Aluminium Patio Doors

For many different door types, opening options and sheer choice,  aluminium patio doors are hard to beat.

Not only do aluminium patio doors offer the biggest choice of door products, in aluminium, they also give you the most design options as well. Aluminium patio doors are suitable for new as well as old houses, cottages, barns and suburban homes.

Information about aluminium patio doors for the home.

Aluminium patio doors offer door solutions for large and small openings. Aluminium as a material falls within most budgets, is long-lasting, strong and secure.

Bifolding doors offer more than 50 mainstream products to choose from each with a different appearance.  Sliding patio doors are once again enjoying enormous popularity with a big number of door brands and different opening and sliding options as well. 

One of the newest and most sought-after types of patio doors are steel look systems. Ultra-slim, with both a traditional metal and industrial look, these new hinged patio doors are finding their way into all manner of houses, new and old.  They also work very well as room dividers.

When it comes to choosing aluminium patio doors for the home, expect to see several features in common across all the different door types.

• For exterior patio doors, all aluminium extrusions are thermally insulated.
• Toughened or laminated glass as standard. Expect to get door glass having a  soft-coat low-emissivity coating, warm edge spacer bars and argon gas fill.
• Virtually unlimited colour choices.  Satin, matt or gloss shades, different colour in and out and even metallic and woodgrain colours in aluminium.
• Certified security, weather performance and impressive specifications. As a result, aluminium patio doors are very reliable.
• Innovations such as very big sizes, automatic operation and many personalisation options.
• A choice of thresholds allowing flush floors, weather ratings even for disabled access.

Always choose a professional installer for aluminium patio doors.

One of the most important factors around the reliability of any patio door regardless of material is the installation.  Our experience tells us, reading many of the consumer reviews,  that dissatisfaction with a project is down to installation. Rarely is it the fault of the product.

Modern aluminium patio doors come with many standards covering design, quality of aluminium, paint, glass and manufacturing.  There is no bad product on the market.  It is badly made and fitted doors that let down the customer.  Therefore choose a professional installer and especially when having large doors.

Understanding who makes your patio doors.

Often, homeowners don’t know where their doors come from and who makes them.  Many of the top brands of patio doors come from many different manufacturers all making the same product.  Well-known companies such as Express Bifolding Doors and Kloeber often use existing systems under their own brand names.  Even the big names like Everest and Anglian use established systems.

Other examples include the latest ultra-slim sliding doors, mainly from the Spanish Cortizo system under many different brand names. 

Then there are specialist patio door systems only made by one company in one factory.  Therefore understanding who makes the best patio doors is not easy and this is where we can help.

Finally, aluminium allows the creation of bespoke and specialist patio doors. For example, supersize sliding doors, automatic patio doors and even doors with open corners or disappearing into a wall.

The benefits of aluminium patio doors.

Aluminium patio doors provide several benefits over pvcu as well as timber or steel products.

First of all, aluminium provides thinner sight lines than all other materials and is virtually as thin as steel patio doors yet cheaper.  Complicated shapes are in most cases easy to create in aluminium as well.

The other advantage of aluminium is wide availability.  Most home improvement companies offer at least one suite of aluminium doors.  Aluminium patio doors work better on south facing elevations and are tried-and-tested products.

Another advantage of aluminium is a choice of profiles.  For instance, French doors come with either traditional looking profiles or contemporary flat profiles.  The same extends to bifolding doors and some patio doors. On the other hand, there are patio door products in aluminium, specially designed to complement the many PVCu windows fitted all over the UK.

As a result, and compared to timber, PVCu or steel, aluminium patio doors provide solutions for virtually any type of house and design requirement.

Bifolding Doors.

One of the most popular products for aluminium patio doors.  Still incredibly popular and unbeatable for creating a link from the inside to the outside.  Available from two up to eight panels and now very affordable thanks to the sheer choice available.

Bifolding doors also offer incredible flexibility, such as a traffic door, letting you use just one panel for easy access.  Bifolds also provide the best in personalisation such as integral blinds and many colours.  You can even use a bifolding door inside the home as a stylish room divider.

