Bifold doors are an excellent option for bringing the outside in and improving the aesthetic of any property. However, when it comes to choosing an aluminium bifold, there are many options to consider. This includes factors such as style, material, aesthetic, your budget, and more. It is also vital to find a high-quality bifold door and brand that you can rely on, given a recent study revealed that many consumers buy based on trust they have in a brand.
Here, we take discuss why finding a high-quality bifold door is so important, and how to choose the right option for you.
In this guide, we explore:
Find out why it is so important to choose a high-quality bifold door.
Read the key differences between high-quality and low-quality bifold doors, such as the different material options.
Find out how to identify a high-quality bifold door.
Why is the quality of bifold doors so important, and what are the benefits of aluminium bifolds?
The risks of choosing a low-quality bifold door include the following:
- You may let in draughts and rainwater because the doors aren’t sufficiently watertight or airtight
- Your home may be less energy efficient (and increase your heating bills). Read our guide to bifold door energy efficiency here.
- The doors may wear more quickly, and break down or suffer damage as a result
- You could be putting the security of your home at risk
- A low-quality bifold door may negatively affect your home’s full look and aesthetics.
What are the benefits of aluminium bifold doors?
While uPVC bifold doors or wooden bifold doors can be custom-made, as it’s a more premium material, most aluminium bi-folds are made to measure. This means they’re manufactured to your exact specifications, ensuring they fit your specific opening. Read our guide to uPVC vs aluminium bifold doors here.
The benefit of having custom-made bi-fold doors is that they can fit any aperture, even if it is not conventionally shaped. High-quality manufacturers of aluminium bi-fold doors, such as Origin, are very flexible in the options they can offer.
Read more about your options when you choose Origin Bifold Doors.
Are you looking for a modern, durable external bifold door?
Our recommendation:
Unlike any other door, our aluminium bi-folds provide a completely uninterrupted view when open, and offer the flexibility to enjoy your indoor and outdoor space as one. Our doors are also available in 150 RAL colours, allowing you to find the perfect option for your home.
Shop our aluminium bifold door range.
Why should you choose aluminium over other options such as uPVC?
A huge advantage aluminium has over uPVC or timber is its superior strength, and this allows door panels to be manufactured in much larger sizes. Having larger panels means you need fewer of them to fill the opening. This ultimately means you are provided with a much better view, and peace of mind that your door will be reliable. You can also think of aluminium bifold doors as an investment, as they can even add value to a property.
Another benefit of aluminium bifolds is that they are coloured using an efficient powder coating process which often provides a higher quality finish. uPVC doors, on the other hand, are generally coated with a much less durable laminate foil. Powder coating is a process that uses powdered paint to apply a coloured finish to a product. When doors are powder coated, a tough coating forms that’s much more hardwearing and scratch-proof than normal liquid paint, and is able to leave a completely smooth surface.
Read more about powder coating for aluminium doors.
What’s the difference between high-quality and low-quality bifold doors?
The main differences between a high-quality and low-quality bifold doors are:
- High-quality bifold doors will exceed basic manufacturing standards. Low-quality doors will, at best, only meet them.
- With high-quality doors, every component (including handles and hinges) ensures the doors are more secure and last for much longer.
- Low-quality doors tend to be more difficult to operate due to their poorer‑quality components and substandard specification.
- High-quality doors usually come with a longer manufacturer’s guarantee.
Read about our aluminium door guarantees here.
High-quality vs low-quality bi-fold doors by performance and features
| High-quality doors | Low-quality doors |
|---|---|---|
Quality of aluminium used | Uses aluminium made from the highest-grade billets. This keeps its shape and allows for an extremely smooth finish. | Uses aluminium made from metal scraps. This can become pitted during the powder‑coating process, meaning a less smooth finish. |
Powder-coating finish | Extremely hard-wearing. Should come with a product guarantee of around 20 years. | Won't last as long. May not come with a good guarantee. |
Ability to withstand extreme weather | Will exceed current industry standards. | Will simply meet current industry standards. |
Thermal efficiency (U-Value) | Will exceed the standard set by building regulations (either 1.4 for replacements or 1.6 for new builds). | Will meet the standard set by building regulations. |
Sightlines | Slim sightlines for the widest possible view, without compromising security and strength. | Thin sightlines, but at the cost of security and strength, or can be wider if the aluminium is not as inherently strong. |
Threshold height | A choice of weathered or non-weathered thresholds are available. They would have been designed to make the doors as weathertight as possible. | Thresholds advertised as weathertight but still vulnerable to letting in rainwater. |
Components | Will be tested to meet high standards. Handles will be ergonomic and available in a range of styles. | May begin to fail over time. May begin to fail over time. The range of available styles may be limited. |
Security | Many models will exceed PAS 24:2016 testing and, like Origin Doors, be Secured By Design accredited. | Should at least meet the PAS 24 testing, but check that the system does. |
Guarantee | Usually a 10-year guarantee for the whole door system. | Guarantees vary. Some parts of the door system may be guaranteed for less than 10 years. |
Lead time | Usually six weeks or less. Origin can deliver doors within 24 hours in some instances. | Typically around 6–12 weeks after the order’s placed. This doesn’t necessarily mean a low-quality door, but the timescale can be beaten. |
Nowadays, bifold door manufacturers must meet basic standards relating:
- security
- insulation
- glazing
- weather performance
- quality of materials (e.g. aluminium).
