What Are Sidelites And How To Pick The Best One For Your Home
You’ve certainly seen a sidelite before, numerous times as a matter of fact, but never knew the specific name for it. Sidelites, also referred to as sidelights or simply lites, are the narrow, fixed windows (that do not open) installed next to doors. More often than not, you’ll find sidelites on both sides of a front door or entry door, but they can also be installed simply on the left or right side of the door. What do sidelites add to your house and how can you pick the right ones for your space? Let’s get into it.
Source of Light
Sidelites are a great source of additional natural light to your house. If your front door has glass or a transom, you’ll get even more of those warm rays through the lites. You can still pair a completely solid front door with sidelites and they can provide a hint of natural light on your entryway. This reduces the need for artificial light in your entryway, especially if your house is situated in a place which faces the sun for most of the day.
Space Filler
They are also an optimal option for when you find the door of your dreams but it’s not wide enough to fill your door frame. Instead of getting into the hassle of narrowing your door frame, fill the space with a custom-sized sidelight instead. Depending on how much space you need to fill, you can opt for installing a lite on either side of the door or from both sides.
Design and Customization
Another excellent quality of sidelites is that they are highly customizable. You can find a large selection and custom order sidelites the same way you do with interior and exterior doors. This means you’ll be able to perfectly match your sidelites with both your door and a transom, if you have one.
Security and Privacy
Some renovators are worried about the security of their home when considering sidelites. They are under the impression that a burglar can easily break through the glass and access the doorknob from the inside. Typically, glass that is immediately on the same wall of the door is made of tempered glass. This is toughened glass that is more difficult to break, providing more durability and security. If your property has other safety measurements in place — a gated fence, security system, etc — then this is optimal.
Interior Sidelites
Sidelites are something you can incorporate in your interior design as well — it’s not limited only to the entryway door. This is a great way to take advantage of many of the perks listed above such as adding additional lighting in between rooms along with using up the space of the doorway to its full potential without additional renovation.
Energy-Efficiency
If you didn’t know already, your home’s windows and doors have an effect on your energy bills. If they are incapable of locking cold and warm air in from your air conditioner and heating system respectively, then you are throwing dollars out of the window. If you opt for sidelites that are energy-efficient and secure, you’ll only have the warm, natural light to gain and nothing to lose.
Summing Up
If you’re thinking of renovating your entryway door or interior doors, sidelites are a great addition to consider. They can easily be customized to match your door of choice along with the entire style of the house. Not only are they a stylish design choice, but they come with many advantages and close to zero disadvantages.
Get in touch with us today to be one step closer to the house of your dreams.