Internal Bifold Door FAQs

Internal bifold doors can seem a bit scary if you’re not familiar with them. Not in the sense that they give you a fright, but the prospect of measuring for them, purchasing the right size and style, and then installing them – yeah, it’s scary. It’s not a standard process like it is with your typical internal door.

However daunting bifold doors appear on the surface, they’re a great addition to your home. Bifold doors are primarily used externally – opening out into a landscaped garden – but using bifolds internally is a great space saver; as well as adding a modern twist to your interior.

The questions that we get asked about internal bifold doors are ones that suggest there isn’t a great deal of information out there to help you. So, we’ve decided to put together this short FAQ guide to help you understand bifold doors a little more.

Are Internal Bifold Doors a Good Idea?

Internal bifold doors are a great idea, but some factors need to be considered before you make a purchase. Bifold doors, although are a great space saver, take up a lot of wall space. For external bifold doors, external wall space isn’t an issue, but for internal bifold doors, walls can be smaller or angled which results in bifold doors not being right for your property – no matter how much you want them.

What doesn’t affect wall space is using bifold doors in replacement of internal doors. This means using a bifold door in the same space that contains your current internal doors, and not enlarging the opening – for example, replacing your wardrobe doors and pantry doors with a bifold. This is great for space-saving as you won’t need to be conscious of anything obstructing the opening as the door will no longer open outwards.

Heading back to the original question: as long as you have the space available, internal bifold doors are an excellent idea.

If you’re curious as to the different types of internal bifold doors, take a look at our What Types of Internal Bi-Fold Door Are There? guide.

How Much Does it Cost to Fit an Internal Bifold Door?

This depends on whether you’re fitting the door yourself or hiring a professional to fit it for you. Hiring a professional is a great way to minimise potential problems, and will result in a quicker installation time; however, doing it yourself means it’ll cost you nothing but time to fit the internal door.

If you’re DIY-savvy, fitting a bifold door is simple. The only thing we’d advise is that you get a second person to help you. Depending on the size of your internal bifold door, it may be quite tricky and heavy to fit if you do it by yourself.

As for the cost of the bifold door itself, we’ve written a guide to help you with that: How Much Do Internal Bi-Fold Doors Cost?

Can You Get Internal Bifold Fire Doors?

Bifold doors cannot be fire doors. Fire doors are designed to close on their own and have a special seal which expands when it’s heated at a high temperature. Bifold doors don’t have the functionality to close on their own, and they have gaps in between each door panel. This means that each gap would need an expanding seal to close off the gap in case of a fire. This isn’t feasible for the build or functionality of bifold doors.

Do Internal Bifold Doors Need a Track?

Internal bifold doors do need a track, but not necessarily a top and bottom track.

Bifold doors can be top-hung which eliminates the need for a track, but you’ll need a track for the bottom of the door. The track at the bottom takes the weight of the door and provides support to the door and frame which is why it’s vital that you at least have a bottom track if you don’t want a top track.

A top-hung system uses an angled bracket and pivot pins. This allows the bifold door to move more freely than if it was on a track, so a top track isn’t always necessary. The only time a top track is vital is if you have a metal bifold door. Metal is a lot heavier than timber or uPVC and a simple bottom track would struggle to take the weight of it.

Have a look at our guide Tracks for Internal Bi-folds: What You Need to Know if you require more information.

How Do You Measure for Internal Bifold Doors?

Measuring for internal bifold doors is a lot easier than it seems. There are many variations of bifold doors that by simply measuring your opening and figuring out the measurements of the room that you have to play with, you can easily find a bifold door that will fit whether you go for a 2-panelled or 5-panelled.

Something that many people forget about is the space surrounding the door. When measuring for your internal bifold door, make sure that you measure its surrounding area. We’d hate for you to get the bifold door of your dream and not be able to use it to its full potential.

If you’re struggling with measuring the area for bifold doors we have a guide for you: What Size of Internal Bi-Fold Door Do I Need?