Houzz Asks If It's Over For Bi-Fold Doors

I am sure many readers of DGB also know of Houzz. It’s an international home building, renovations and design website where photos, advice, tips and informational resource website. And it’s damn good.

I saw an article on their site the other day, asking if the time for bi-folding doors is now up, and whether home owners should now be considering other options for their door solutions. It’s a good read, and you can find it here:

Is it Over for Bifold Doors?

In the article, they explore the alternatives to bi-fold doors, including pivot doors, French doors, glass walls and sliders.

Although the article does also give five reasons to still choose bi-fold doors, it does show that they’re not always the right fit for every home. And more than that, when you consider the UK and our geography and climate, do we really suit this sort of product?

Rarely used

Lets face it, Britain doesn’t get much of a summer. If it hits 25 degrees we get excited, when in reality the rest of the continent of Europe gets much higher than that and for a much longer period of time. We get two weeks of it here and we think we’ve had a good run.

The argument for bi-fold doors on houses in Europe and other hot and steamy places in the world is strong. Opening up large spaces, letting the air move through the building, inviting the outside in and living a more connected way with the outdoors. Bi-fold doors in the right countries are great for this. Here, not so much.

Yet in the past decade bi-folding doors have been a product area that has exploded more than most others. TV programmes, online publications, social media and image platforms like Pinterest have helped boost the desirability of bi-fold doors massively. But it’s likely many are rarely used to their full potential i.e. the whole door-set being opened up fully. As I said before, we don’t have the weather or climate in much of the UK for these types of doors to be all that useful. And remember that the good ones, usually the higher end aluminium ones, do not come cheap. I often wonder how much value for money the home owner gets when you think about how little they may be used.

That though is the power of aspiration. Even if there isn’t a strong argument for a particular product, in this case a bi-fold door, some will still want it just as much, if only for the prestige factor. A bit like uber Apple fans who think spending a grand on a phone that has features many other phones have had for a while. Sorry iPhone users ;-)

However, in the past couple of years, door trends have been changing again. So have we already seen the best years for bi-fold doors?

Sliding back into sliders

One of the stronger trends in doors I have noticed in the past year or two has been the push back into the sliding patio market by home owners and installers. When you think about it, there is a strong case for them over bi-folds in many areas.

Sliding patio doors don’t take up any space either into a room or out into a garden. They all slide within their tracks, not hinges like a standard door or bi-fold. You can get huge glazed leafs in comparison to bi-folds, an important factor has a nice view to make the most of. Cost is also a factor. Sliders can be cheaper, especially when it comes to PVCu, so becomes a more viable option for home owners who are on a budget. And to top it all off, they look simply stunning. Sliding patio doors have progressed massively in the last few years, specifically in the aluminium part of the market where there are a number of very slim framed patio doors out there, even a few frame-less ones which look amazing, and in my opinion do look better than bi-folds.

I think we can expect to see sales of sliding doors rise in 2018 as home owners and installers get to grips with the new-age versions of these products and start to see the benefits of them over other products.

I would also keep an eye on pivot doors. I have seen a little bit more activity around this niche this year. I’m not saying they’re suddenly going to break out into the residential market in a big way next year. But we could see a few more manufacturers get involved in this area of the market, and the number of installations of pivot doors start to rise too.

Do I think it’s time up for bi-fold doors? No, I don’t. I do however think that the hype has already started to seep away and a certain amount of balance is being restored to the door market. In the coming years I think we’re going to see a more measure approach from home owners and installers as to what product suits which project best. Some will still suit a bi-fold, but some will suit something else more. Companies who provide that balance to home owners in a clear, non-pushy way, might find themselves selling a few more doors next year.