edinburgh’s coastal environment while giving all the sliding systems a consistent, understated appearance.

Flush threshold base frames create clean transitions between the interior and outside areas. Security is provided by multi-point slim shoot bolt locking systems integrated discreetly within the minimal aluminium framing.

Rev W.B. Stevenson’s House demonstrates how slim sliding glass doors in Edinburgh can strengthen the relationship between a historic home and its landscape while supporting a distinctly contemporary architectural addition.

Within the garden room, the three minimal windows® systems bring daylight into the relocated kitchen and living space while framing views of the property’s mature gardens and woodland. The glass-to-glass corner connections extend these views across adjoining elevations, while the larger three track system provides a generous opening to the outside.

The later garden studio continues the same minimal architectural language, using bi-parting sliding doors to create a broad central opening and maintain a close visual connection with the surrounding landscape.

For architects, developers and private clients planning an extension to a historic or period property, the project provides a clear example of how minimal windows® systems can combine large glass panels, slim framing, coastal durability and carefully detailed corner connections.

• System: Multiple minimal windows® sliding door systems
• Garden room: 3 slim sliding door systems
• Corner arrangements: 2 systems with glass-to-glass corner connections, each incorporating 2 fixed panels and 1 sliding panel
• Largest fixed panel weight: Approx. 382kg
• Largest sliding system: Approx. 6794mm wide x 2933mm high on a three track system with 1 fixed panel and 2 sliding panels
• Garden studio system: Approx. 6901mm wide x 2801mm high on a two track system with bi-parting sliding doors
• Glass: Double glazed clear toughened safety glass with Low-E coating throughout and solar control to the garden studio. All glass was heat soak tested
• Sightlines: 21mm slim interlockers
• Frame finish: RAL 7022 Umbra Grey with marine grade coating
• Threshold: Flush threshold base frames
• Locking: Multipoint slim Type 1 shoot bolt locking systems