Window and Door Glossary
Welcome to Our Comprehensive Window and Door Glossary!
Whether you’re a homeowner, builder, architect, or simply curious about the intricacies of windows and doors, our glossary is here to help. This guide covers a wide range of terms related to windows and doors, providing clear definitions and explanations. From common types of windows and doors to specialized components and architectural details, you’ll find everything you need to enhance your knowledge and make informed decisions for your projects.
Windows: Our Product Lines
A
Advantage Plus: A product line that is vinyl on the interior and exterior of the product.
- Capable of dual glazing (2 pieces of glass) and triple glazing (3 pieces of glass), as well as many custom and acoustical options.
- Product line consists of Casement, Awning, Fixed Lite in Sash, and Fixed Lite in Frame windows.
Advantage Line: A product line that is vinyl on the interior and exterior of the product.
- Capable of dual glazing and some acoustical options.
- Product line consists of: Gliders, Single Hungs, Double Hungs and Sliding Patio Doors.
L
Liberty Collection: A product collection that is vinyl clad on the exterior and wood on the interior.
- Interior wood options of pine, oak, maple.
- Multiple hardware finishes available.
- Typically dual glazed, but certain custom glazing available
- Product collection consists of: Casement, Awning, Fixed Lite in Sash, Fixed Lite in Frame and Single/Double Hung windows as well as Sliding Patio Doors.
Windows
A
Awning Window: A crank out operating window, hinged on the top, typically short and wide.
- Typically put beside, on top, underneath, or in a group of Fixed Lite in Sash windows.
- Consists of a main frame section (box), one operating sash, and one glass unit per window.
- Also called: Caribbean or Caribbean Awning.
- Seals via flexible compression seals between the sash and frame when closed.
- Currently available in Advantage Plus and Liberty product lines.
Astragal: A molding attached to one of a pair of doors or windows, providing a seal between them when closed.
B
Bay Window: A window that projects outward from an exterior wall, forming a bay in a room.
Bow Window: Similar to a bay window but with a curved shape, often consisting of four or more window units.
Brickmould: Exterior trim piece that makes the frame appear wider on the outside than it actually is.
- All of Pollard’s brickmould is screwed together with overlapping corners.
- The bottom crossmember (called nosing, or sill nosing, brickmould nosing) is narrower than the sides and top (5/8”), which gives more of a traditional look to the window.
- Door Products do not have sill nosing. The brickmould is on the jambs and head only.
C
Casement Window: A crank out operating window, hinged on one side, typically tall and narrow.
- Typically put beside or in a group of Fixed Lite in Sash windows.
- Consists of a main frame section (box), one sash and one glass unit per window.
- Also called: Tudor or Tudor Casement.
- Seals via flexible compression seals between the sash and frame when closed.
- Currently available in Advantage Plus and Liberty product lines.
Casing: The trim surrounding a window or door.
D
Double-Hung Window: A vertically sliding operating window.
- Consists of a main frame section (box) and two separate operable sash, each with one glass unit, held in by glass stops.
- The bottom sash slides upwards to open the window, the top sash slides downward to open the window.
- Seals through woven pile weatherstripping between the frame and sash, allowing the sash to slide for operation.
- Available in Advantage and Liberty product lines.
Drywall Return: A U-shaped slot used to accept drywall on the interior of a window unit.
- Drywall return is used in place of Jamb Extensions.
F
Fixed Window: A window that does not open, often used for decorative purposes.
Fixed Lite in Frame Window: A fixed, picture window, where there is minimal frame around the perimeter of the product.
- Consists of a main frame section (box) and one glass unit, held in by glass stops.
- Most glass area to frame area of any product.
- Typically used as a rectangular picture window.
- Profile also used for non-rectangular shapes (curved or otherwise).
- Currently available in Advantage Plus, Advantage, and Liberty product lines.
Fixed Lite in Sash Window: A fixed, picture window where the frame matches the visible exterior (glass size, sightline, etc.) of the operating casement and awning windows.
- Consists of a main frame section (box) and one glass unit, held in by glass stops.
