The Perfect Wooden Doors For Every Purpose

Wooden doors offer strength, beauty, and sustainability, with designs available for both internal and external purposes, whether in a home or a commercial building. From solid wood doors to wooden framed sliding and bifold doors, wood can have a fantastic natural look or be painted in a full range of colours. 

The Benefits of Wooden Doors

There are numerous benefits offered by wooden doors, ranging from the aesthetic to the structural:

• The Look: Real wood looks fantastic, with eye-catching natural grains that work well within both modern and traditional buildings. Different soft and hardwoods can show a range of colours. Wood can also be painted if desired.
• Insulation: Wood offers thermal and acoustic insulation. Thermal insulation will help to prevent heat loss, allowing you to stay warm for less money through UK winters. Acoustic insulation helps to limit noise from moving through a house, giving privacy and comfort.
• Performance: Wood can withstand many years of intense usage with minimal impact, provided that it is maintained over time. A quality timber door can be relied upon for decades of performance.

Real Wood Vs Engineered Wood

When looking to buy wooden doors, you’ll be choosing between solid wood and engineered wood products. While authentic wooden doors will be cut from timber, engineered woods will be made from a combination of wood pieces and adhesives, typically faced with a veneer, a thin layer of authentic wood. This means that an engineered wood door can give a comparable look to a solid wood door. Engineered wood will typically be cheaper and less harmful to the environment.

Wooden Door Designs

Wooden doors come in a wide range of styles, which we have divided into exterior and interior doors, alongside other styles that are built for both purposes.

External Wooden Doors

External wooden doors will either be made of solid wood, or be what is known as composite doors, which will feature a core made of engineered wood, plastic, and metal, with a solid outer layer of wood. True solid wood doors will require more maintenance, and can naturally change size due over time as the wood swells and contracts due to seasonal changes.

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Wooden Front Doors

Wooden front doors are sold in a huge range of designs, from sleek flush looks to more recognisable panelled designs, some of which will involve glass. Front doors need to combine an attractive look with excellent security, and heavy-duty wood or composite builds will be a great choice.

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Wooden Back Doors

Back doors will share many of the same features as front doors, but will often be designed with glazed door panels to let natural light pass into communal spaces and give a great view over a garden.

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Wooden Patio Doors

A patio door is an umbrella term for wide doorsets that prioritise visibility, usually constructed around large panes of glass. When purchasing French doors, bifold doors, or sliding doors for the exterior of your house, options with wooden frames will be available, which will give a great look, but will require regular maintenance unlike metal frames or composite frames.

Internal Wooden Doors

Internal wooden doors will require less strength and durability and can be chosen more for their visual appeal. Wooden doors will be sold in a range of sizes, and you should always measure the dimensions of a doorframe before purchasing a new door.

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Solid vs Hollow Wooden Doors

When shopping for engineered wooden doors, those intended for internal use will either boast a solid or hollow core. Much like composite doors, they will have an attractive outer veneer, but hollow core doors will merely have a cardboard honeycomb within their void, while solid core options will have a central board made from an engineered wood like MDF. Hollow core options will be cheaper and lighter, making them easier to install, but lacking the quality feel offered by a solid core door.

Solid wood options like internal oak doors will offer a fantastic look and dependable long-term performance, but will come with a much higher price tag.

Single Bifold Doors

Offering an unusual hinged design, these bifold doors are designed to be installed within standard frames, and will fold vertically down the centre, meaning they have a smaller opening radius than standard doors. This will offer clear benefits for internal rooms with limited floor space, letting more areas of the room be used.

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Fire Doors

Fire doors are required within a variety of commercial and domestic properties, helping to restrict the passage of fire as part of a fire safety network. Wood is commonly used for FD30 and FD60 doors, offering 30 and 60 minutes of performance against a fire. When shopping for fire doors, it’s important to keep in mind that every element of the door and its frame should be offering the same level of fire protection, including hinges, self-closers, handles and seals.

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Other Wooden Door Designs

These types of wooden doors are available for both interior and exterior installations.

French Doors

French doors are double doorsets with a central join. They are popularly used as patio doors, installed with glass panels to flood an interior room with natural light. They can also be a great option for internal doors, propped open to create larger internal spaces across rooms.

Sliding Doors

Sliding doors will be built around large panes of glass, with wooden framed options available both as patio doors and for internal uses. Externally, sliding doors allow in a huge amount of light in, and can be slid open to create larger gaps than either standard or French doors, though smaller than folding designs. When using sliding doors externally it’s worth investing in double glazing to restrict heat loss. 

Sliding doors are popular internally for doors leading to conservatories, and standard-width solid sliding doors are also available. These can be used as stylish and space-saving bedroom doors. These options can either be hung from a railing on one side of the doorframe or be installed as pocket doors, which will slide into a wall cavity.

Bifold Doors

Larger multi panel bifold doors will offer a comparable look to sliding doors when closed, but will fold away to leave a far larger opening. Different designs are available, with some folding entirely to one side of a track, and others being made from two sets of doors that fold away to their respective sides.

For exterior uses, bifold doors bring a fantastic level of light into an internal space, while opening to create a unified indoor and outdoor space, perfect for the summer. Internally, they tend to be used between communal areas, joining kitchens, living rooms, and dining rooms. Their design allows them to be opened to create a larger communal space, or closed to offer privacy and allow different rooms to be used by different people.

Flush Wooden Doors

Flush wooden doors will give a stylish and modern look, with a completely flat surface free of panelling or glass. This can be a great option for a front door or for a sleek internal door.

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Wooden Panel Doors

The more traditional look, panelled doors will feature square or rectangular panels in a variety of styles. These can also be combined with glass panes to create a classic look for a front door or as a rustic interior door for a kitchen.

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Quality Wooden Doors Perfect For Your Next Project

Building Materials Nationwide offers a huge range of wood and wood-finished doors for sale through our website. Whether you are looking for internal or external doors, including folding options, we’ll have both traditional and flush styles available, alongside all the door accessories you’ll need. We work with professionals and skilled DIYers, offering a huge range of products through our site.

For those working within the industry, we offer trade accounts through our website. Our trade account holders gain access to a dedicated account manager, who’ll be there to help you organise the exact supplies you need through our industry network, delivered to you at a fantastic trade price. Sign up for a trade account today.