5-panel bifold doors, made to measure

This bifold door is built like the 3-panel bifold door — one traffic door, the rest folding — but with four folding panels instead of two, for a wider set. Unlike the 4-panel bifold door, there is no pair of doors here but one single traffic door; the description of this layout gives the left, the middle or one end as possible places for that door.

The standard size is 4,500 × 2,300 mm, up to 5.00 m wide. You choose where the traffic door goes yourself in the sizes and layout step: the panel you mark as the door is the traffic door, the panels you mark as folding fold. The folding direction isn't a choice on screen; in the drawing the panels fold to the right.

Being able to choose where the traffic door goes matters more at this width than on the 3-panel bifold door: with five panels you have more options to arrange the set around the route you already use. A traffic door in the middle suits a symmetrical garden or patio; a traffic door at one end keeps the panels you rarely move together, so for an ordinary trip outside you only move one small part.

With four folding panels, the stack on the side where the set gathers becomes noticeably bigger than on the 3-panel bifold door with its two panels. Measure that space before you order: a stack that runs into a window frame, a wall or a piece of garden furniture is a stack that won't let the set open fully.

For this bifold door, measure the width and height of the opening, the reveal the stack of four folding panels will stand against, and the floor build-up under the track. At this width it pays to measure the opening in several places, because a deviation that barely shows on a narrower set counts for more over 4.5 metres.

Colour and finish are usually the same across the whole set, traffic door included, for a continuous look over the full 4.5 metres. Maintenance is split between the hinges and lock of the traffic door, in use every day, and the folding hinges and bottom track of the four folding panels — with four panels there is more hardware to check than on the narrower bifold doors.

When renovating a wide rear wall, this is often the step between the 4-panel bifold door and the largest, the 6-panel bifold door, chosen when the opening is just over four metres but a pair of doors isn't needed. In a new build, the position of the traffic door is often matched to the symmetry or the route through the room behind.

For security, the traffic door is comparable to an ordinary door; the four folding panels lock through the locking points at each panel joint. With four panels there are more locks in total, so more places to check the standard specification if the set is going on the ground floor.

The traffic door carries its weight on its own hinges, separate from the folding hinges of the four folding panels. The configurator checks for each panel whether the hardware suits the profile and the size.

Still not sure? Use the comparison with the other layouts in this group, above, to see which arrangement suits your situation best.