- Only available in a square or rectangular shape.
- Currently available in Advantage Plus and Liberty product lines.
Frame: Outer perimeter of window/door system. Can be Vinyl or Vinyl/Wood (Liberty Only).
- Once installed, the frame section is always stationary (non-moving) and fastened into the wall system, either directly or through attached jamb extensions.
- Houses the glass on fixed (non-operating) windows.
- Can be fusion welded, welded with mechanically fastened sill, or completely mechanically fastened together, depending on the product.
G
Glazing: The process of installing glass in a window or door.
Glass Panel: A thin-framed blacked out faux window panel that mounts to the exterior sheathing of a home to make it look like there is a room behind it. Typically used in gable ends.
- Currently available in Advantage product line.
Glass Stops: Vinyl or wood parts that attach to the sash in order to hold the sealed unit in place.
- For non-operating windows (fixed windows, picture windows, etc.), the glass stops engage directly into the frame, as there is no operating portion of the window.
- Also called glazing stops, glazing beads.
Glass Unit: Typically 2 layers of glass (“lites”) separated by a spacer bar (3 lites on triple glazed units).
- Also known as: Sealed Unit (SU); Insulated Glass Unit (IGU); Glass Pack; Glazing.
- One or more of the pieces of glass in a sealed unit may contain a low E coating.
- Held in place using silicone as a sealant and glass stops (wood or vinyl depending on product).
- Typically made from standard annealed glass on windows, but can be tempered for greater strength or safety. Tempered is the standard glass used for door products (sidelites only if specified)
Grills: Decorative internal dividers made of aluminum, contained within a glass unit.
- Can be any standard or custom configuration.
- Also called: Grilles; Grids; Muntin Bars, Grills Between Glass, GBG.
H
Hopper Window: A window hinged at the bottom, opening inward.
J
Jamb Extension: Typically a wood part that is attached to the vinyl frame of the window and extends the overall depth of the window frame to fit the wall it is going into.
- Used for installing the window into the wall (screw through jamb extension, through shim into wall studs.
- Creates boxed in look where blinds traditionally get installed into.
L
Locking Hardware: Hardware that locks the window / sliding door.
- Varies considerably depending on the type of operating window.
- Can be basic for sliding windows (single point cam activated lock and keeper)
- More complex for casement, awning and door systems (single locking lever activating many locking points at once).
Low E: A near-invisible coating of metal on one or more surfaces of glass that increase the thermal performance of a sealed unit.
- Can be written as: lowE, loE, low emissivity
- Many different types of low E coatings exist, all geared towards different performance characteristics. Amount of heat transfer (insulation) and amount of solar heat are the main two properties that low E glass controls.
M
Mullion: Vertical or horizontal frame section created when two windows come together.
Muntin: A strip of wood or metal separating and holding panes of glass in a window.
O
Operating Hardware: Hardware that operates the window/sliding door.
- Varies considerably depending on the type of product.
- Extremely basic for horizontally sliding windows.
- Any number of a spring type system for vertically sliding (hung) windows.
- System of crank, rotogear, tracks and hinge assemblies for casement and awning windows.
P
Picture Window: A large, fixed window designed to provide an unobstructed view.
S
Sash: The part of the window that holds the glass panes, typically movable in double-hung windows.
Sliding Window: A horizontally sliding operating window.
- Consists of a main frame section (box), one sash, housing one glass unit, held in by glass stops and one fixed glass unit (one half of window), held in by glass stops.
- Currently available in Advantage product line.
Single-Hung Window: A vertically sliding operating window.
- Consists of a main frame section (box), one sash, housing one glass unit, held in by glass stops and one fixed glass unit (top half of window), held in by glass stops. The top glass unit can be glazed directly into the upper frame (Advantage), or into a fixed sash (Liberty).
- Currently available in Advantage and Liberty product lines.
Sash: Operating Windows/Sliding Doors Only.
- Vinyl box section that makes up the moving portion of a window. Can be fusion welded, or mechanically fastened (Liberty Sliding Patio Doors only).
- The sash houses the glass on operating product.
