Bifold and hydraulic doors have evolved from their genesis as durable and utilitarian solutions for airplane hangars and agricultural storage facilities. Today’s bifold and hydraulic doors are designer doors, meeting the functional and almost unlimited aesthetic demands of the most creative minds.
Creative minds find new ways to showcase designer doors
The new Sacramento Kings Golden 1 Center seats 17,500 in its modern arena. Schweiss Doors engineered and built five bifold, strap-latch main entrance doors, made of a combination of steel and aluminum frames. Three of the doors measured 29 by 41.5 feet and the other two are 29.4 by 41.5 feet each with respective clear openings of 32 and 28.8 feet.
Designer doors are all about versatility. Large horizontal or vertical doors can have exterior faces of a variety of materials or multiple materials. Door framing can support metal or glass or even a smaller walk-through door. In additional to traditional uses, bifold and hydraulic doors can be used as commercial storefronts and designer glass doors. It may be cliché to say the options are limited only by one’s imagination, but it’s certainly an accurate statement. Also, installing a bifold or hydraulic door will not reduce headroom within the building.
Bifold and hydraulic doors each offer unique opportunities, depending on the design requirements or goals. Establishing the needs of a particular project will help determine which door will better serve the project.
A bifold door is installed above the building header, while the hydraulic door is mounted under the building header to achieve the same clear opening. The immediately noticeable difference between the bifold and hydraulic doors is the manner in which they open and close.
This 1,530-square-foot rental home located very close to Venice Beach in California, has a Schweiss 13-foot, 8-inch by 10-foot, 8-inch designer hydraulic living room door that opens to a private patio for a great indoor/outdoor living experience.
The bifold door lifts from the bottom, folds outside the building at the middle and puts less stress on the building. Because the bottom of the door stays within the doorframe, less room is needed adjacent to the outside of the door during opening and closing. When in any open position, there is a slight slope (minimum 1:12 when wide open), which allows for proper drainage.
Top of the line bifold doors feature liftstraps as opposed to cables. Liftstraps are easier to install, last longer than cables and run quieter. They are also safer and open the door faster than cables.
Hydraulic doors swing out at 90 degrees and lay flat when fully open. Opening in this manner requires a stay-back area during operation. It’s recommended that hydraulic doors should feature a slight slope to allow for proper drainage of rainwater or snow.
Creative designs have turned the hydraulic door’s stay-back area adjacent to the building into useable covered space, increasing the square footage of their building. Cafes, bars, diners, nightclubs and retail stores are among the establishments that have taken advantage of the extra covered space created by an open hydraulic door to increase the useful square footage of the establishment.
When fully extended, the 23-foot by 36-foot glass hydraulic door gives an unobstructed view of the San Francisco Bay and keeps everything dry underneath it.
Imagine tables full of patrons sipping coffee at a table perched beneath the cover of a hydraulic door at the back of the building, a quiet spot away from the busy street. Picture customers browsing through items just outside the storefront, safe from the elements under the hydraulic door. The addition of this space brings the outdoors inside … or pushes the indoors outside, whichever you prefer!
Hydraulic doors have been used in residential applications as well, creating a covered patio or deck space for any kind of gathering.
Bifold doors can also provide a shelter area adjacent to the building, but because it folds, it’s only half as big as a hydraulic door. Still bifold doors have been installed to serve this purpose. Bifold doors have also been creatively used in residential applications, including at least one as a garage door for an RV. The bottom half looks like a garage door and the top is covered with siding to match the rest of the home—a requirement of the homeowner’s association which had limits on the size of garage doors.
It’s important to note that these doors create unique stress on a building during operation. Proper installation and engineering is critical. Work closely with your manufacturer to ensure safe and proper installation.
Mike Schweiss is the owner of Schweiss Doors, Hector, Minn. For more information, visit www.bifold.com.