Update November 2019.
Since this article was written, automatic bi folding doors remain only available for the commercial market. These are the types of automatic bifolding doors you see in retail buildings, schools, hospitals and transport hubs. Therefore if you’re looking for automatic bifolding doors for your home, it’s unlikely you’ll find a suitable alternative, but do get in touch with us for help.
Launched this month is Folding Motion, the UK’s first automatic sliding folding door for the home. This latest innovation for those looking for automatic bi folding doors means that a door of up to 15metres in length can be opened or closed including remote activation with a key fob, fingerprint reader and even an iPhone or iPad.
The company is using the rather tired slogan now of “Bringing the Outside In” and offering an automatic bifolding door. However the technology is nothing new, there have been automatic operators available for swing, sliding, revolving and indeed bifolding doors for a number of years now – this just extends the offer to the gadget-loving homeowner who wants automatic opening doors.
Typical of any bifolding door they can open in or out, are thermally broken, double glazed, high U value and so forth. The doors even include anti-finger trap devices and safety sensor devices. Doors are guaranteed for 10 years although the operator itself, only for two years.
Addressing the issue of a possible power failure, doors are supplied “fail secure” meaning that the doors remain closed in the event of a power failure.
I’m not sure if the availability of automatic bifolding doors for the home will actually take off – as I say the option has always been available but with an operator for a standard set of automatic swing doors starting at over £2000 this is a costly option for doors that in themselves are relatively simple to open in the first place.
The bifolding doors in the market place are already very simple to open with most having easy and smooth gearing. I can see the possible need on those projects where you have a large number of leaves covering entire glass walls or in commercial buildings. The protrusion of the gearing and the cover into the room space would also be a consideration for many.
Nonetheless it is interesting to see the bifolding door developing and emerging with new variations on the theme and I daresay those with unlimited budgets and the desire for the latest in home automation would find a automatic bifolding door an appealing option.
Image taken by Folding Motion.
