Should I install a bi-fold laundry door?

[Kirsten1994]

Hi, I am considering re-doing my internal doors and am looking at the option of a bi-fold door in the laundry. The laundry is only a small space (~5m2) so a bi-fold door will give me an extra ~400mm wide space for clothes baskets etc etc. A bi-fold door will be more expensive than a normal hinged door, and seems more tricky to install. 

I am also concerned about the bottom pivot being screwed into the floor. The floor transitions about halfway across the jamb from tile to an angled engineer timber threshold (see pic) and I don't want any risk that the tile will break because they are new last year and cost an arm and a leg to have installed. 

Hume Doors also recommended that bi-folds are installed in jambs with a stop (as for hinged doors), because the bi-fold might rub against the jamb. A carpenter I was considering for the job said that the existing jamb would be fine. I think if there is a flat jamb there will be gaps in the floors because they are fitted around the stop jamb. 

What are people's thoughts on bi-folds? Are they worth the extra cost and effort? Will a bi-fold work in my situation - with the existing jamb and the bottom pivot?

Thank you

[EricL]

Hello @Kirsten1994 

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's sensational to have you join us and thanks for sharing your question about your laundry door.

Technically it would be possible to install your bi-fold door in reverse so that it pulls out rather than push in. This means that you'll avoid drilling into your tiles and drill into the engineered floor instead. The transition piece will need to be modified and the spacing triple checked to make sure that the door fits properly.

Having the bi-fold open out will give you maximum usable space in your laundry area. If done properly the bi-fold door should not look out of place.

Here is a handy-step-by-step guide: Hume how to install a bifold door

Let me call on our experienced members @Dave-1, @Nailbag and @Remarka6le for their recommendations.

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric

[Nailbag]

Hi @Kirsten1994 what you pick up in not having a swing in door your will loose in door opening with a bi-fold option of any type. If the left of door wall has the width, then the best option would be for a cavity slider. They are available in a range of door openings, but the installation will require a decent handyman or carpenter that can do both the installation and reinstating of the plasterboard and door opening architraves. The next option would be for a barn door style. Again it requires a wall space on the left, but can be fitted to the existing wall and the current laundry door can simply be removed.

Regards, Nailbag

Cavity SliderBarn Door

[Dave-1]

Morning @Kirsten1994 

I was think more along teh lines of a cavity sliding door tho after seeing @Nailbag's idea I would include that on your list as it could look quiet nice. Do you have a light switch on the wall just inside the door?

With a bifold door I am thinking you would still need space to walk through the door so not really sure if you would get back 400mm.

I havnt hung a bi-fold door so not sure of the fixing points sorry.

Dave

[Kirsten1994]

Thanks @EricL  for your suggestion. Unfortunately i don’t think it would be practical to swing the bi fold out because you would not be able to get past it in the hallway. The hallway is about 850mm wide there. 

[Kirsten1994]

Thank you @Nailbag for your suggestions. The door is currently 820mm wide, and the wall to the left is about 750mm wide so I would need to reduce the size of the doorway to fit a cavity slider in the wall. 

[Kirsten1994]

Thanks @Dave-1  see above re cavity slider it would require reducing the size of the door way. There is a light switch on that wall in the laundry, and I also redid the whole laundry last year including moving the door so a cavity slider feels invasive (I know - bad planning on my part, but it’s hard to know all of this at the right time as a first home owner). It sounds like the most suitable options are barn door or a swing door as is. 

[MitchellMc]

Hi @Kirsten1994,

When open, the barn-style door would only impede the doorway by around 70mm. That should still leave plenty of space to walk in and out.

There is always some risk of tiles cracking when drilling, but with the diamond drill bits available today, there's little chance of it. Once the fitting is installed in the hole, you'll be fairly safe from future cracking. The only issue I can see is if the hole needs to be placed right next to the edge of a tile.

Mitchell

[Nailbag]

Hi @Kirsten1994 just to add to @MitchellMc suggestion to use glass and tile bits, I highly recommend these Kango ones. I have been using them for some time and have been very impressed. Start off going very slow and apply reasonable pressure on the back of the drill. To start the hole in exactly the right spot consider buying an auto-centre punch. Start very slow then run the drill about half speed at most to prevent it from overheating. You can spray a little bit of water on the tile as you go to help with this. Once you get past the tile, you will hit the tile adhesive then cement tile underlay then the timber floor. Stop at the timber and use a normal drill bit. If your on a slab, the tiles will be glued directly so stop at the concrete and swap to a masonry bit with a drill on hammer mode. If you don't have a Hammer drill, use a multipurpose bit, it will just be a little slower.

Regards, Nailbag