Double front doors

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How to maintain your energy-efficient windows and doors

Pine windows and doors

When to check the pine windows and doors?
When it comes to pine windows and doors, it's a good idea to be proactive with maintenance.
Check the surface regularly, especially on the sides of the house that are exposed to sunlight, as the sun's rays are particularly hard on the paint.
When to paint the pine windows and doors?
The humidity in the wood should not be too high. In addition, it is best when the temperature is between 10-20 degrees and you are not painting in direct sunlight. Don't start painting before the dew has disappeared and don't start so late that the dew returns before the paint is completely dry.
Weather-wise, late summer is often a good time to paint.
How to paint pine windows and doors?
It's best to paint before the paint starts to crack or peel, as all you need to do is clean. before painting on top. Once the paint has started to crack, we recommend sanding and priming before repainting.
It is recommended to give the woodwork two thin coats of paint rather than one thick coat. Let the paint dry for 24 hours between coats, remembering not to close the windows until the paint is dry.
A good tip is to take off the window frames and remove as many fittings as possible to speed up the painting process and make it possible to paint underneath the fittings.
It is important that you do not paint sealing strips, fittings and warranty and production labelling.

Alu-clad windows and doors

How to maintain alu-clad windows and doors?
When it comes to alu-clad windows and doors, maintenance is minimal.
Simply wash the frame and sash a couple of times a year as needed. Use pH neutral soap and lukewarm water.

Are double front doors secure?

Structure of the answer once the facts are confirmed: state the locking on the main leaf, state how the secondary leaf is secured, state the glass specification on glazed models, then close on the point that a wider entrance is not a weaker one.

How do double front doors open?

One leaf does the daily work. It has the handle and the lock, and it is the one you walk through nine times out of ten. You choose which side it hinges on when you order.

The second leaf is held by bolts at the top and the bottom of the leaf. Release them and it swings clear, giving you the full width of the opening. That is the moment a double door earns itself: furniture, a wheelchair, a coffin, a Christmas tree, a sofa that will not turn a corner.

There is no centre post between the leaves. Nothing stands in the middle of the opening when both are open, which is what separates a double door from two single doors side by side.

Should the doors open inwards or outwards?

You choose when you order, and it is worth thinking about before you do, because it cannot be changed afterwards.

Inward is the British norm for a front door. It is more welcoming to step through, it keeps the leaves out of the weather when open, and the hinges sit inside where nothing can reach them. The cost is floor space: two leaves swinging in need clear hallway, and a hall table or a radiator behind the door will get in the way.
Outward frees the hallway completely, and it is the answer when the space behind the door is tight. Two things to plan for. The leaves swing into whatever is in front of the door, so check a porch, a step, a path or a boundary. And the hinges are on the outside, so specify hinge bolts or security hinges.

If the door opens onto a public footway, check with your local authority before you order an outward-opening door.

Glazed, panelled, or both?

This is the only decision that changes how the door looks from the street, and you have three routes.

Glazed.Two panes up to twenty-four, in the leaves themselves. More glass means more daylight in the hall, which is usually why people move to a double door in the first place. A hallway with no window of its own is transformed by it.
Panelled. Two raised panels up to twenty. Solid, traditional, and the option that suits a period frontage where a wall of glass would look wrong. It is also the more private choice, which matters on a door that faces a pavement.
Both.Panels in the lower half, glass in the upper. Daylight arrives at head height where it travels furthest into the room, and the solid lower half takes the knocks, the mud and the dog. This is the configuration most people end up with, and we make it from two panels with two panes up to eight panels with twelve.

Glazing bars are available on the glazed layouts, which divide the glass into smaller panes without dividing the sealed unit.

What size can a double front door be?

Every door here is made to your measurements rather than to a standard size, which matters in both directions.

Narrow openings. A double door does not have to be wide. Two narrow leaves in a modest opening give you the look of a double entrance and the option of the full width when you need it, and they suit a terrace or a cottage frontage where a single wide leaf would be out of proportion.
Wide openings.Two leaves span more than one leaf can, without the weight and the sag that a single oversized door develops on its hinges over the years.

Measure the opening in three places for width and three for height, and work from the smallest of each. Older openings are rarely square.

Double doors for a porch

A porch is one of the best places for a double door, and one of the least obvious.

A porch is usually wider than it is deep. A single door in a shallow porch swings through most of the floor, which is why porches so often feel like a corridor you have to edge through. Two narrower leaves swing in half the arc each, so the space stays usable with a door open.

