What are integral blinds?

Bifold doors are an expansive and bright addition to your home. A relatively modern innovation in exterior door design, bifold doors are looking to take the place of the traditional french double back door into the garden. The bifold door can fold up, leaving a massive opening, allowing your kitchen or living area to become a part of your garden. When closed, these doors provide a wonderful large window so that you can comfortably look out upon your garden. 

As bi-fold doors become a more popular option for the modern homeowner, finding the appropriate dressing is essential to getting the most out of your new installation. As they are essentially a large window, heat can easily escape or enter the room, prompting issues with your home’s energy efficiency. Therefore, it is imperative to find the right blinds to address this issue. But, what is best for your bifold door? An integral blind or a non-integral blind?

Integral blinds are blinds fitted within the window pane itself. In a double glazed window, the blinds will be placed in the gap between the two panes of glass. Manual integral blinds are fitted with magnets that allow you to raise and lower them with a small dial on the side of the window. As they are integral, they are inaccessible without taking the pane of glass off to get to them.

Issues associated with integral blinds.

Integral blinds may seem like an attractive option. However, our 30 years of experience have shown us otherwise at Appeal Home Shading. As they are not a standard fit for windows and installations, they tend to come with a hefty price tag, as the entire window needs to be built around them. The fact that the window is built around the integral blind poses many issues in and of itself. Integral bifold door blinds can become damaged with excessive and clumsy usage. The magnets become worn out over time, making it difficult to control the light levels in the room. Should the need arise for the blind to be repaired, the entire window will need to be taken apart to address the issue. When it comes to bifold doors, this hassle is made so much worse with the sheer size of the installation.

Non-integral blinds from Appeal Home Shading.

Non-integral blinds suffer none of these issues. Any issue with the blinds is easily addressed because they are fitted at the top of the doors discreetly. The price point is significantly more digestible since the windows don’t need to be built around the blinds. You can be assured you’re getting the shading you need without having to break the bank.

Appeal Home Shading is proud to offer industry-leading bifold door blinds. Our full range of materials, colours, and optional extras are fully available for bifold doors. Our hassle-free installation process ensures that you can quickly and efficiently have the home shading you need. Suppose energy efficiency is what you’re after. In that case, our Honeycomb Energy Saver material can help you reduce heat loss in the winter by 46% and reduce heat absorption in the summer by 78%, saving you money all year round on energy costs. On the other hand, our aluminium Venetian blinds are also available, offering optimal control over light transfer into your room. No matter what you choose, all of our blinds are fully made to measure and are available in a wide range of colours and customisation options.

Our non-integral bifold door blinds have both manual or electric operation options. Should you opt for manual operation, our child-safe cord ensures that the mechanisms don’t obstruct the views through your bifold doors nor pose a risk to children as they play by the windows. Our electric operation is installed with a battery-powered motor with ULTRAⓇ Smart touch control. If you are looking for the ultimate in sleek, discreet home shading, then this is the way to go. With a simple touch of a button, you can fully control the light coming in through your bifold doors. Ensuring you have utmost privacy whilst also appreciating wonderful natural light.

Bespoke to you.

At Appeal Home Shading, we are confident that non-integral blinds are the way to go for bifold doors. Our bespoke design approach allows your bifold doors to have a non-obstructive and complimentary dressing that not only fits the doors but the entire room. We must admit bifold doors with integrated blinds look great, but the aesthetics don’t outweigh the benefits.

Our wonderful design consultants are ready and willing to help you decide on the best bifold door blinds for your home. Offering informed and impartial advice, they are the best at what they do. They are invested in helping you achieve your home design ambitions. Please book your free consultation with us today, and we will fit ourselves around your schedule. In the meantime, check our inspiration gallery for examples of our recent work or request our free electronic brochure on our website today!