External French Doors FAQs

French doors, just like your normal doors, can open either inwards or outwards, it’s completely up to you.

If you’re considering doors that open inwardly, make sure that you have plenty of space within the room for the doors to swing freely and fully open. If you have a smaller room, we recommend having outward opening doors to save space inside and allow you to open the doors into your outdoor area.

A very common query, especially relating to outward opening French doors, is about their safety as the hinges are on the outside of your home. Don’t let this affect your choice as it doesn’t mean that you have to have the inward opening doors. There are specialist high-security hinges that lock into place by purpose-built pins available to secure your hinges, even on the outside of your home. If you would like to, you can also further increase your door’s security by using bolts.  The bolts can secure your door to the floor or ceiling.

Here at Vivid Doors we offer a wide range of different external French doors throughout a varying range of price brackets from affordable, simply designed doors, right up to our premium range of external French doors.

The cost depends on a lot of different factors. It can depend on the material used for the doors, what glass is used, for example double glazing costs more than single glazing. Another factor to consider is the difference in the wood material, whether it’s engineered oak or solid oak will make a difference. Then, of course, the size of the door you need is a major factor in the price.

We also recommend thinking about what will last through to the future. You don’t want to buy the cheapest doors you can find and then have to replace them in a few months. Make sure the doors that you choose to buy are quality. This could save you quite a bit of money in the long run.

Our different styles of doors come in different sizes. Our smallest French door option is 3 FT (1200MM) and the biggest we stock measures 10 FT (30000MM). There is a large range of sizes in-between the smallest and biggest size, so you’re bound to find a size perfect for you.

When it comes to styles, we have a range of different designs for you to choose from. We have the Tradesman range, which are unfinished doors that range between 4 foot and 10 foot in width. Also ranging between 4 foot and 10 foot we have the Nuvu white painted and Nuvu oak prefinished. Our Elite oak French doors are classically designed but only range between 4 and 6 foot. In out Laporte range, we have three different types. First, we have the Laporte hardwood French doors, Laporte white French doors and the Laporte oak French doors that are unfinished. These doors do range between 4 foot and 10 foot again.

Our doors tend to be made from one of three materials, either engineered oak, hardwood or softwood. With our external French door range, we have pre-finished and unfinished doors, so you can paint them to the colour you prefer.

Due to the layout of French doors and the amount of glass that they feature, people often perceive French doors as not fit for tough weather. This is not true. When made well, fitted properly and taken care of, external French doors over high levels of weather proofing.  

We do recommending checking your seals; you can do this by first removing any decorative items. Once you’ve done this, place a piece of paper under the door, close the door and then pull the paper out slowly. Check the amount of debris and liquid, this will help you establish the tightness of the seal. Then you need to use caulk to fill in any gaps. Caulk is very inexpensive and easy to use.

If you find that the problem is already too far along for caulk to fix, you may need to add some backer rod or weather stripping, or both, if the problem is severe enough. To fit the backer, you need to measure the length of the gap and cut a piece of the rod the same size as the gap. You can secure the rod with a line of caulk. You can then fully secure it at the edges with a little bit more of caulk. It doesn’t require you to be perfectly neat as you can cover up the patch with a decorative item.

If you want to use the weather stripping instead, it is even easier to apply. If you’ve used it before, you will need to remove the old stripping and replace it. Start from the bottom of your door, making sure the stripping sticks evenly to the corners of the door. When you get to the top, cut the excess tape and press the end of it into the corner and then remove the tape covering. Repeat the process for all of the other sides of the door, making your way to the top door jamb first, and then on the other side. Your French door should then be weatherproofed and ready to go. Using this method also means that you block any draughts that find their way through your doors.

If you have any other questions that remain unanswered within these frequently asked questions about external French doors, please feel free to contact us today and we’ll be happy to help.