ᐅ A 2-meter-wide patio door without a central mullion is recommended. Is there a warranty?

Hello everyone,

We are building a detached house with our general contractor. In the living room, a 2m (6.6 ft) wide terrace window / patio door (triple glazing) will be installed (profiles by Salamander). Our window installer wants to put a vertical post in the middle – he believes it won’t function properly otherwise.

A 2m (6.6 ft) wide roller shutter tends to bend and could be blown out during a storm (with a post, the roller shutter would be divided – that means two shutters, each 1m (3.3 ft) wide). We would prefer a design with a mullion instead of a post (we currently have this in our rental apartment, but without a roller shutter).

The installer does not refuse the installation completely but says that if we insist on not having a central post, he will disclaim responsibility for any defects related to the hardware, the frame, and the roller shutter.

Now I have the following questions for you:
1) What do you think about this? Is our window installer right, or is he just being overly cautious? We obviously do not want the fairly wide roller shutter to bend.
2) Do you have any experience with such a wide window? What should we ask the installer for during installation (reinforced profiles, etc.)?
3) Can the installer legally exclude warranty simply like that?

Best regards and many thanks,
Lacos

My parents have had a 4m (13 ft) wide floor-to-ceiling window with a large roller shutter for 30 years, and it is still the original one, so it has survived every storm. Even during the last severe weather event—we live in NRW—it caused no problems while closed. I have no idea which brand it is.

I have a floor-to-ceiling window about 3 meters (10 feet) wide in my apartment (divided into three sections with a door) that has a roller shutter spanning the entire width, and so far, there have been no problems. All other apartments in the building have similar window fronts, and each of them also has a single wide roller shutter installed. The building has been standing for 10 years now.

The only difference between these wide roller shutters and the ones on other windows is that the drive system is electric due to the greater weight.

Thank you for your input. It does seem odd to me as well. The question is whether certain requirements (of course with an additional cost for us – which would be fine) could help reduce the risk. Maybe some reinforcements or thicker casing?! Perhaps a professional here could suggest specific guidelines for the window manufacturer.

Changing the window manufacturer is unfortunately not an option.

Best regards,
Lacos

Hello,

that’s strange! Why does the general contractor talk about the roller shutter bending but want to revoke the warranty for the shutter, fittings, and frame? Does the shutter pull the frame away or what? We also have 2.40-meter (7 feet 10 inches) wide floor-to-ceiling windows with a mullion. No problem at all! Well, we chose aluminum roller shutters to ensure burglary protection while on vacation (they take longer than plastic ones) and so they don’t sag after years.

Was the window with the roller shutter already part of the contract at the time of signing, or was it added later? If it was planned from the beginning, your general contractor should figure out how to implement it without any disadvantage to you. I would ask him why he wants to make his problem your problem.