Doors come in different designs. The main ones are swing and pendulum.
Hinged doors open only in one direction and are considered the simplest type of their kind. Swing doors have some interesting opening features. Thanks to spring hinges and a door frame with a missing “quarter”, this door can open in both directions. In this case, the door leaves are necessarily closed back and return to their original position. The range of materials from which swing doors are made is very wide:
- you can make them veneered;
- lined with paper-laminated plastic;
- You can make the doors swing.
Moreover, these operations are carried out with any doors - even those made of foamed PVC and solid oak.
Features of swing doors
Double-opening swing doors are structures with one or two leaves, the elements of which open in both directions. They are equipped with a fitting mechanism that includes hinged hinges. Their installation allows the canvas to be opened in both directions, which creates a swaying effect. This is where the term “swinging” comes from. Compared to classic canvases, they are suitable for all types of high-traffic areas.
Design of swing doors
Pendulum models with a double-sided opening system consist of a canvas, a fitting mechanism and floor closers.
The canvas is made from many materials. This is high-strength plastic or glass, which is due to the popularity of such doors in office buildings and public places. Wood is also used in production, however, its popularity has decreased due to low wear resistance compared to glass and plastic. Now the market for swing doors consists of 30% wooden structures.
A separate group includes metal swing doors made of aluminum or steel. They equip corridors for evacuating people in case of fires. Due to the mechanism, the structures reduce the risk of congestion, and the non-combustible material reduces the rate of fire spread.
The fitting mechanism is a set of hinges and closers. The choice directly depends on the purpose of the entrance group. For high traffic conditions, preference should be given to floor elements. If traffic is low, standard hinges are purchased. If communications (gas, water, air duct) pass under the entrance group, installation of floor hinges is impossible.
The main material is stainless steel. The thicker the sheet of metal, the greater the load the sheet can withstand during operation. When installed correctly, pendulum hinges should be hidden behind the canvas, as they are of the hidden type. The accessories also include clips, corner lock, corners, handle, fittings.
Around the three cards, in the loops of the latter, tight springs are wound, performing the function of a device that, when opened, brings the door to the closed position - a closer.
How do swing doors differ from regular doors?
Externally, they are no different from the classic ones. They can be identified visually only by the absence of standard elements - such canvases have neither a lock nor a door handle. But this applies only to one type of canvas.
There are only two of them:
- Option with floor hinges. They are installed in public places, most often in a doorway facing the street. In this case, the hinges are installed at the top of the sash and at floor level. This allows you to fix the canvas in a certain position or close it at night.
- Swinging is the simplest type of swing doors. The hinges are attached on one side to the frame, the other to the canvas itself. They are installed in public establishments, which is why they are called saloons or bars. They can be seen in authentic films about cowboys.
Operating rules
Due to the size of the structure, pendulum products require free space in their opening area. Failure to comply with this point may lead to rapid damage to the canvas. Due to the lack of good thermal insulation, pendulum structures are not recommended for use at the border of warm and cold rooms without an additional insulation line.
Why choose swing doors?
The advantages include the following points:
- during installation it is not necessary to install a door frame;
- the design has high strength and wear resistance;
- the canvas can be opened in both directions, which is convenient both in residential and industrial premises;
- Thanks to floor hinges, the door can be fixed in a certain position and the speed of its closing and opening can be adjusted.
Design flaws
All the disadvantages of swing doors are associated with the simplicity of their mechanism. They got rid of unnecessary elements, but lost their classic qualities. The absence of sealing contours and close contact with the door contour deprives them of a significant level of sound insulation.
Important! Due to the large opening radius, interior swing doors are not suitable for rooms with a small area or for rooms where there is no free space near the entrance.
The cost of the design is high - on average 30-40% higher compared to classic samples made of the same material. The difference is due to the high cost of fittings.
Method No. 6: according to fire safety requirements
What kind of entrance/interior single-leaf structural block is can be clarified using fire safety rules. They provide an understanding of how to correctly and in a matter of minutes find out the type of door product. The difference between a left and right door is whether the door is opened with the right or left hand. According to fire safety rules, the left model is the one that must be opened with the left hand. This is relevant when the sash opens towards itself. This fire safety standard is easy to remember.
Installation technology for swing doors
Swing ones are the easiest to install, although they have their own peculiarities. Before fastening the fittings, you should loosen the closer and return it to its original position after installation, otherwise it will not work correctly.
Fastening
At the first stage of installation, the master marks the future location of the loops. After measuring the side cards, the seats are marked on the frame and sash and cut out with a depth corresponding to the thickness of the element. This is necessary so that after installation the fittings are not visible from behind the canvas.
The lock on the adjusting nut is removed, the opened cards are attached to the markings on the canvas with self-tapping screws. The other kit is installed in the same way. The tension of the closer on the hinge is set.
How to install the box?