SDL (Simulated Divided Lite) : Decorative dividers made of PVC (vinyl) and/or wood (product dependent).
- Generally adhered to glass on the interior and exterior surface of a glass unit using high strength specialty tape.
- In some instances (Liberty), an option for removable SDL is available.
- SDL stands for Simulated Divided Lite. It looks like (simulates) the glass unit is made up of many smaller units, but is really one glass unit. This gives thermal and economic benefits.
SDL (Simulated Double Hung) : A Decorative 2” divider made of PVC (vinyl) and/or wood (product dependent).
- Intended to simulate the look of a single/double hung window on a generally better performing fixed or casement product.
- Adhered to glass on the interior and exterior of a glass unit using high strength specialty tape.
Sill: The bottom horizontal part of a window or door frame.
Spacer Bar: Metal or non-metal framing used to create an air space between two pieces of glass in a glass unit.
- Double glazed units have two pieces of glass and one spacer bar.
- Triple glazed units have three pieces of glass and two spacer bars.
Stile: The vertical components of a door, typically the sides.
T
Transom Window: A small fixed window located above a door or another window.
W
Weatherstripping: Soft flexible seals running around the frame and/or sash. Generally not present/required on fixed windows.
- When the window/sliding door is closed and locked, the weatherstripping creates a seal between the operating portion (sash) and the fixed portion (frame) of the product.
- Can be a plastic compression material (casements, awnings), or woven pile seals (used where product slides, due to lower friction – sliding windows and patio doors).
Weatherside Exterior Extension: Available on Advantage Plus rectangular windows only.
- Exterior PVC (vinyl) extension piece, 2-1/4” wide, adding this 2-1/4 inches to the overall depth of the window jamb.
- Cannot be used in conjunction with Brickmould.
Doors: Our Product Lines
L
Liberty Polardor: Pollard’s standard entry door system that has PVC (vinyl) exterior and wood interior
- Can have Advantage or Advantage Plus window, sidelite or transom product attached to it.
- Many slab and hardware options available.
Liberty French Clad Door: Pollard’s handcrafted entry door system with PVC (vinyl) exterior and wood interior.
- Flush glazed, clean lines on the door slab.
- Multipoint hardware standard option.
- Pine, Oak and Maple interior finish options.
U
Ultraprime Polardor: Pollard’s all wood entry door system.
- Uses fingerjoint pine for all frame, extension and brickmould parts.
- Many slab styles available, and some hardware options.
Doors
A
Active Slab: The part of the Door system that gets operated on a daily basis to pass through the door system.
- Active Slab always has a handle set (hardware).
- Generally referred to simply as “slab”, “door slab”, or sometimes as “Door panel”.
Astragal: Separator between the Active and Passive side slabs on a door system.
- Attached (via screws) to the Passive Slab.
- Made out of wood (interior) with aluminum (exterior) extrusion attached.
Astragal Shoe(s): Small PVC extrusions attached to the head and sill that cover the ends of the Astragal.
Astragal Plant- On: Small plastic block that is attached to the bottom of an astragal and sits on top of the door sill. Also referred to as Astragal Support Block.
- The Astragal Plant-On sets the fixed side of the door to the correct position, to prevent sag.
- Partially houses flushbolt hardware.
B
Bi-fold Door: A door made of panels that fold back on themselves, often used for closets.
Brickmould: Exterior trim piece that makes the frame appear wider on the outside than it actually is.
- Door Products do not have sill nosing. The brickmould is on the jambs and head only. The jamb brickmould sits on top of the door sill.
D
Dutch Door: A door divided horizontally, allowing the top half to open independently from the bottom half.
Door Jamb Extension: Hollow vinyl (Liberty, Liberty French Clad) or wood (Ultraprime) parts that add depth to the door frame in order to make it fit the width of the wall being installed into.
F
Frame / Door Frame: Rectangular section of a door that gets fastened into the wall.
