We had a very similar layout in our previous house, except the door to the patio was in the wall to the left of the great room windows. Our door opened out so that it swung left and out of the way, which worked very well. In our case having it swing to the inside would have really been in the way when it was open. It also seems more natural to have an exit door opening outward.

It seems like the inward swinging door could get the way of the table in the dining nook, but it depends on the size or the table. However, if you have it swinging out and to the right it would be completely out of the way when it is open.

Bruce

Inswing door is much easier and more practical for a screen door.

Inswing door is much easier and more practical for a screen door.

I don't think we can have doors that swing out, except for storm doors. Do you have snow?

It seems folks have different ideas about the swing of exterior doors. Myself, I have always felt the only proper way is for them to swing inward, regardless of type of door or location.

The reasons for this include:
--Keeping the door out of the weather for prolonged lifespan;
--Reducing the weather effects that get transferred back to the interior;
--Security, since it's easier to push a door closed than pull it, if there's someone or something outside that one doesn't want inside.

That said, it's a personal choice.

Good luck with your project.

I'm one who does not have a problem with outswing exterior doors, especially when the area they lead to is covered. We have both inswing and outswing doors at our house.

Thank you for all the feedback!

Outswing would save more floor space ... unless you plan to have a storm/screen/security door there.

Pocket doors for exterior doors??? Arhsub - are you sure your intended to suggest pocket doors for exterior use? What do you do about insulation? It seems like the hollow "pocket" would be terribly energy inefficient.

Do you have snow? If you get significant snow an out swing is a no no. We get 60-70" a year so it's not an option for us. Plus it's near impossible to put a screen or storm door on it. The storm door will protect the door and be an added layer of protection against wind. I don't think an out swing exterior door is appropriate in most situations.

Maybe not everyone lives with inclement weather and thinks about these things though lol.

While Krycek is right to ask about snow, this looks like it would be a door opening to a very sheltered corner of a large covered patio. Unless you regularly get heavy snowfalls with winds that be blowing toward that corner and therefore would cause drifts of snow 16 to 18 ft from the edge of the patio, I don't think you need to worry too much about snow. And, rain should not be an issue either.

Check local building codes though. In some areas out-swing exterior doors are not allowed. In others (such as Florida) out-swing exterior are actually encouraged and may even be required in a few localities because they stand up better to hurricane force winds.

Again though, unless you're in an area that tends to get hurricane force winds, that probably won't be a major factor in your decision making.

Here is a website that discuss the pros/cons of inswing versus outswing doors. The author is pro out-swing but some of those commenting on his article make good arguments for inswing so you get both viewpoints as far as functionality goes.

Personally, if codes allowed, I would do outswing in your particular situation.

Here is a link that might be useful: inswing versus outswing doors