Lastly, work is done on the door frame. It must be placed on a flat surface, the hinges must be installed at the end and the position of the door itself must be adjusted so that during operation the door leaf does not touch the frame. The frame is mounted in the doorway and the canvas is hung on it. The final stage is installation of fittings.
Design
Sliding doors are made in the same way and look the same as the usual swing doors.
The difference lies in the movement of the canvas. If swing structures rotate around a vertical axis, which requires space to move, then sliding ones move to the side without taking up space in the room. This is sometimes very important if the sash is located in a narrow corridor. Often people passing through it are hit by an opening door. If these are small children, the danger becomes quite great.
Sliding doors move along the plane of the wall. The leaf is equipped with rollers installed on the lower and upper ends of the door. The rollers move along guides attached to the floor and wall.
To open, you need to move the sash to the side, and close the passage in the opposite direction. As a rule, sliding doors move quite easily and do not require significant physical effort from users. The weight of such canvases is small; there is no unnecessary load on supporting and load-bearing structures.
Use in industrial premises
The production of swing doors was originally intended for general purpose commercial premises.
Elastic pendulum structures designed for rooms with a fixed temperature are sold by. The canvas is a soft canopy that automatically opens the opening at the press of a button or using special sensors. This feature reduces the cost of heating (cooling) the premises and simplifies the work with special equipment for transportation.
Another specialized one offers film and plastic swing doors, which are used for arranging warehouses and storage facilities.
Fireproof swing doors
GOST in its classification distinguishes fire protection systems, which also include pendulum panels. Fire doors are used in public places for the rapid evacuation of people. They are equipped with a system that automatically unlocks the doors in the event of a fire alarm.
Fire-resistant fabric can delay the spread of fire until people are completely evacuated from the corridor and has low thermal conductivity characteristics, which eliminates the rapid heating of the structure under the influence of open fire.
Installation of such systems is carried out exclusively by specialists using non-flammable sealant, fire-resistant foam and sealing rubber bands.
Story
Cowboy doors were two-way bar doors found in saloons. Today they can be found in cafes, bars, restaurants and other establishments, the interior of which is stylized as the Wild West. However, the history of the origin of unusual structures is unknown. There are several versions of why swing designs became so popular in cowboy saloons.
Saloons were indoor spaces where cowboys gathered to relax and drink whiskey and other alcoholic beverages. There was such thick tobacco smoke inside that the doors, which covered only part of the opening, were the only air conditioning system providing air circulation.
The design was also convenient for tipsy cowboys who entered and exited the saloon. In the evenings there were so many visitors that a simple door leaf could not withstand constant opening and closing. It was not uncommon for cowboys to enter the saloon on horseback, making it difficult to open and close the door manually.
Since there were often bandits among the cowboys, swing doors helped to notice in time who had come into the saloon: a client, a notorious thug or a sheriff. Such designs also prevented the appearance of angry wives, whose husbands spent all their money in saloons and had fun with prostitutes.
Swing doors in a residential building
Designers recommend installing swing doors in the area between the dining room and kitchen to facilitate the process of removing prepared dishes. The separation of the bedroom and living room can be done using a single-leaf glass pendulum panel - it has a futuristic appearance and has a good level of sound insulation.
In private homes, swing doors are installed in auxiliary outbuildings where tools are stored.
The design can be used in a private house when arranging an exit to a veranda or balcony. The glass sheet has high light transmittance, which makes it preferable compared to its main competitor - the PVC door.
Pendulum structures are an ideal solution for arranging emergency exits. Such entrance groups make the evacuation process easier. However, this does not mean that such models cannot be used to create an original interior of a living space.
Principles of sliding systems
Despite the huge variety of design options for sliding doors, there are only two structural and functional concepts of such systems - parallel-sliding and sliding-folding. They differ not only in design and method of movement, but also in withdrawable mechanisms, as well as installation technology.
1. The design of parallel sliding doors may include one or more leaves moving parallel to a vertical surface. Such doors are characterized by good sound insulation, reliability and durability.
2. Sliding-folding models consist of several sections and resemble an accordion. They cannot provide proper insulation from odors and sounds, so they are more often used to conditionally divide space into zones or as a decorative element of the interior.
Assortment and design
Having familiarized yourself with the range of interior doors, you can dwell on their design options. Depending on the type of door leaf, there are:
- deaf;
- paneled;
- with glass inserts.
Blind canvas is optimal for rooms where sound insulation plays an important role. As a rule, they are made of natural wood, metal or glass. Such doors do not require complex maintenance due to the absence of recesses in which dust accumulates.
Paneled doors look presentable, create the impression of home comfort, and fit well into the interior of a bedroom or office. They may include a different number of panels. There are options for its manufacture from laminate and plastic. However, it is worth remembering to take care of the decor.
Glazed structures delight the eye with a geometric variety of inserts and types of glass. Thanks to corrugated, matte and patterned inserts, the doors become a real decoration of the interior and add an element of completeness. During the daytime, a door with glass inserts provides an additional source of light.
