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Property/DIY

Do you need a back door?

22 replies

BalloonSlayer · 02/09/2009 09:13

At the back of our house, we have a kitchen/breakfast room, in which we have a back door right at the end next to the sink. Alongside it is the living room which has patio doors.

Because of the design of the kitchen, and where we keep our bins, we rarely use the back door as it's a squeeze to get it open etc. We use the patio doors all the time really.

We are going to have a new kitchen and I had decided to move the back door so I had a sort of galley kitchen with the door at the end.

With me so far?

My friend was over yesterday and said, if we never use the back door, why don't we just get rid of it, have units all the way around.

It would make the kitchen look fab, I can see, but would it put off future buyers that the only access to the garden would be through the patio doors?

We have laminate flooring but I could imagine if someone wanted to carpet the lounge they'd be unimpressed at dirty footprints coming through the house.

Would it stop you buying a house?

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BalloonSlayer · 02/09/2009 09:16

Forgot to add, there is access to the garden from the front, round a long alleyway, so if you had a wheelbarrow full of shite you wouldn't have to take it through the house.

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Tommy · 02/09/2009 09:16

we don't have a back door in our kitchen - patio doors are in the dining room (sort of joined on to kitchen but not a kitchen/diner IYSWIM) and the official back door is in the utility room.

Is it easy to get to the patio doors from the kitchen?

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GooseyLoosey · 02/09/2009 09:19

You need access to the back garden. If you have it via the patio doors, I would get rid of the door in the kitchen if it would let you have a better lay-out.

Would not put me off buying a house but then I already have a house which has some wierd features.

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Tommy · 02/09/2009 09:19

should have said - not a problem for us! We have laminate in the dining room which does get very dirty - esp in winter - but that's because the drive is at the back so we come in and out of the back most of the time

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Rubyrubyruby · 02/09/2009 09:21

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

HelenaBonhamCarter · 02/09/2009 09:29

no, couldn't cope, I have to open the kitchen door several times a day to eject small creatures, put washing out, empty the bin, just in case of emergency if a pan is on fire etc etc...

mind you ours sticks like buggery so I need to sort that out as it really puts me off using it.

Maybe you could just make your door more accessible/user friendly when you do the renovations?

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HelenaBonhamCarter · 02/09/2009 09:30

We also have huge french doors out from the living room but sometimes it is nice to have the option, pays to be flexible with children etc, sometimes I don't want them to be running in and out through there for whatever reason.

Flexibility is often key to selling a house.

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nymphadora · 02/09/2009 09:34

We got rid of ours as we got French doors. This gave us some extra kitchen space which we were desparate for!

We don't have access from back to front though, everything has to go through the house or through ginnel up the back st, through another ginnel and down front st

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MmeLindt · 02/09/2009 09:43

We have never lived in a house with a proper back door. They don't seem to value them so much in Germany/Switzerland.

It never bothered me, except in our first house and that was only because the car port backed onto the back of the house so I had to cart everything around the side of the house.

It would not put me off buying a house if the access to the house was not affected.

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MrsBadger · 02/09/2009 09:52

we have a kitchen-diner and the french doors are in the diner bit, which is fine, but I wouldn;t want to be walking through into another room every time.

I did once live in a house with an open-plan downstairs that had a back door next to the french doors. Never saw the point of that...

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QuintessentialShadows · 02/09/2009 09:56

I have just been to a house with your layout. I think. The living room/dining room has sliding doors to the garden. The kitchen, galley style has the original door on the side just as you have entered the kitchen. They now regret keeping it. They also have french doors at the end of the galley kitchen, leading out to the patio with a nice big table. The doors were open all the time, and we were in and out of the kitchen, eating at the table outside. She had barstools along the side so could have breakfast on the go in kitchen or sit and chat while cooking.

Her kitchen was fab, with duck blue tall shaker units, tiled floor, and marble worktops. She had an aga, and a country style sink.

Based on the above. My recommendation:
Keep your living room patio doors, get rid of the original back door from your kitchen, get french doors which will open up the entire end of the kitchen, and get a galley with really tall units for storage. Arrange your patio so you can dine/breakfast/ entertain just outside your fab new kitchen.

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MmeLindt · 02/09/2009 10:08

That sounds lovely, QS.

In our present house we have two sets of French doors in the dining room and a single French door in the kitchen. It is very handy when having a BBQ or entertaining in the garden as we are not all bumping into each ohter.

And if something gets burnt, I don't have to go through the dining room with a smoking pan.

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LilianGish · 02/09/2009 10:11

Kitchen to garden door essential for me - especially if eating outside.

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LilianGish · 02/09/2009 10:12

What quintessential said (just read your post!)

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OmniDroid · 02/09/2009 10:16

When we re-did the kitchen we got rid of our 'back door' (which was actually a side door out of the front-of-the-house kitchen onto the side path). We just have french doors out of the living/dining room at the back of the house.

It has improved the kitchen 100%.

In an ideal world, I would have a door straight out of the kitchen, but in an ideal world I'd have a 5 bed detached in the countryside with a fab kitchen-diner, playroom and a flat back garden

It's all trade offs, and I think in our case the improvement to the kitchen was well worth it.

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alypaly · 02/09/2009 10:16

you do need a back door for safetys sake and i think you wud be contraviening build regulations as you have to have a second fire exit in a house.\any good builder would be able to advise you or go on the council websites or phone them and ask to be put thro to planning department. You might make your home unsaleable if u do it

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browny · 02/09/2009 10:18

We have a tiny kitchen that used to have a back door, when we had new units fitted we had the back door bricked up half way and a window put in, that way we could have worktops across where the back door used to be and the window let the light in, the washing machine and dryer are under the worktops now. It makes a huge difference! We never used the back door either, there was always a bin in the way!

Oh, we have patio doors from the Conservatory into the back garden and it works perfectly for us, as long as you have a nice doormat outside that everyone can wipe their feet on, the dirt's not a problem . HTH

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alypaly · 02/09/2009 10:24

yes as long as you have another exit you are okay

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MmeLindt · 02/09/2009 10:31

browny
It is all your fault. You reminded me that I was wanting a new door mat for the living room and when I was looking for one I found this and had to buy it for my mum and dad.

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QuintessentialShadows · 02/09/2009 10:35

MmeLindt, I think I will order that mat for OUR front door......

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Tommy · 02/09/2009 11:52

love the mat

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BalloonSlayer · 02/09/2009 12:43

Thanks everyone.

Quint, you did remind me, with the wonderful description of your friend's house, about the fact that I do sometimes go in and out of the back door if we are eating in the garden. But not always, and we don't eat in the garden that often.

Re the fire risk, the builder will know. But I'd have thought that given most fires start in the kitchen, that wouldn't be the obvious exit anyway. As long as there is a back exit.

Hmmm, food for thought.

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