Everything you need to know about finding a french door supplier

French doors can add an air of quaintness and old world charm to the outside of most homes. They let in extra daylight, which is especially appealing when they face out onto a shady veranda.

When fitted between shared spaces like a lounge, kitchen or dining room, these attractive doors will help enhance the light levels in the rooms as well as give a greater sense of open space.

A really big advantage is that individual rooms can still be separated to conserve heating or cooling resources without isolating the occupants from the rest of the household. Another plus is that small children can be still be observed or supervised while even the intervening French doors are closed.

Traditional and Contemporary French Doors

Even though there are variations in design and shape, there are really only two types of commonly available French doors:

• The traditional style is made up of oiled, varnished or painted wooden mullions framing several glass panes fitted in even rows.
• The modern version consists of a single large glass pane overlaid with a chequered frame using materials such as timber, aluminium and even special tape to give that traditional multi-pane appearance.

Choosing and Fitting French Doors

Making and even fitting French doors is not for the inexperienced or even the average home handyman. There are so many small but important issues the part-timer could easily overlook. The doors must not only look good visually by being perfectly matched and aligned, but from a structural standpoint, they must also be water and draught proof.

Here are just a few of the important considerations:

• The door frame must be accurately adjusted to ensure it is absolutely square and level in every direction and angle.
• Both doors need to be checked for warping and square at the place of purchase, and again at the site because doors with multiple parts are prone to change during storage and transportation.
• The doors must be very slightly wider and taller than the existing door frame to allow trimming and adjustment for an exact fit.
• The door openings need to precisely measured. Carpenters’ tools such as a plumb-bob, straight-edge, level, square, metal tape measure, pencil and paper and even the modern laser level are helpful, but don’t guarantee a perfect result.

Fitting French doors is a job best left to the specialist door suppliers or experienced trades people. These folk know from experience that multi-component doors require exacting standards and special care, whether they are being installed in a new building or fitted in an existing door frame.

Owner Considerations

Before you decide on having French doors, particularly as outer barrier doors, the most significant maintenance considerations are:

1. Cleaning French doors will need to be done more frequently and will take longer than other smooth-finish doors.
2. Re-oiling, varnishing or painting is time consuming due to the many edges and angles caused by timber attached to small glass panes.
3. They require more frequent adjustment due to having two moving doors that must meet exactly in the middle to continually work correctly.
4. More attention needs to be paid to the door fastenings and locks to ensure security is maintained.
5. Glass doors are more prone to breakage and costly repairs, and therefore need to be protected from slamming and other harsh treatment.

Find French Door Suppliers the Easy Way