LivingEtc: Patio doors

Hi Tigerpug,
We replaced our kitchen windows with white upvc french doors in our current kitchen (we couldn't afford the folding doors and there wasn't space for them anyway, plus the rest of the house already has upvc windows). They were put in last September and cost just under £1000 from a local company recommended by a friend. You can see photos on flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/22978414@N07/sets/72157607348133661/

In our last house we put wooden french doors in to replace exactly the window you are thinking of changing in the rear reception room. However, they were much draughtier than the original sash window had been, although they looked nice. They cost around £1000 in 2003. I got quotes from a local joinery firm for wooden doors this time last year (with the kitchen in mind) and they quoted about £2K I think.

Other considerations:
There is a limit to the height they will make for plain french doors. A lot of companies don't tell you this until you notice on the quote, as we did, that the doors don't go up as high as you'd like but have a fixed glass panel above them. We got the company we used to avoid this by making the frames a bit wider (for extra strength), but most of the rest of the people who quoted told us this was not possible and we'd have to have a top panel (which we didn't want).
Prices vary HUGELY, so get loads of quotes. Also, for upvc doors, check what they call the "profile" of the frames - some are plain and cheap-looking, some (like ours) are moulded. We went for moulded as they look more like wood. Ask to see finished projects before you go ahead, if possible. Also, check what the arrangement is for the threshold (the bit of the frame at the bottom of the doors that you have to step over as you go through them). We asked them to do as low a threshold as possible as we didn't want a high step on the inside to trip over on our way out, but our doors are pretty high off the ground on the outside so there's no danger of rain leaking in.
Also, our company messed up in that they measured everything and though I told them we were about to have a new floor laid, they never came back to re-measure. Consequently, when the fitters arrived the doors didn't fit the space and the fitters tried to make us pay to get them re-sized. I didn't, as it wasn't our fault they didn't fit!
Finally, check warranties, guarantees, etc. - one of our doors was cracked by the fitters and had to be replaced.

Oh - BTW, in our kitchen we used the existing lintel from the window. The cost might be a bit more if you want to widen the opening and need to add a new lintel.

Edited by siane (30/06/2009 13:35)