4 Ways to Open Your Kitchen to the Outdoors
[Partner Content] Design your dream indoor-outdoor kitchen with AG Millworks folding doors and glass walls at Priority Door and Window Products
Indoor-outdoor kitchens are hot right now, and perfectly suited to our ideal climate in Southern California. “The growing popularity of folding doors has fueled this modern indoor-outdoor kitchen trend,” says Maria Schell Burden, director of sales for AG Millworks, creator of a variety of folding door and glass wall products. “It has really created a whole new way of living—a California lifestyle.”
Enjoy an alfresco experience every time you share a meal, cook or even do the dishes with these four ways to open your kitchen to the great outdoors.
Folding Glass Walls
A bifold patio door is the simplest way to open your kitchen to a backyard, patio or deck. You can easily fold the doors away, leaving a large open space behind. Folding doors create an alfresco cooking experience with plenty of airflow, natural light and unobstructed views.
Because the transition from inside to out is seamless, it’s perfect for indoor-outdoor entertaining and expands your kitchen into a large, all-encompassing space. Optional retractable accordion screens are available to protect your home from insects while maximizing airflow.
TIP: Be sure your bi-fold door includes a “daily door” that can be used when you choose not to open up the full space.
Folding Passthrough Windows
If a bifold door is too large for the space, get your indoor-outdoor kitchen by using bifold windows to create a kitchen passthrough. A passthrough window connects your kitchen to an outdoor patio or backyard, and can add an outdoor breakfast counter, buffet or cocktail bar for extra dining or entertaining space.
A servery window is a great option for passing appetizers, meals, beverages and snacks from the kitchen to the yard. It also allows busy hosts to be part of the party while putting the finishing touches on a meal.
Folding Window-Door Combinations
If you want to install a bifold glass wall or door near a kitchen countertop, consider combining a folding passthrough window with the bifold to make the wall disappear entirely. It’s a true indoor-outdoor kitchen, and with the AG Millworks systems, the window can lock to the counter and upper level, and the door and the window can lock together without any additional framing to block your seamless views. Enjoy a passthrough window and a fully open indoor-outdoor space.
Corner Bifold Doors
The “zero-corner” bifold door option opens multiple walls at once and doesn’t require a supporting post at the corner, leaving you with unobstructed access and views to your outdoor spaces. This is a striking way to transform a narrow space into an indoor-outdoor kitchen—or to make a large space feel even more open.
TIP: Work with professional vendors, like Priority Door and Window Products to ensure that you choose optimal designs and colors, coordinate the associated sills, transoms and other support structures and avoid costly mistakes complementing your indoor-outdoor kitchen bifold systems with existing doors and windows.
