Crittal style or wood French doors?

[Herewegoagain84]

We’re just about to start on an extension (Victorian terrace) - looking at mostly glass along the back, and what styles we like. I feel like crittal style is everywhere these days (perhaps a trend that will date?), but appreciate that it’s a good option re resistance to weather etc. I do love a traditional wood look (aspirational pics below!) but wondering if this is a bad choice re external upkeep / warping etc. That said, there is many a wooden front door around! Any feedback or personal experience in what I should avoid / not worry about welcome. Many thanks!

Personally I feel that things that become part of the 'fabric of a building' e.g. doors, windows, roof tiles etc. should be 'in sympathy' to the original building so I would look a the style of your Victorian house (and neighbouring properties ) and follow that.

But that's just me!

Both are lovely so either way you’ll get a smart look. Pick one and see what your gut tells you. Are you disappointed and thinking about the other choice? Which one excites you? Go with that.

We have the wooden kind, in a south facing garden. Lots of warping shrinkage and maintenance due to the heat. They also leak vast amounts of heat despite retrospective maintenance and stuff to draughtproof. We've inherited them from the previous owners but like for like replacement is £15k+

Start with the material that's appropriate for climate, insulation and ease of access/security. Then see what's available aesthetically.

We have a French door like the one you have posted on our Victorian terrace - it's internal now as the back of the house was extended. I painted it black and it looks fabulous - a bit of the Crittal style which I love but I'll be able to paint it again when I'm bored with that look - which will inevitably happen with everything in your home.

Can you get the wooden look ones in a composite? So you get the wooden aesthetic with something more robust

We had wooden double glazed French doors in our old place. They were a right pita to upkeep and swelled up and stuck and rotted in places. We had to have them overhauled twice in the time we were there. They were on a north facing side though, across 3 rooms.

I did like the look though, so would have considered looking into a composite if wd’d
stayed there.

Are people calling them French doors nowadays, instead of French windows?
(not trying to be objectionable, just wondering if I'm the only one left)

If you are going down the composite route - make sure you are happy with the door furniture - you will be more limited and the wood-look surface can be overdone and look awful.

I love the crittal look, but only in actual steel. We looked at some aluminium ones (the steel ones were so expensive) and didn't like them. The bars were too chunky and they didn't look quite right. Fabco does really nice steel doors and a quote that was more competitive. In the end we overspent on the renovation and so got floor to ceiling ultra slimline aluminium sliding doors in black for a third of the price. They look really nice, but I still think the steel crittal ones look the best for period properties

No, you’re not the only one!

This is brilliant food for thought! Many thanks