However, many manufacturers try to differentiate themselves from their competitors by going above and beyond these standards to provide a higher-quality product to their customers.
Find out how Origin manufacturers exceptional bifold doors here.
How can I tell when bi-fold doors are high-quality?
1. Quality of aluminium used
Let’s assume you’re opting for aluminium doors rather than doors made of timber or uPVC. more about the benefits of aluminium here.
Some companies make their door frames and other parts from re-melted scrap aluminium. Because this lower-quality aluminium isn’t always smooth, it can cause bubbles or pitted areas in the paint when the powder coating is applied.
High-quality aluminium bi-fold doors use aluminium made from prime billets—brand-new aluminium, in other words. This is the type of aluminium we use for all Origin Bifold Doors.
Read our guide to aluminium quality.
2. Powder-coating finish
When powder-coated, high-quality aluminium products should have a completely smooth and consistent finish.
Low-quality aluminium can struggle to achieve the same smoothness during powder coating, as the heat generated during the process can leave an uneven, pitted effect on the surface of the metal.
Read more on powder coating here.
3. Ability to withstand extreme weather
Low-quality or medium-quality bi-fold doors will only meet industry standards for withstanding extreme wind and rain. High-quality doors will exceed them.
Doors that simply meet the standards should perform well enough in normal weather conditions and are unlikely to leak as long as they have been installed properly.
However, in places with more extreme weather (e.g. coastal regions), it’s wise to install doors whose weather-resistant features exceed the industry standards or look for manufacturers who can offer marine finishes.
4. Thermal efficiency (U-Value)
The best-quality doors offer excellent thermal efficiency—in other words, the ability to keep warm air inside and cold air out in the winter and vice versa in the summer. Good thermal efficiency helps lower your fuel bills.
Thermal efficiency is measured using U-Values. Your home’s U-Value is the amount of heat lost, measured in watts (W/(m²K)), for every square metre of material. So, the lower the U-Value the better.
The government standard set in June 2022 for replacement doors or windows is a maximum U-Value of 1.4W/(m²K). For doors and windows in new-build properties or extensions, it’s 1.6W/(m²K).
High-quality bifold doors will provide lower values than this. When assessing the U-Value of a set of doors, make sure you look at the U-Value for the overall door system and not just the centre pane.
For example, Origin’s U-Values are as follows:
Door | U-Value |
|---|---|
Triple glazed bi-fold | 1.1W/(m²K) |
Double glazed (bi-fold or other) | 1.4W/(m²K) |
Read more about bifold door thermal efficiency.
5. Sightlines
Manufacturers measure sightlines in different ways. Some provide the width of the profile (the length of aluminium that joins the panes of glass together), without adding the width of the glazing bead to give a more accurate representation.
Slim sightlines are often seen as more desirable. Aluminium offers the slimmest sightlines when compared to uPVC and timber. However, it’s important to strike a balance between:
- having the thinnest sightline possible
- making sure the doors are highly secure and built to last
- using as few doors as you can by having the largest possible panels.
Are you looking for a modern, sleek aluminium sliding door?
Our recommendation:
Delivering first-in-class design, our sliding door range provides the most spectacular finish for any building project. Available in four different sightlines across two different sliding door systems – the Origin Artisan Slider and the Origin Patio Slider – we have some of the slimmest sliding doors on the market.
Shop our aluminium sliding doors here.
6. Threshold height
The type of threshold you choose can affect how waterproof your doors will be.
Weather-rated thresholds (also called rebated thresholds) are slightly raised with a small lip. Although it does mean the floors between your indoor living space and outdoor space aren’t absolutely level, it does make sure your doors are completely watertight. Some systems – such as Origin’s – allows the install to recess the threshold into the floor to create more of a flush finish with just a small lip to protrude.
Read more about bifold door thresholds.
7. Component options and quality
How the components look, feel and function can go a long way towards the overall quality of the bi‑fold doors. Ideally, you should have a choice of style and finish for the lead lever handle, and are able to choose your finish and colour for the D-handle and slave handle (the handles you’ll use to fully open and close the doors).
Equally, all other components such as the running gear, hinges, gaskets and locking mechanisms should be engineered and tested to high standards, while contributing to the overall look and feel of the bifold door. Read about our bifold door handle options here.
8. Security
UK building regulations say that any bifold doors installed as part of a project being built from the ground up (new-build properties or extensions to existing homes) must conform to PAS 24 standards.
To keep your home secure, we recommend that you only use products that have passed PAS 24: 2016 testing, even if you’re only replacing existing doors. You should also look for features such as:
- multipoint locking systems—3-point or 5-point are standard (although Origin doors have a unique 8-point system to enhance security)
- kitemarked locks, with security cylinders that have proven to guard against snapping, picking, drilling and bumping
- secure hinges
- heavy-duty handles
- toughened glass (though this is sourced by your installer if requested).
Read the guide to bifold door security here.
9. Guarantee
Most companies will offer you some kind of guarantee, but the length of these does vary from company to company. For example, some companies offer a 10-year guarantee on the door system as a whole, but a 25-year guarantee on the powder coating. Always read through any guarantees carefully to be certain what they cover.
Read more on Origin’s guarantee of up to 20 years here.
10. Lead time
There’s no standard industry lead time on bi-fold doors, but you can expect your doors to be fitted six to 12 weeks after you order them.
Read more on Origin’s 24-hour lead times here.
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