Return to our Door Repair Home Page I've seen the pull (or knob) on a bifold door set located in five different locations, but aesthetics aside there is only one ideal placement in my opinion.  I have repaired at least a hundred broken bifolding doors over the years, and most of them were caused by poor door pull placement. (The second biggest cause of breakage, if you're interested, is the bottom of the doors rubbing on carpet.) I'm talking mechanics here, not the feng shui of door pulls!  My wife, of course, has a different opinion on the "perfect" location, so I will give you a second option that some people prefer and that works almost as well. The "ideal" position is with the pulls located in the horizontal center of the leading door(s).  This is a compromise between smooth opening and smooth closing, keeping friction at a minimum to avoid excessive pressure on the track guide pins (see picture above). If the pulls are in the wrong location, the unusual force on the guide pins can over time lead to door breakage at the somewhat fragile top corner of each door.

The second best position is to locate the pull or knob near to the hinge-edge of the leading door: In this position, opening the door is very easy, but closing may be a little more difficult on older, worn doors.  However, replacing the hardware or even lubrication of the track can often solve problems with this door pull location.  hollow metal door frame boltsMy wife didn't particularly like having the pulls in the center of the leading doors... hence this loving compromise.windows and doors pompano The design of a bifolding door set presents a conundrum.  sliding wardrobe door floor trackCertain door pull positions are ideal for opening the doors and certain positions are ideal for closing the door.  sliding wardrobe door floor track

But there is no position that is perfect for both.  The two examples above are the best compromises.  Below are some examples of very bad choices. If you are having problems with your bifolding doors not working easily (and you have made sure they are well-lubricated and none of the hardware is broken), consider changing the positions of the door pulls if any of the below scenarios are yours!! Don't place the pull near the outside edge of the leading door (vertically under the guide pins):   Very easy to close the door, but gives you no leverage to open the door, since it is too far from the hinge to allow the doors to fold Thus, you have to twist and pull on the knob to get the door to open, or even reach up to the top of the door at the hinge-side and pull it out a bit. Don't place the pull on the hinge edge of the following door:  Makes opening the doors easy, but it is even more difficult to close them since there will be extra friction on the guide pins that can lead to breakage.

Don't place the door pull in the center of the following door:  Similar problems to placing the pull on the hinge-edge of the following door... only about a hundred times worse!  I worked at a large condominium complex that had hundreds of doors with this pull location.  Don't place the door pull on the pivot-side of the following door:  Unthinkable! Hope this helps you get the best use and life from your bifolds!! Return to our Door Repair Home Page Bifold doors are much like any doors, only connected into pairs with hinges and hung on a track. What makes them look good and work well are a solid, heavy construction and sturdy and carefully adjusted hardware. The heft of the doors is what keeps them from shuddering when you open them. So it's best to look for solid–core or solid–wood doors, which will feel more substantial than hollow–core doors. (Solid doors are also easier to trim if any part of your door opening is out of square.) Then, in order to handle the weight of these heavier doors, you'll need a track that includes a wheeled mechanism, which allows the doors to glide smoothly rather than shimmy along the track.

The most difficult—and sometimes most frustrating—part of the installation is attaching and adjusting all the hardware. The track, the pivots, the hinges all have to be assembled just so, and it's worth taking the time to double–check every measurement and position to be sure each piece is in the right place and facing the right way. Finish or paint the doors before starting. Label the doors to show the order they'll be installed and which sides face out. Take a jamb side door and mark its inner edge 11 inches from the bottom, 7 inches from the top, and centered between the two. Place the door on edge with the marks facing up. Take the lower half of a hinge and align its bottom with the bottom mark, its knuckles facing back and flush to the edge. Use a self?centering bit to drill pilot holes through the hinge holes. Screw on the hinge plate. Attach the top and middle hinges, on their marks. Place the leading (inner) door on edge, facing back-to-back with the first door.

Align the doors evenly against a square, then put the hinges together. Screw the hinge plates to the leading door. Repeat on the second pair of doors. Attach the track hardware Fasten the pivot plates (the pins that fit into the track and the floor bracket), and the locking arms (the hooks that slide along the track) to the top and bottom of each set of doors. The pivot plates go on the tops and bottoms of the jamb–side doors, and the locking arm on the tops of the leading doors. Each kit requires its hardware to be uniquely positioned, so check the diagrams that come with yours for exact measurements and placements. These will tell you, for example, not only how far a pivot plate should be from the door edges around it but also where its pin should be in relation to the door's edges. Adhering to all the given dimensions ensures that no piece goes on backward. Use a hacksaw to cut the track to length to fit the closet opening. Slide the hanging hardware into the track—the small stops in the center, then around them the track hangers with wheels, and finally the pivot socket on the outside.

Attach the track to the door header with the screws provided. Position the track 1 inch in from the front edge of the header. This will give you enough room to hide the track with trim without limiting the door action. Tip:Don't tighten the hardware onto the track. It will be easier to hang the doors later if the pieces are loose. Position the floor bracket Use the measurements supplied by the manufacturer to position the floor bracket next to the door jamb. Hang a plumb bob from the center of the track above the floor bracket to align the pin hole in the bracket front to back. This will ensure that the doors are plumb when installed. Outline the bracket in pencil to mark its exact location. Screw the bracket in place, then remove the screws and set the bracket and screws aside. Bring the doors to the track and lift the jamb side to hook the pin of the top pivot plate into the pivot socket. Make sure the pin is all the way in, then push the lever on the side of the socket to lock it in place.

Slot the pin from the track hanger into the locking arm on the leading door. Twist the arm to lock it into place. With the doors closed, swing them forward enough to catch the floor bracket in the bottom pivot pin. Attach the floor bracket Swing the doors back into place and align the floor bracket with the pencil marks. Use a flexible bit extender to screw down the bracket. Hang the other set of doors. Close both sets and adjust them along the track to even up the reveal around them. Then, using the wrench provided with the hardware, tighten the pivot sockets on the ends of the track and the small stops in the center. Tip: Ask a helper to give you a hand in lifting and holding the doors, which can be unwieldy. Attach the door aligner From inside the closet and with the doors closed, mount the door aligners between the two leading doors, 6 inches up from the floor. The aligners catch when the doors are closed, keeping the door faces flush with each other.