We’ve seen an increase in Louvre Door sales at Blueprint Joinery the past couple of months. They’re becoming increasingly more popular as of late and are currently going through somewhat of a design comeback – gone are the days where people consider them an old-fashioned décor trend that needs a replacement. Wardrobes, cupboards and pantries to name a few, louvre doors can be used in a wide variety of different ways. There are several reasons you might choose to incorporate a louvre door into your living space. If you’ve been struggling to find a cost-effective and suitable solution to cover some common storage openings at home, we think louvre doors could be the answer to your problems:
What are the advantages of a Louvre Door?
1) Affordable
Louvre doors have a really low price tag in comparison to other door types which makes them an inexpensive, cost-effective solution if you don't want to spend an awful lot of money. Our pine open louvre doors by Richard Burbidge are a firm favourite with our customers and start from as little as £10.50. With over forty sizes to choose from, you’ll find a louvre door suitable for anywhere in your home.
2) Ventilation
One of the main characteristics of a louvre door is its angled slats that act like an open ventilation system. This makes them perfect for areas such as wardrobes, airing cupboards and places where you store clothes and towels that might become musky over time when not used.
3) Variety of sizes
Our louvre doors are available in a variety of different widths and heights making them suitable in 99% of all situations. If you're struggling to find a size you require, there are two things that you can do; 1) Reduce the size of the door opening with a square piece of timber which will then
Advice: In most cases, louvre doors can be cut but no more than 40mm from the overall height and no more than 7mm per side. Removing more than this can sometimes affect the strength of the door which might cause it to warp. We always recommend that you check the manufacturer's specifications as all louvre doors are different in construction and material depending who you buy them from.
4) Variety of designs
All the louvre doors we sell are sold unfinished. This means you can paint them, gloss them and varnish them to (1) Blend in and suit your existing interior colour scheme, or (2) Make them a feature by using bold colours which will make your louvre stand out from the rest of your furniture.
Advice: A great colour we always recommend is white. White reflects light around a room making it appear bright and airy. Why not give it a try today...
Where can I use a Louvre Door in my home?
The short answer, louvre doors can be used anywhere you like, don't be afraid to steer away from the more typical uses to try something new. Here are some great examples of where louvre doors can be used in your home:
1) Kitchen
Transform a food storage cupboard into a pantry using an 18"-24" high louvre door just like in the image above. Or why not use a much larger louvre to cover a cubby-hole space.
2) Bedroom
Louvre doors are great for covering up wardrobe spaces in the bedroom; this helps to keep your clothing aired and fresh. Also, they're a perfect idea in a child's bedroom where solid interior wood doors or sliding doors might be too heavy.
3) Hallway
Do you have a hallway coat storage area that needs renovating? Louvre doors are ideal, keeping your cupboard space ventilated and your coats fresh.
4) Decorative
Add unique and interesting touches to your home by using a louvre door as a decorative accent. For example, a small room divider, a bed headboard or board that you can hang ornaments and indoor plants from.
5) Windows
I really like the idea of using a louvre door as an interior window shutter as an alternative to blinds or net curtains.
Are Louvre Doors easy to fit?
We often get customers asking Blueprint for advice on how to fit a louvre door. One of the more common methods is by using hinges which you can then hang the louvre door from. This method is usually adopted by those planning to use their louvre door as a room door, airing cupboard door or wardrobe cover. They are dead easy to install, use the below step by step guide to help you fit you louvre using flush hinges:
Tools required -
Drill, screwdriver, tape measure, spirit level, pencil, plane, small chocks.
Materials required -
Handles, hinges and screws.
Step 1
Before purchasing a louvre door, we recommend that you accurately measure the aperture or opening that you are intending to install the door in. If your louvre door is larger, use your plane to trim down any excess wood.
Advice: As mentioned earlier on in this article, we don't recommend cutting more than 40mm from the overall height and no more than 7mm per side. Removing more than this can sometimes affect the strength of the door which might cause it to warp. We always advise that you check the manufacturer's specifications as all louvre doors are different in construction and material depending who you buy them from.
Step 2
You now need to calculate how many hinges are needed to hang the door. As a general rule of thumb, any louvre higher than 59" will require 3 hinges, otherwise 2 hinges. Firstly, use your pencil to mark on the door the hinge placement, and then repeat this process on the louvre door frame or opening. We recommend that you hang your hinges 6" from the top of the door and 6" from the bottom.
Step 3
With your hinge placement markings at the ready, it's now time to fix the hinges to the louvre. We recommend flush hinges in this case; they're ideal for lightweight doors such as louvre doors as they're easy to install and remove the time and effort in having to rebate the door frame to accommodate the new hinge. Place each hinge over the pencil markings you made in step 2, and use your drill to make the pilot holes. You can then secure the hinge properly into place using the screws supplied with the hinge and a screwdriver.
Step 4
Now to fix the hinges into place on the door frame or opening. Use small chocks to boost the louvre up to its fixing height. For a perfect finish, we always recommend that you take the time to check the level of the door using a spirit level to ensure it's fixed perfectly upright. If the level is slightly off, make the required adjustments, otherwise fix the hinges into place on the door frame or opening using your drill, screws and screwdriver.
Step 5
You can remove the small chocks once the door is fixed into place. Give it a test run; if the door doesn't look straight or has problems opening and shutting, fix the small chocks back into place and relevel until everything is looking and working perfectly. With the door fully fixed, you can now add catches and handles to your louvre. Jobs a good one, it's as easy as that!
We recommend Richard Burbidge for your Louvre Doors. With over forty sizes to choose from, you’ll find a Louvre door suitable for anywhere in your home. Our Louvre doors are great for kitchen doors, cabinets and wardrobes as well as other interior doors around the house. They’ll give a new lease of life to the rooms you fit them in! All doors are supplied in pine and sanded to a fine finish, each Louvre door is 29mm thick.