# Bifold doors for a large opening



## Tylertown1950 (Mar 10, 2020)

I originally had louvered bifold doors on my washer/dryer closet that were destroyed in a flood.
The framed opening is 96.5 in wide. Originally the doors consisted of 2 sets of either 3 -16 in panels or 4- 12 in panels.
Can 3 standard doors of 2- 16 in panels or 4 standard doors of 2- 12 inch panels be disassembled and by adding hinges be made into the width I need.
The other alternative would be to purchase individual panels and the necessary hardware and make my own but I have not been able to find the panels locally.
Thank you in advance for your input.


----------



## Nealtw (Jun 22, 2017)

Rough opening should have been 97 1/4. That allows drywall or 1/2" trim on both sides. 

Three panel could be made to work but would take a little fiddling with hardware because the 3rd panel would not be tied to the track 

So I would be looking for the four panels of 12? and just buy the sets, they will have the hinges on the back side. You just have to add the joining hinges and inset them into the edge of the doors so you are not adding them to the face.


----------



## Tylertown1950 (Mar 10, 2020)

The sets with 12 in panels are only made to fit 48 in openings. Are you saying that I can buy 2 complete sets and join the panels with u to end up with 2 doors of 4- 12 in panels?


----------



## SPS-1 (Oct 21, 2008)

So you originally had a post in the center, and two sets of doors, approximately 48" wide for each of the two sets. And you want to replace that with one set of doors, 96" wide. Is that right ?

I had a similar application a while back. I concluded that I adding two sets of doors together was not going to work well. There are not many door sets that wide, but there are a few, such as these:
https://www.doornmore.com/door-configuration/bifold-doors/filter/4-panel-bifold.html 


Also, Johnson makes some interesting hardware:
https://johnsonhardware.com/1601-full-access-bi-fold-door-hardware


----------



## Nealtw (Jun 22, 2017)

Tylertown1950 said:


> The sets with 12 in panels are only made to fit 48 in openings. Are you saying that I can buy 2 complete sets and join the panels with u to end up with 2 doors of 4- 12 in panels?


Yes but if you have room I like the suggestion @SPS-1 made.


----------



## ZZZZZ (Oct 1, 2014)

I said forget the bi-fold doors, I installed some heavy duty miniblinds over my laundry closet.

(Not recommended if you have lots of little kids running around who will run into the blinds when dropped.)
.
.


----------



## Tylertown1950 (Mar 10, 2020)

Thank you for your reply.
There was no center post. Just 2 doors with I suspect were each made up of 4- 12 in panels. 
It's been a few years so I don't really remember , it might have been 3 -16 in panels on each door.
Which ever it was they worked well for 43 years. 
It would seem that buying 2 -48 in assemblies and hinging each set together would work.
I was hoping to find someone on this forum that had successfully done this or has tried it and found it wouldn't work.


----------



## Nealtw (Jun 22, 2017)

Tylertown1950 said:


> Thank you for your reply.
> There was no center post. Just 2 doors with I suspect were each made up of 4- 12 in panels.
> It's been a few years so I don't really remember , it might have been 3 -16 in panels on each door.
> Which ever it was they worked well for 43 years.
> ...


 I found some one that makes them


https://landquist.com/bifold.asp


----------



## chandler48 (Jun 5, 2017)

> Also, Johnson makes some interesting hardware:


I did not know Johnson had such an array of bifold, pocket, etc. door accessories until I had to order a set of 1700 hardware last night to compliment what was already on another door. (New install, missing hardware, goofy supplier). For me, the old days of drilling holes in the top and bottom of bifolds is OVER. It only weakens the wood and will eventually fail.


----------



## Mystriss (Dec 26, 2018)

For the record, I had bifolds on my washer/dryer for about 1 cycle then they went into the basement cause they were so awful to use. 

I like your horizontal blinds much better. I'd look at vertical blinds if you've got kidos that'd wreck the mini-blinds.


----------



## SPS-1 (Oct 21, 2008)

Possibly this is what you are looking for:

https://johnsonhardware.com/multi-folding-door-hardware

.


----------



## Nealtw (Jun 22, 2017)

SPS-1 said:


> Possibly this is what you are looking for:
> 
> https://johnsonhardware.com/multi-folding-door-hardware
> 
> .


They must be hung from wheel like a slider for support.


----------



## AllanJ (Nov 24, 2007)

Check the clearance just inside the laundry area where the door will go. The multi-panel folding doors have a choice of models some having the stack of panels centered under the track when fully open versus opening outwards.


----------



## chandler48 (Jun 5, 2017)

> They must be hung from wheel like a slider for support.


The ones I saw while looking last night actually WERE hung from rollers, almost like a shower door. Not tandem like a pocket door.


----------



## Nealtw (Jun 22, 2017)

chandler48 said:


> The ones I saw while looking last night actually WERE hung from rollers, almost like a shower door. Not tandem like a pocket door.


 Yeah, the doubles would hold them out when you to open them. 

I like the idea of the roller in the middle of the door but the one against the jam would need a track going at 90* into the closet. 

But knobs or handles wood screw that up.


----------



## Tylertown1950 (Mar 10, 2020)

I appreciate the input from each of you. I believe I now have a good idea of the options I have open to me. The one quote I have been able to obtain for providing and installing doors on 5 closets gave me no satisfactory options either in the type or quality of doors proposed. The bypass doors proposed for the washer/dryer closet would not even work.


----------



## Tylertown1950 (Mar 10, 2020)

You all are light years above me I'm experience and knowledge but please indulge me while I ask what I hope is a simple question regardless of whether it is something you would do.
I'm retired and am doing all the work to restore our house that was destroyed with 32 in of water in a flood. I'm doing this on a limited budget and must look at every opportunity to save money.
Having said that, this is the question I have.
Can I purchase 3 sets of 32 in bifold doors, disassembled them and reassemble them into 2 doors of 3- 16 in panels to fill the 96 in opening?
I expect I would need a new rail and some hinges.
Thank you.


----------



## Mystriss (Dec 26, 2018)

If you are talking about like off the shelf bi-folds, I think it wouldn't work very well, but if you replaced the pins (stationary end) of the center fold section with an extra slide pivot (opening side) it might work. I suspect that center section would be pretty wonky since it didn't have a pivot point anymore - I imagine it'd keep tilting over and coming out of the track.


----------



## Nealtw (Jun 22, 2017)

Mystriss said:


> If you are talking about like off the shelf bi-folds, I think it wouldn't work very well, but if you replaced the pins (stationary end) of the center fold section with an extra slide pivot (opening side) it might work. I suspect that center section would be pretty wonky since it didn't have a pivot point anymore - I imagine it'd keep tilting over and coming out of the track.


I think the bigger problem is the weight of the door but yes it would need 2 of whatever to keep it in track. One on the end and one on the center join.


----------



## AllanJ (Nov 24, 2007)

Nealtw said:


> ... I like the idea of the roller in the middle of the door but the one against the jam would need a track going at 90* into the closet..


When the roller is in the middle, then the door panel against the jamb is narrower and still has a pivot or hinge (like a regular bifold door) instead of a roller.


----------

