Things to consider when buying hinges for louvre doors

You’ve just purchased some stylish louvre doors for your home. Great choice! But before you begin to think about installing them there will be another question on your mind. What hinges shall I use? With so many variations of hinge available it’s easy to become confused. But before you begin your search for hinges there’s a few points you may need to take into consideration that can help you decide.

1. What are you using the louvre doors for?

Where are you planning to install your louvre doors? Are they going to be your new kitchen cupboards or perhaps they will be used on a wardrobe? Either way, where you plan to use your doors may determine what type of hinge you should use. For example, a concealed hinge may be the ideal choice for louvre doors used as kitchen cupboard fronts.

2. How heavy are your louvre doors?

Louvre doors generally tend to be lightweight in comparison to other internal doors but when choosing hinges for doors it is certainly good practice to check the weight of the door/s you are installing, and maximum load of the hinges to ensure the hinges can withstand the weight.    

3. How wide is the frame of your louvre door?

Louvre doors have side rails (stiles) that have angled routed slots that the louvre blades fit into. This type of manufacture means you cannot place hinges directly onto the louvre blades. When installing louvre doors, you will be fixing your hinges to the frame/stiles, so it is important to know how wide these are to ensure you do not buy a hinge that is too big.   

4. How are you planning to have the louvre door open and close?

Do you want the door to open one way (i.e outwards) or are you planning to use your louvre doors as a swinging saloon style door? If it is the latter, then you will likely want to search for a double action spring hinge. There are lots of different types of hinges that will each provide a different benefit/ function.

5. Are you trying to achieve a certain aesthetic look?

Is the room where you are installing the louvre doors decorated in a particular style? Will you need the doors to match this? For example, you might be trying to achieve a rustic look and want hinges to reflect this?  There are certainly plenty of variations of hinge available to buy but before making your purchase we certainly recommend taking some of our previous points into consideration before choosing a hinge based on style alone.  

6. What are other people using?

Look at what other people are using. You may find a simple online search for louvre door hinges will bring up a list of results based on what other people are using. Quite a lot of retailers who sell hinges for louvre doors generally offer flush hinges so this could also be an option for you.

7. If in doubt, consult an expert.

If you are still not sure what hinge to use, then contact a hardware retailer that specialises in hinges for advice.