Bifold doors are extremely popular in Australia – they're the perfect solution for creating a seamless indoor-outdoor lifestyle that makes the most of our beautiful sunny days, fresh air and if you're lucky, amazing vistas.
However, sometimes they’re not that practical. In addition to loads of sun, the Australian outdoors also had a multitude of flying insects that descend during the warmer months – and suddenly it seems that big wall of glass opening out onto the garden is attracting thousands of the critters.
Security is also a concern – what happens if a thief or looky-loo visits you while you've popped into another room? Luckily there are solutions you can take advantage of – bifold doors of all shapes and sizes can be fitted with security screens and/or fly screen doors quickly and easily. Better yet, you can do it without spoiling your view!
Traditional security doors just don’t work.
Bifold doors are a special case – you can't fit a standard security mesh screen door to them because of their design, more substantial size and rolling opening and closing mechanism.
However, you can fit a bifold security screen to the doors that operate in the same way as your bifolds, just with a stainless steel mesh instead of glass. Super strong, any intruder would have a hard time getting through this mesh, plus you can add drop bolts and locks to add extra security.
The great thing about bifold security doors is that you can secure any open area. You can select to open up either side or the whole space and then lock it back up again when you are ready to leave, ensuring that you have maximum flexibility between lifestyle and safety.
Bifold security screens open and close on discreet tracks generally hung at the top of your door opening. Most will have a magnetic closing feature to make sure they click back into place when little feet are running back and forth from your garden to your house, increasing your safety. You can opt for left or right opening screens and customise the panels to match your bifolds perfectly for a streamlined finish.
While visibility changes somewhat, that feeling of openness remains – you'll still be able to see through the mesh and after a few minutes you'll hardly notice it's there. You can also choose from a variety of frames and finishes, including aluminium, powder coated steel, anodised or timber.
Best of all, you’ll be able to leave your bifold door open whenever you like with complete peace of mind.
Ban flies from your home.
There’s also a variety of retractable fly screen doors that are ideal for bifolds of all shapes and sizes. Available in lightweight or paw mesh (brilliant if you have animals), they can be custom designed to fit your exact opening, allowing you to throw open the doors and bring the outdoors in whenever you choose.
Retractable fly screens work on a cartridge and frame system that sits inside your bifold doors. The screen rolls up into the cartridge when you open it, giving you easy egress when you need it. Then it's merely a matter of pulling back the screen and connecting the magnetic lock to the other side of your door opening to keep your room insect-free day in, day out. The screen is so light you can move it with just one finger.
Some retractable fly screens open and close in the middle with a snap back feature that means you just need to touch it to open, and it will immediately close behind you after you walk through. Others operate more manually, but this can be a better option if you have flighty pets or nervous children. Whichever you choose, you'll enjoy the feeling of getting in the thick of nature without ever leaving your comfy armchair!