Slide and Turn Bifolding Doors

Operating like a bifold, but with different functionality, slide and turn bifolding doors use the principle of separate door panels, sliding and then turning, revealing a full opening just like a bifold.

The slide and turn bifolding door such as the Panoramic bifold provides all the performance and style of a modern bifold but with no visible hardware, greater choice in where the door panels locate to, improved ventilation options and take up less space than conventional bifolding doors.  Frameless glass and PVCu versions are also available.

Sliding Patio Doors.

The biggest benefit of a sliding patio door is less visible aluminium, bigger glass and better views. Sliding doors are great where space is limited as they slide on a track instead of folding.

Another benefit to choosing a sliding door is for larger gardens. The bigger glass creates a sliding glass wall thanks to the impressive sizes possible.

And just like a bifold, you still get a low flush threshold with a well-designed system.  Also ideal as internal sliding room dividers.

Slimline Sliding Doors.

One of the newest and aspirational sliding doors are the latest breed of slimline products.  With very thin mullions and a near frameless appearance, they are perfect for modern extensions.

These new doors cost more than regular sliding patio doors and more complex to fit and live with.  However, made and fitted correctly, they transform the back of the house into a contemporary space.

These doors come structurally pre-glazed, therefore may need specialist transport and access to the back of the house.

Steel-Look Doors.

One of the most on-trend products, designed to replicate the look of old steel doors as well as create industrial looking patio doors and screens.

Only available as single or double doors, steel look doors are slimline hinged doors customised with aluminium glazing bars for their unique appearance.  They look stunning in any home and complemented by matching windows, internal doors and screens.

Often a steel-look door comes in a black powder coated finish with pewter or brass hardware to complete the look.  You can even have them inside the home without a threshold.  A desirable and sought-after patio door.

French Doors.

Still popular for smaller apertures as well as dining room doors are aluminium French doors.  The choice today extends to doors that open in or out, with traditional or slimline frames. You even get sophisticated doors with automatic locks and even invisible hinges.

French doors are not just for the back of the house.  They are a perfect complement next to a bifolding door using the same profiles as the folding version for a consistent look throughout the back of the house.  Affordable, desirable, secure and reliable patio doors for your home.

Pocket Sliding Doors.

Mostly applicable to sliding patio doors, these are doors that slide completely into a wall, disappearing from view.  Available as single, double or triple track doors, there is no better door to completely open up the back of the house and give you a full clear opening.

Pocket sliding doors need incorporating at the design and build stage as they do not work as a replacement for old doors. Correctly designed and made, they transform a modern house or new extension with a smooth action, a low threshold and doors that are hidden from sight.

Open Corner Patio Doors.

An open corner patio door comes as a bifolding or a sliding door. Often incorporated at the design stage, open corner patio doors are two elevations, meeting in the corner and with a movable corner post.

Open the doors to reveal a fully open corner, supported by the cantilevered ceiling above.  You get all the functionality of regular doors when closed and one of the most attractive, wow-factor doors when open in the summer.  You also get a choice of colours, thresholds and flexible opening.

Pivot Doors.

Pivot doors in aluminium work as a hinged door opening in or out.  The difference with these doors is an offset floor pivot instead of traditional door hinges.

As you open the door the hinged side opens in or out into the room, creating a dramatic door rarely seen in a house.  One consideration with these doors is their lack of severe weather performance, owing to the pivoting action. Therefore these doors are recommended in sheltered locations, away from driving wind and rain.  However, they are incredibly good to live with and look very modern.

Automatic sliding patio doors.

Automatic sliding doors are for the ultimate new extension opening and closing the doors at the touch of a button. Not only are they ideal for oversize doors, they also work well with standard doors and for disabled people.

The automatic operator sits above the doors hidden in the structure, therefore needs incorporating at the build stage.

Only the premium brands offer automatic opening doors for residential properties.  However, automatic sliding and folding doors are widely available with commercial systems.