PGT Pass-Through Window Over the Kitchen Sink to a Sarasota Lanai

In this Sarasota home, the kitchen sink sits on the wall shared with a covered, screened lanai. Outside, under the window, there is a wide concrete ledge with a rounded edge, the kind of serving counter that turns a kitchen window into a pass-through. We installed a new white PGT single-hung window in that opening, so food and drinks can go straight from the counter to the lanai.

Photo 1 is the kitchen side. The new window sits between wood cabinets, above a white stone counter with gray veining, an undermount stainless sink and a pull-down faucet. A leaf-pattern marble mosaic backsplash runs up to the frame. The PGT label is still on the glass. Look at the bottom rail of the lower sash and you can see the two finger lifts: the lower sash slides up while the top sash stays fixed. Photo 2 is the lanai side. The window is set in the stucco wall with a smooth band of fresh stucco around it, and the concrete ledge sits just below the sill.

A pass-through window has a few details that a normal kitchen window does not. The first is faucet clearance. A tall pull-down faucet has to clear the sash, or the window cannot open fully. Here the sill sits just above the faucet. The second is sill height. The window should line up with the counter inside and the ledge outside, so you can slide a plate through without lifting it over a lip. The third is water. Even under a lanai roof, the outside ledge must slope away from the window, and the frame needs a sealed sill so rain and hose spray do not find a way into the cabinet below.

Why a single-hung window? It is simple, durable and familiar, and the fixed top sash keeps the frame strong. A horizontal slider or an awning window can also work for a pass-through. The right choice depends on how wide the opening is and how you want to reach through it. Whatever the style, the window should carry Florida Product Approval and be rated for your home's design pressure, and it needs to be anchored into the wall opening, not just foamed in place.

If you are planning a kitchen window like this, ask your installer a few questions. Will the sash clear my faucet? Will the sill line up with my countertop? How will the outside ledge and stucco be finished and sealed? Is the window rated for my address, including the wind-borne debris region if it applies? Who pulls the permit?

Prestigious Home Improvements is a family-owned, licensed contractor (CRC1327831) installing windows, doors and kitchen upgrades across Sarasota and Southwest Florida. If you want a pass-through window to your lanai, book a free in-home estimate and we will measure the opening and check the sink, counter and ledge before anything is ordered.