The glazing choice matters more here than anywhere else on the house. A porch with glazed double doors reads as part of the house rather than as a box bolted to the front, and it lights the hall behind through two sets of glass rather than one.

If the porch is a recent addition, check whether the outer door needs to meet the same requirements as a main entrance. That depends on whether the porch is heated and whether the original front door is still in place, so ask your building control body if you are unsure.

A second front door

Two different jobs go by this name, and they need different answers.

An inner door behind your front door. A second door creates a draught lobby: a pocket of still air between outside and inside, so opening the outer door no longer sends cold air down the hall. It is the oldest and cheapest way to make an exposed entrance comfortable, and it works whether the outer door is single or double.
A second entrance elsewhere on the house.A side door, a garden door or a door into an annexe or a converted garage. Here the question is what the door has to do rather than how it looks: a door onto a garden and a door onto a driveway are specified differently.

How much do double front doors cost?

Every door is made to measure, so there is no list price. Yours is calculated from the size you enter, the layout, the material, the glazing and the fittings, and the configurator prices it as you build, including VAT.

Two doors cost more than one, and that is the honest starting point. What is less obvious is that the layout moves the price as much as the size does: every panel and every glazing bar is a separate operation in the workshop, so a two panel door and a twenty panel door of identical dimensions are not the same job.

Glazing is the next biggest step after that.

Double front doors

By fitting a double front door, you can create a stunning entrance and at the same time let in plenty of natural light. Double front doors are perfect for your main entrance or elsewhere in your home where a wide opening is desired.

Castles and palaces often have double front doors. So why not add a little grandeur to the entrances of your home, by choosing double exterior doors at one or more locations.

At SparWindows we offer a wide range of double front doors – e.g. a double front door with 4 panels or a double front door with 20 panes of glass: It’s completely up to you. You can easily find the price of your new double front door by choosing the product you are interested in and adding the desired type of material, dimensions and other specifications – once the price appears, you are ready to order online.

Double front door – what about the opening direction?
When ordering a door, you must choose the opening direction of your new door. If there is enough space, it’s a good idea to have doors that open inwards, as it is more inviting to enter through an inward opening entrance. However, if space is tight, you might want to choose a door that opens outwards.

For French doors and double front doors the main sash is opened with a handle whereas the secondary sash is opened with the help of latches in the top and bottom of the sash. Double doors are without a center post

You may also be interested in our selection of beautiful french doors, front doors with sidelights and conservatory windows.

FAQ

What is a double front door?
A double front door is two hinged leaves in one frame, opening onto a single wide entrance with no centre post between them. One leaf carries the handle and the lock and is the one you use daily. The other is held on bolts at the head and threshold until you release it for the full width of the opening.
What is the difference between double front doors and French doors?
The construction is the same and the specification is not. Both are two hinged leaves in one frame. A double front door is specified as a main entrance, so the emphasis is on security, weather exposure on the most exposed elevation of the house, and the look from the street. French doors are specified for a garden or patio, where glass area and the view matter more.
Can you get narrow double front doors?
Yes. Every door we make is built to your measurements rather than to a standard size, so two narrow leaves in a modest opening are perfectly possible. It is a common choice on a terrace or a cottage frontage, where a single wide leaf would look out of proportion, and it still gives you the full opening when you release the second leaf.
Do double front doors open inwards or outwards?
Either, and you choose when you order. Inward is the British norm: more welcoming to walk through, and the hinges sit inside where they cannot be reached. Outward frees the hallway completely, which is the reason to choose it, but the leaves swing into whatever is in front of the door and the hinges need hinge bolts. The choice cannot be changed later.
Are double front doors draughtier than a single door?
A well-made double door is not. The two leaves meet on a rebate, the secondary leaf pulls tight against it on bolts at the head and threshold, and the seals compress along the full height when the main leaf locks. What does cause draughts is a door that has settled on its hinges, which shows sooner on a double door because two leaves have to keep meeting each other.

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Double front doors

Double front doors

We're here to help you

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How to maintain your energy-efficient windows and doors

When to check the pine windows and doors?

When to paint the pine windows and doors?

How to paint pine windows and doors?

How to maintain alu-clad windows and doors?

Are double front doors secure?

How do double front doors open?

Should the doors open inwards or outwards?

Glazed, panelled, or both?

What size can a double front door be?

Double doors for a porch

A second front door

How much do double front doors cost?

Double front doors

FAQ

What is a double front door?

What is the difference between double front doors and French doors?

Can you get narrow double front doors?

Do double front doors open inwards or outwards?

Are double front doors draughtier than a single door?

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