Hi guys,

I am planning to replace an existing 30-year old aluminium sliding door. The ali joinery suppliers did not offered safety glass (any of them). The opening is approx 2.4W x 1.9H, the fixed part is divided in three sections (by 2 transoms) and the sliding door has only one transom aligned with the lower one from the fixed section...

What is your understanding / expectation regarding safety glass and code compliance? This job is not part of a larger job with a Building Consent, I will just get the ali joinery guys to make a new door and replace the old one (no consent, no inspections, I do not believe something like this would be required anyway). My worry is that years later when I move out, the new owner might ask why there is no safety glass in the sliding doors? If the door is 30-year old there is no expectation for this, but for a new one?

if safety glass would make sense, where should it be installed on the double glazing panel? Inside? outside? Or maybe both sides? All the ali joinery manufacturers I contacted about this job advised me that it is very uncommon to have safety glass in the sliding doors. It was something to do with the presence or absence of a divider (transom) in the pane of glass. A transom would work as a "vision bar", you cannot go through the glass when the door is closed, because you see the door is closed. No transom, no visual indication and then you MIGHT try to go through the glass... But I could not find anything definitive in the Building Code... there is something about wet / slippery areas (bathroom/laundry) but that is all.

any idea where to look for something "in writing" for peace of mind, would be much appreciated.
Thank you.