- On a Single Door (one slab), consists of: i. 2 Jambs, hinge-side and lock side ii. 1 head or header (top cross piece) iii. 1 Sill (bottom cross piece)
- On a Double Door (2 slabs), consists of: i. 2 Jambs, active side and passive (or fixed) side ii. 1 head (top cross piece) iii. 1 sill (bottom cross piece)
- Made out of solid wood with PVC (vinyl) attached (Liberty and Liberty French Clad) or wood only (Ultraprime).
Flushbolt: Cylindrical locking hardware that is manually activated, and locks the passive slab into the head and sill of a double door system.
- Two (2) per double door, fastened to the top and bottom of the astragal.
Flush Door: A door with a flat surface and no panels or moldings.
French Patio Door: A pair of doors with glass panes extending the full length, typically opening outward or inward.
G
Garage Door Frame: A 3-sided open frame system that finishes the rough framing (studs) around the sides and top of an overhead garage door opening.
- Garage door frames are not intended to bear any weight and are not intended to have the hardware associated with the overhead garage door attached. It can, however, generally have the weatherstripping from the overhead garage door system attached to it by the installers of that system.
- Currently available in Advantage and Ultraprime product lines.
H
Hinged Door: A door attached to a frame by hinges, swinging open in one direction.
Hinges: Hardware that allows the door to operate.
- Three (3) on a standard “80” high door
- Four (4) on a standard “96” high door
- Standard butt hinges are zinc, however options exist:
- Spring hinges are spring loaded in order to allow the door to close when other resistance factors are eliminated.
- Finish options exist, and are available in an upgraded ball-bearing style hinge for extra longevity.
- Adjustable hinges are standard hardware when multipoint hardware is selected, and are adjustable in/out, up/down to allow for fine adjustment after settleing of the house with the tighter tolerances required in a multi-locking point system.
M
Multipoint Lock Hardware: Locking hardware on the active slab that has more than one, automatically activated locking points (typically 3 locking points).
- Must be combined with a compatible lever or thumb latch style handleset (colour and style options available).
P
Panel Door: A door with raised or recessed panels, offering a more traditional look.
Passive Slab: Side of the door system that is not intended to be operated on a daily basis, and remains closed most of the time.
- Also referred to as: “Fixed Panel”; “Fixed Slab”; “In-Active slab”.
- Can be operated by unlocking flushbolt hardware located at the top and bottom of the Astragal and opened in order to move large items through the door system.
S
Sidelite: Product attached beside a door system.
- Generally fixed glass
- Can be a half panel – product that looks like half of a door slab – full glass, or kick panel – small slab portion in its own frame contained beneath an otherwise full glass sidelite.
Sill Extension: Aluminum extrusion attached to the exterior of the sill.
- Adds depth to the base door frame in order to make it fit the width of the wall being installed into.
Storm Door: An additional exterior door installed to protect the main door from weather elements.
Sliding Patio Door: Consists of a main frame section (box), two sash, each housing one glass unit, held in by glass stops. One sash remains fixed (stationary), and one sash slides horizontally to operate the door.
- Currently available in Advantage and Liberty product lines.
Slab Plant-On: PVC (vinyl) part that is attached to the bottom of a door slab.
- Houses the sill weatherstripping that seals against the sill of the door.
- Sometimes referred to as drip rail, due to its integrated drip cover, protecting the weatherstripping.
- Designed to work as a part of Pollard’s proprietary sill system.
Sweep: A U-shaped PVC (vinyl) extrusion attached to the bottom of a door slab.
- It has 3-5 soft flexible fins that point downward and brush (“sweep”) against the sill in order to make a seal at the bottom of the door
- Pollard only uses door sweeps on open-out door systems or door systems with accessible/low-profile sills.
- Used on these products in place of the door slab plant-on part on standard door systems.
- Not to be used in conjunction with Pollard’s standard inswing door sill.
Swinging Patio Door: A door that can swing open in either direction.
T
Transom: Product attached or “stacked” on top of a door system.
W
Weatherstripping: Gasket material that seals the active and passive slabs to the door frame when the door is closed.
- Attached to the jambs, head and astragal frame members, and on the slab plant-on for the sill weatherstrip.
