User Experience with Large Bi-Fold Doors

Hank_Marvin

Hank_Marvin

Hank_Marvin

Soldato
Joined
12 Sep 2005
Posts
3,703
Location
Norwich, England
Hi,

Are there any major problems you have found with bi-folds since having them. I don't mean through bad fitting but.......

Safety, locks, rattle in the wind, cold, some one said about all the insects that come in if you have them open, heat, glare etc etc etc.


I'm planning a 4000 x 2100 opening, didn't want to make a mistake by going for them.


Any opinion would be great!


Thanks
Hank
 
depends on what materials you go with...
have heard that upvc expands too much in the heat making the opening action on bifolds a pain

for a 4m opening you could go for a fixed pane and slider rather than bifolds, imo bifolds are just fashionable at the moment and not really that practical in this country (i.e. how ofter do you think you'd want to sit with 4m of open wall in your room?)
 
Oh I'd be going Aluminium. Found quotes for sliders more, bigger glass sheets the reason I think.

I know what you mean regarding how often...but also getting the light, visually more spacious even when shut.

Not 100% yet......
 
1 fixed pane and one slider would give you 2m clear opening and a lot less frame than bifolds for 99% of the time... interesting that the quotes were higher, what systems have you been looking at?
If you are going alu, have a look at schueco, nice looking doors!
 
ive had lots of quotes from local and national and quite a few brands, schueco ones do look good, got the booklets.

Yeah, you can even get sliders that triple track to give a 2/3 opening but pricey.
 
I have a massive set of bi-folds in our kitchen, there are 5 panels (3 on the 'left' set, 2 on the right), so must be about .. 15ft wide?

Only issue ive had so far (other than flies coming in!) is that sometimes they can expand in the heat if you have them open all day, so sometimes shutting them is a little bit tricky (nothing more than a few attempts in all honesty). They looks awesome however, on the plus side.
 
we've just (two weeks ago) had the following fitted in our kitchen (which is still gutted and waiting fitting). So far no problems but not a lot of experience either

14428060847_1d79b98e3a_s.jpg
 
We've got bi-fold doors at the back of our house. Fantastic in summer as it gets plenty of air into the house. We regularly open them up the full way at weekends.

They seem very secure and there's zero rattle. The doors (and house) are only 18 months old though.

Out of the potential problems you list, the only one that we suffer from is the insect problem. They love chilling in our house. :mad:
 
Thanks dudes!

So the insect thing is true, makes sense anyway. I guess shutting them before evening helps when a lot of creatures come out.


hmmm its not enough to put me off, will look super. I'm going to have a 1000mm x 2100mm single door and then 4000mm x 2100 bi-folds.

Need to get my extension plans in.
 
Interesting one on this; ive been experimenting with 'fly traps' i.e. things to draw the flies away from coming indoors, one thing ive found to work rather well is the rind from smelly cheeses - ive used it the last 2-3 days and its significantly lowered the level of flies in my house.
 
Anyone got any knowledge on getting the floor levels internal and external similar.

It's a bit tricky to know how best to do with getting your dpc right, BC not too helpful.


What setups have you got?
 
Choose a company and they should give you a sample of sill and slide rail. I've had to take 1 course from the outside dpc to ensure I don't have too much of a lip when exiting, but I'm having a step down.

What's the outside floor going to be? Are you using a slide rail that has a lip or one the is lipless and uses brushes on the door to create a seal?
 
Hank_Marvin said:
Anyone got any knowledge on getting the floor levels internal and external similar.
Click to expand...

Yes it's a total pain in the rear however is achievable with a new build, retrofitting usually involves knocking openings down, not having a cill and running whatever is inside and outside up to the profile.

You should add an aco channel to the outside as you lose weather proofing

Sliding is best

http://www.bifoldingdoorfactory.co.uk/thresholds/
 
Thanks dudes. That's basically the sill I'll be using.

It's for a new build extension.

Think I've settled on frame being on the dpc but one course lower than the rest,which will give me pretty much no step inside. Then I will have a second dpc 2 courses above the first which means I can have the patio at about sill drip edge height. And I'll probably put a 300mm x 100mm pea shingle channel and then start patio. That's basically what I discussed with BC.

Other option they gave me was to create a cavity tray from internal to external (high to low) but a second dpc will be much easier.

They did mention a slit drain but then there's more cost. Also mentioned creating a roof over hang.
 
You need to check that the weight is in the bottom runners, if it's a hung door you'll need a different steel, if it runs on the bottom it's just a standard catnic. Like I said I dropped my outside bricks by 1 course, and have dropped the dpc down at each side to run under the door.

Mines a 3 panel with internal manual blinds. The costs can soon mount up. Internal solar powered electric blinds were being quoted at £750+VAT per panel! :eek: needless to say we went with manual blinds!
 
Whats difference in your floor heights? And what gap do you now have between ground and dpc?

Yeah a surveyor at work said standard 4.5m cavity catnic was fine.

Concrete for footings went in today :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom