As part of a kitchen remodel we want to replace two sort-of adjacent wood doors with one sliding glass door. One of the doors goes between the kitchen and patio. The second door is about three feet away and is at the top of the basement stairs. Once every few years we need to open the second door to get big things into or out of the basement. We want a sliding door on the kitchen side, but still have a way to open the stairwell side from time to time. (The numbers don't add up; we'll be walling in some of the hole from the exiting kitchen door for more cabinet space.)

We contacted a window company that says it can order a door from Eagle that can be installed in a way to allow us to remove the fixed panel, but that Eagle recommends against it, saying if the panel is removed and reinstalled incorrectly, it will leak. Also, we've read mixed reviews on Eagle windows in other postings (although little about their doors).

Looking for other manufacturers that might have a better solution. We want a higher-end door with wood interior. We've been told that Pella, Anderson and Marvin don't have such a product. We'll go with some configuration of out-swinging hinged doors as a last resort.