5 Facts About Bifold Doors You Need To Know

Bifold doors aren’t just a nice feature to have when the sun is shining. The year-round light they let in, the additional convenience of access, and the view into your garden mean they’re an attractive and worthwhile addition to your home. Here are 5 facts about bifold doors you need to know if you’re looking at getting some installed.

Bifold doors are a wonderful way to combine both indoor and outdoor spaces. In recent years they have become incredibly popular featuring on new builds and many extensions. It’s clear to see why, when you take into account people looking to increase the style and brightness of their homes.

Facts About Bifold Doors

What Materials Do Bifold Doors Come In?

Bifold doors come in three main materials, PVCu, wood and aluminium. All of these offer completely different aesthetics as well as maintenance requirements.

  • PVCu is often the most affordable and comes in a wide range of colours and finishes. They feature slim, unobtrusive sight lines and frames meaning more glass, and with it more natural light in your room.
  • Aluminium provides both strength and rigidity. It’s very long-lasting, weather-resistant, and will never warp or rot.
  • Wood is another great option but needs a huge amount of maintenance in comparison to the other bifold material options.

Are Bifold Doors Secure?

Bifold doors are some of the most secure examples of doors available today. They feature a high-security hinge and a multi-locking system as standard, offering a huge amount of additional security. This makes them much more challenging for burglars to break in through and is far superior to a traditional turn-key lock. All our bifold doors also come with shoot bolts at the top and bottom of the interlocks for enhanced security.

Facts About Bifold Doors

Are Bifold Doors Weatherproof?

Bifold doors are more than capable of protecting you and your home from the elements. It’s important to note that due to the materials, they’re not as warm as a solid wall. However, our bifold doors have a U Value as low as 1.7 w/m2 K. The U value is the measure of how much heat is kept in and not lost through the glass; the lower the number the better. This is lower than the requirement for building regulations that state bifold doors must be 1.8W/(m2k) for replacements or 2.0W/(m2k) for a new build or extension. You also won’t need to concern yourself with thoughts of water tightness or air permeability:

  • Air Permeability – 600pa
  • Water Tightness – 600pa
  • Wind Resistance – 2400pa
  • U Value as low as 1.7 w/m2 K

How Do They Work?

Unlike french doors, bifold doors are made up of panels that are hinged together on sliders and runners. This means you’ll need a track to allow the doors to neatly fold onto one another. The runners allow the mechanism to operate with very little force on the user’s part. With bifold doors, you can open up a whole wall, two corners, or even a balcony with very little effort.

You can easily have lead doors on your set as well. They have the ability to open inwards and outwards independently. Of course, this depends on your specific requirements and the type of door you opt for. The use of lead doors allows you to enter and exit via the glass door without having to slide them each time.

5 Facts About Bifold Doors

Why People Choose Bifold Doors

The largest reason people opt for bifold doors is the uninterrupted views they create. Bifold doors easily allow you to bring the outside in and provide easy access to your garden. They’ve been designed with slim and unobtrusive sight lines that really maximise the natural light coming into your home. There really is nothing lovelier, on a warm summers day, to have your doors wide open into your home – perfect for family time as well as having friends over!

Get in Touch

If you are thinking about aluminium bifold doors or in fact PVCu bifold doors and have a space where you think they would really look great, then please contact us, either by calling 020 8648 0426 or via our contact form.