Wood French Door Buying Guide

As the name implies wood French doors have their origination in France. Their beginnings date back to around the Renaissance period. Today wood French doors are available in a multitude of solutions from a number of manufacturers.

Wood French doors are available with a large single pane of glass, or lite, that extends the full length of the door. More popular however are wood French doors with true divided lites (TDL). TDL French doors have multi panes of glass, or lites that are separated by mullions. Mullions are wood dividing bars that separate the panes of lite in the French door. Wood French door glass is available in fully transparent, frosted, textured, and stained glass options. Some lower quality wood French doors have one large lite that is separated into many lites via a large wooden or plastic grid.

When ordering a wood French door it is important to understand the lite terminology. An 8 lite wood French door is a door that has 8 unique lites separated by mullions, and a 10 lite French door is a door that has 10 unique lites separated by mullions. Another naming convention describes a French door’s lite pattern with two numbers, such as a 10-5 door. A 10-5 door, for example, has a lite pattern that is 2 lites wide by 5 lites long.

Though many think of wood French doors only being available as hinged double door units, they are also available as single doors, and pocket doors. Wood French doors are also available as prehung doors, bifold doors, and bypass doors for closets. Most wood French doors come with their own hardware to ease in the installation. Wood French doors are manufactured using a variety of wood products, including Hemlock, Fir, Mahogany, Maple, Oak, and Cherry. Lower quality interior French doors are also available in Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF).

So if you want to add some unique charm to the interior of your home, and in some cases to the exterior of your home, consider using wood French doors when planning your new custom home or home addition. Wood French doors are not only beautiful and functional. They increase the value of your home as well.