Bi fold doors, which direction?

[bifolddoordirection]

Currently having a extension, will end up with open plan; dining, kitchen & family room overlooking garden.

Bi fold door will be on the side (French doors with fixed panels either side shown on plan). We're undecided whether to have the doors folding back against the wall of the house, or folding back towards the end of the extension.

It will be our only back door, so will be 3 leaves with the ability to fix one to open like a normal door, but should that back door be closest to the wall of the existing house & the kitchen, or at the end of the extension, so have to walk across the family room to get to it?

Pros and cons to both, opinions welcome!

I would want to be able to access the utility room from outside without traipsing muck from outside through the garden room, but that's not what you asked.

The fixed door should be in the most convenient place - so where are your bins in relation to the kitchen and if you were to hang washing out, where would you need to go?

Utility room won't be accessible from outside. We currently have the back door in the utility, and it's just used as a corridor. I want it to be a functional utility room.

Bins will be under car port to the left of the lounge. Washing line is behind the car port.

My concerns aren't really about how to access things that are outside, but more about how it affects the space inside, and the eye line & light.

Anyone else??

I would have the unfolds opening away from the house, i.e. Towards the top of the picture. So the single door would be nearest the house opening from the left hand side.
Be very careful to make sure the fitters know what they're doing. A coup,e of my friends have had bifold and no other back door. They have both had endless problems as they drop quite a lot causing issues in being able to open them. For this precise reason I decided to stick with french doors with side lights. Each sidelight has an opening window too. This means that when it's raining I can still have a window open, with bifolds you have to open the whole door for fresh air.

Thanks.

Anyone who actually has bi fold doors, any pearls of wisdom about how you use them, and what they look like when they are all open to one side?

I agree with Bezm about the orientation of the doors. You will want the lead door nearer the house.

I have bifold (hastily drawn diagram attached) and the lead door is where I access the garden, bins etc.

When I did a lot of research I found out that some bifold were rubbish so we decided to go for very good quality ones and pay the extra. We narrowed it down to Origin and Shuco and went for Origin as the installers had superb reputation and I know someone with origin who is very happy. Ours have been in almost a year and they are still incredible.
Picture also attached of how it looks when fully opened.
Love them.

Thanks Quitmoaning, that's really helpful to see them 'in action'.

The main problem with them opening towards the top end of my pic is that our garden is the 'L' shape from the top right of the pic, across the top, to the left top end of the lounge. So if we had them folding that way, it would really spoil the eyeline into the garden from the house. I keep reading that bifold 'bring the outside in' and create a seamless look between house & garden. If ours opened towards the top, it would completely defeat that object.

That being said, I do agree that it's more practical to have the access door nearest the kitchen. DH is also concerned about creating 'dead space' in the extension for a walkway to the back door.

It'll be a compromise whichever way I think.