With a fabricated-to-order system, the supplier matters as much as the brand. Two companies can quote the 'same' Schüco bifold doors and deliver very different results. Here is how to tell them apart.
Fabrication and survey
Ask who fabricates the doors and whether they carry out a proper technical survey before manufacture, not just a sales visit. A measured survey against a real opening is what stops the 'it doesn't fit' phone call. Good suppliers will happily explain their installation process.
- Fabrication
- who actually makes it?
- Survey
- technical, pre-manufacture
- Warranty
- frame AND paint, in writing
- Security
- PAS 24 as standard?
- Showroom
- can you see it move?
Warranties in writing
Separate the frame warranty from the powder-coat warranty and get both in writing. Ask what happens if the door needs adjusting in year two — a real installer expects to return and tweak.
See it, don't just picture it
A showroom visit tells you more than any brochure: how the leaves fold, how the threshold feels underfoot, how the handle operates. Compare a folding system against a slider while you are there.
A local reference point
For homeowners in the county, 5EC Aluminium is an established supplier and installer of Schüco folding systems with a showroom in Hertfordshire where you can compare configurations before committing.