ArcaMax

To provide privacy for sliding glass doors and windows, consider using vertical blinds. They’re like a horizontal blind with vanes that can be opened, closed and folded away, but they’re stacked on one side vertically. To operate you use a pull cord wand that adjusts the angle and movement of the vanes.

You’ll find them with different features like light-filtering or room-darkening and made of vinyl or covered in fabric that matches a header valance installed across the top. Vertical blinds are readily available and sold online and at home and design centers in a variety of sizes to fit different shapes.

You’ll pay a handyman $321, which includes labor and material, to install a good quality vertical blind on a 6-foot-wide by 7-foot-high patio door. The installation is straightforward if you have basic tools like an electric drill and bits, a screwdriver, a tape measure and a ladder.

You can buy the blind and wall anchors for $130 and install it yourself, pocketing a 60% saving. It helps to have someone on hand to hold one end of the blind while you work on the other end. For kids’ safety, choose a vertical blind with a safety wand that eliminates the looped pull cord and keeps it out of a toddler's reach.

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To find more DIY project costs and to post comments and questions, visit www.diyornot.com and m.diyornot.com on smartphones.

Pro Cost — DIY Cost — Pro time — DIY Time — DIY Savings — Percent Saved

$321 — $130 — 3.8 — 4.5 — $191 — 60%

©2026 Gene and Katie Hamilton. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.