Nowadays there is such a wide variety of doors to choose from, with bifold, casement, pivot and slim sliding doors. Each of these comes with its own design options and range of configurations.
With so many systems on the market, it can feel overwhelming trying to choose the one best suited for your project. For larger structural openings, sliding or bifolding doors would be better suited as multiple sashes can be used to fill the aperture.
For narrower structural openings, a casement or pivot door would be better suited. Pivot doors are often overlooked as an option as not many people realise that these systems actually have huge advantages over other systems.
This is especially true in the case of the new minimal windows Pivot Door as it has a unique magnetic sealing strip in the base for added security and water tightness. It is also the first fully tested pivot door on the market including full weather and security testing.
With this being said, you may wonder what exactly are the benefits of incorporating a pivot door into your home?
Benefits of a pivot door
One of the main benefits of specifying a pivot door over a casement door is that it needs less clearance space when being opened. How much less will depend on the positioning of the pivoting mechanism, and this can be adjusted to suit the needs of each project.
Another aspect of pivot doors that many people prefer is that the outer frames can be concealed within the building finishes for an ultra-minimal look. This means that when the door is open, there is no viable chunky outer frame to distract from its surroundings.
Style and design are two factors that carry a lot of weight when choosing a glass door. Pivot doors tend to have equal framing that runs the perimeter of the glass pane and this contemporary, balanced framing design is sought after by many.
In Cornwall, the Horizons family holiday house included a combination of minimal windows sliding glass doors and pivot doors to form a cohesive glass design. The minimal framed pivot door is located within the private sunken courtyard and provides a matching framing for a more adhoc access door.
Another benefit of using a pivot door is that with the door being joined to the building structure at the head and base rather that hinges on the side like a casement door, it can reach larger sizes and heavier weights.
The way the weight is distributed, and the specially engineered pivoting mechanisms, allows the system to support heaver glazing units making them ideal for triple glazing and larger structural openings. The minimal windows Pivot Door can reach impressive sizes and has been tested up to 1.8m wide x 3m tall.
Lastly, many pivots door are integrated with a self-closing and/or soft-closing mechanism which can be extremely useful for anyone who is prone to leaving doors open behind them or slamming doors closed.
minimal windows® pivot door vs other pivot doors
So now you’ve decided a pivot door is the perfect glazing solution for your project, now comes the decision of which one?
Many glaziers manufacture and supply a range of pivot doors, all with their own technical specifications. The minimal windows Pivot Door is the first fully tested pivot door on the marketing with full weather and security testing.
A modern house extension in Surrey included a minimal windows pivot door as an access door. The high-security pivot door offers direct access from the extension to the outdoor kitchen area.
Our pivoting door system surpassed weather testing requirements and also has a unique magnetic sealing strip in the base allowing the system to offer unparalleled performance levels in both water tightness and security.
This unique strip sits in the base of the outer frame and when the system is closed an auto magnetic weather seal lifts from the base frame, slotting into the pivoting leaf. This creates a robust weather seal at the base of the pivoting door.
Our pivot door also has hold open and self-closing mechanisms are within the head of the system, preventing the door from being left open accidentally and from closing suddenly and injuring someone.
With a flush base track when the pivot doors are open, and a minimal surrounding frame you can expertly recreate the appearance of the minimal windows sliding glass doors in a pivoting design.
Not all pivot doors have the high-quality robust profiles that minimal windows use for our pivot door.
The specially engineered aluminium frame allows the system to reach impressive sizes, with the door being tested to 3m tall and able to be manufactured larger, depending on factors such as location.
The minimal windows 4+ aluminium framing profile can also be used with the pivot door, allowing the system to be triple glazed or accommodate laminated glass panes.
And lastly, all minimal windows glazing systems have extremely flexible designs with a wide range of configurations, frame finishes and glazing options available.
Matching framing coating was installed in the kitchen extension of a Georgian house in Shoreditch, London. Olive Grey, RAL 7002, was chosen to apply all high-quality aluminium framing of the pivot door and structural glazing structure.
Each glazing solution is manufactured completely bespoke to suit any project requirements.
For more information on the minimal windows Pivot Door, contact the team today.