Which are best for Your Wardrobe - Sliding or Bi-fold Doors?

Trying to pick the perfect door for your wardrobe will obviously depend on the type of wardrobe you have. Although there are many, many design of wardrobe available today, when it comes to built-in wardrobes, two designs dominate - the walk-in and the reach-in wardrobes. Of the two, the walk-in wardrobe has more door options available to it than the reach-in version.

The very design of walk-in wardrobes mean they require more space than other designs, but as they are generally u-shaped, the door options available are huge. By their very nature, you can find some walk-in wardrobes with no door at all, or with just a normal room door as the divider. Mirror doors are sometimes used to increase the overall functionality of the wardrobe itself.

By the name, you can surmise that reach-in wardrobes are utilised by standing outside of them and reaching in when you need to remove something from the interior. These are probably the most common of all storage solutions in a home today and are usually used when space is at a premium. They are typically around thirty inches in depth, and can vary in width from as little as three feet, to as much as ten feet or more.

Choosing the best door then, depends very much on the size of the wardrobe in question. Larger width wardrobes are best suited to sliding doors as opposed to the bi-fold type of wardrobe door. Sliding doors always allow you access to at least a third of the wardrobe at all times, sometimes half depending on how many doors are used. Sliding doors are also perfect to incorporate mirrors into the design, and very often the whole front facade of sliding doors is mirrored. This also gives the room in question the appearance of looking bigger than it actually is.

Bi-fold wardrobe doors, on the other hand, allow better access to a wardrobe, but especially the centre of it. They are usually much lighter than the typical sliding door and one of the most popular designs is the slat-opening type which allows for generous air exchange throughout the wardrobe, leading to "fresher" clothes and garments. A disadvantage of having bi-fold doors is the fact that when they are open, they extend into the room, meaning they can interfere when it comes to placing other furniture in the room. Both types of door will need the installation of a top and bottom track to hold it in place as well as guide it.

The designs of these tracks are important, especially with considerations such as carpet being used in the wardrobe or not. In consequence, sliding doors are the more practical, allowing better access to the wardrobe, while not impacting on the placement of furniture in the rest of the room