Aluminium bifold doors offer the best durability and strength when compared to materials such as uPVC and timber. Aluminium is a hugely popular option for both external and internal bifold doors. However, what are your design options when it comes to choosing internal bifold doors and what factors do you need to consider?
Here, we provide an in-depth guide to choosing internal bi-fold doors, including a guide to cost, colours, accessory options, and more.
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Read the benefits of made-to-measure doors and how they compare to standard fit doors.
Read some popular location options for internal bifold doors.
Find out how to measure for bifold doors.
Read about the costs for different bifold door sizes.
Find out more about the different materials for bifold doors and their benefits.
Read our guide to the different bifold door handle designs.
Off-the-shelf vs. made-to-measure
Standard fit
A standard-fit door is one that’s been mass-produced to fit certain door standards.
They tend to be slightly cheaper than made-to-measure doors because they cannot offer the same bespoke quality and service.
You'll have to organise or undertake any necessary alterations.
Standard sizes
For off-the-shelf bi-fold doors, you’re restricted to a certain size bracket. If you’re looking for sizes/dimensions outside of this range, you’ll need something bespoke:
- Door height: The standard height for interior doors is 2,074 mm.
- Doors taller or shorter than this are bespoke sizes.
- Door width: It will be easy to be able to find door sets to fit in apertures between 1,671 mm and 4,652 mm.
- Panel width: tend to be between 700 mm and 1,000 mm wide.
Find out more about Origin Bifold Doors here.
Are you looking for a durable aluminium bifold door? Explore our aluminium bifold door range
Created bespoke to ensure you can make the most of your space, the Origin Aluminium Bifold Door ranges from one to twelve door sets, and individual doors can be manufactured as narrow as 400mm, as wide as 1200mm and as tall as 3000mm. You can choose how they open and close – whether they fold in or out, where the opening is and which direction they slide – to meet your exact needs.
Shop our aluminium bifold doors today.
The benefits of made-to-measure bifold doors
Having an internal bi-fold door made to measure gives you complete control over many aspects.
Origin’s bi-fold doors are made to meet your exact requirements.
You can specify:
- Overall size
- Number of panels
- Amount of panels (up to twelve)
- Configuration (even Corner Bifold Doors can be manufactured)
- Internal and external colour
- Preferred threshold
- Whether the doors open inwards or outwards
- Style of handle
- Hardware colour (with over 150 RAL shades and finishes, including wood grain, to choose from).
Read this case study to learn more about Origin internal bi-fold doors.
Where to place your internal bi-fold doors
Bi-fold doors can be used in a number of places in the home:
- Kitchen to dining room
- Living room to conservatory
- Bedroom to en-suite bathroom
- Laundry room to kitchen
Measuring for bi-fold doors
- Measure the width at three separate levels.
- Subtract 10 mm from the height and length.
- Measure the diagonals from corner to corner—this is to check whether it’s a perfect square.
Read our full guide on measuring for bifold doors here.
Why subtract 10 mm?
When you order a door which is slightly smaller than its intended opening, you’ll have the extra space to pack out the frame of the door using wedges/packers when installing, ensuring the frame is square and true.
Please note – if you are getting a bespoke, made to measure door, your chosen installer should do this as part of the surveying.
Are you looking for a modern, sleek way to divide your space?
View our aluminium OI-30 Internal Room Dividers
Sleeker and more modern than many other designs in the market today, our internal door range provides a bespoke and classic way to divide your space.
Shop our aluminium internal doors.
Materials
Bi-fold doors are usually made from one of three materials:
- Aluminium
- Timber
- uPVC
Aluminium
- The strongest material out of the three.
- Lightweight, meaning that opening/closing your bi-fold door will be a breeze.
- Resistant to warping, buckling or fading in direct sunlight.
- No gaps in the seal, so no draughts if installation is correct.
- If thermal breaks are incorporated into the design, the bi-fold door should be thermally efficient.
- Can be matched easily to contemporary and traditional homes.
- Environmentally friendly—can be recycled.
Read about the benefits of aluminium bifold doors here.
Timber
- Can be painted or stained.
- Will require frequent maintenance. It’s recommended you repaint every couple of years to keep it looking good.
- Strong and sturdy but can feel heavy to manoeuvre.
- Changes in temperature can warp the doors, causing gaps that allow draughts.
- Not the most environmentally friendly option.
uPVC
- Mass-produced plastic material.
- Frames are much wider than the alternatives, which look bulky and obscure your view.
- Can expand and contract with temperature changes.
- Low maintenance, but often don’t last as long as alternative materials.
- Damage or wear can’t be painted over.
- Not environmentally friendly.
Read more about the different bifold door materials here.
Handles
There are three key questions to ask when choosing your door handles:
- What is the style of your home?
Your choice of door handle should complement both the door and your interior décor and enhance certain characteristics. If you live in a modern home, contemporary stainless steel or colour coded options will go well. If you live in an older property, gold or black could match perfectly.
- Which room is the door for?
Consider the door’s purpose. Will the room need to have privacy? If so, a lock and key would be best.
- Who will be using the handles?
If you have young children in the house, certain handles will fare better. Stainless-steel handles are a great choice because they are incredibly durable and are easy to clean. You’ll also want an easy-to-use handle, so children can use the door with ease.
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A complete guide to aluminium bifold doors
