Bi-Fold Doors that are now catching on the top runner, whilst glazing is being installed.... aaarrrggghhhh!

Joined
15 May 2012
Messages
53
Reaction score
0
Location
Kent
Country
United Kingdom
Hello there

I've got a really annoying problem with some bi-fold doors that I have fitted. I'm at the finishing stage of fitting the glazing, and it's not quite going to plan. The frame and doors were fitted just fine, as far as I can tell. The doors opened and shut really smoothly. Looking from the inside, the doors open from Left to Right.

I fitted the first piece of glass, in the door furthest away from the main traffic opener. In picture 1 which I've hopefully uploaded successfully, this is the door to the right. I have scribbled in, in red, the corners where I have placed the packers.

After fitting the glazing in the first door and fitting the beading back in (which was really tight and tricky to get back in!), I opened all the doors to test them, and they opened and closed just fine.

I then repeated the process with the middle door, and again, Picture 1 shows where the packers have been fitted. Again, I opened and closed the doors, and they all ran pretty smoothly.

At this point, I realised that I hadn't really secured the bi-fold frame really securely into the timber frame of the building that I'm building. It was secure along the bottom and relatively secure up the sides, but nothing along the top.

I had watched another video from a professional outfit that showed that you should introduce some packers at the side hinges between the frame and the timber frame itself, and screw through these to make the frame really secure. I've introduced additional packers behind the sides of the frame where the main door hinges are, and screwed through them to secure the frame to the timber frame of the building. I've also pushed some packers into the gaps between the top of the frame and the timber itself (but these have not been screwed into place yet), as I happened to test the doors again before doing so, and found that the top roller, between Door 1 (the main traffic door), and the middle door, was now catching on the top of the aluminium frame and causing it to slide badly.

As can be seen in the two additional pictures, it's scratching/catching the top edge of the frame.

I am trying to work out if me adding in packers and screwing the sides of the frame is the cause of this, or whether I've not got the glazing packing correct?

From watching online videos - heeling and toeing errors seem to make the doors catch at the bottom, rather than at the top like they are on mine... I would be very grateful indeed if anyone could point me in the right direction of how to cure this?

Many thanks in advance for any replies.

Picture 1 shows where I have packed the glazing in the two leaf's that have been glazed, with the red L-shapes in the corners. The red line along the top shows there the top roller is catching the inner edge of the top of the frame.

Picture 2 shows where the top roller has been catching and scratching the inner edge of the frame, and the orange circle shows the top roller/bogey that is catching

Picture 3 shows the catch/scratch more closely.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_20221011_1844335-1.jpg
    IMG_20221011_1844335-1.jpg
    284.1 KB · Views: 70
  • IMG_20221011_1845060-1.jpg
    IMG_20221011_1845060-1.jpg
    233.6 KB · Views: 72
  • IMG_20221011_1845273-1.jpg
    IMG_20221011_1845273-1.jpg
    231.3 KB · Views: 73
Last edited:
Hey, have you watched the Skill Builder video on installing a bifold door? They have a good explanation about how to toe and heel properly
 
Hey, have you watched the Skill Builder video on installing a bifold door? They have a good explanation about how to toe and heel properly

Yes - I have watched a number of them, which is why the first two leaf's are heel and toe'd in the areas that I have demonstrated in Picture 1.
 
Back
Top