A French door, also known as French windows, or as true divided lite (TDL) French doors, is a door made up of panes or panels of glass, called lites, fitted into frames made out of wood, metal or fiberglass. A French door is stylish and elegant and is a great addition to any home decor as they add style and beauty to the home. French doors can also work as home room dividers and partition.

Most French doors come in pairs that create a large entryway when opened together. For material and construction of French doors, you can check: French Door: Materials and Construction

Most people think that French doors are automatically double-door or two doors pre-hung on one doorjamb. This, however is wring thinking. French doors can also be pre-hung as a single-door or double-door unit. They can also be customized to work as a bi-fold door, bypass door, or pocket door.

Glass makes major part of a French door. In recent years, there have been new developments and innovations in the type of glass used in French doors. Now there are special-grade glasses used in French doors. These new and improved glasses can more strong and can face and withstand severe weather conditions such as a strong storm and even hurricane.

Let us now discuss different types of French doors available today.

French doors are available in several types:

Interior French doors: Interior French doors are specifically designed and made for adjoining one interior room to another interior room. These doors also act as a partition or wall between two rooms. Interior French doors can be made form any of the door material including wood, steel or fiberglass.

Exterior French doors: Exterior French doors are specifically designed and made for exterior of a house such as the entry door. These doors are exposed to outside weather conditions. This makes it compulsory that you choose your exterior French door wisely so that they can withstand severe conditions such as strong storm / wind or even hurricane. These doors can allow bright natural sunlight into you home and they also add to the beauty of your home. Exterior doors are normally manufactured with tempered glass, which is stronger and more durable than normal glass used on interior doors. You can go for any door material for your exterior French door including wood, metal or fiberglass. If your choice is wood, you should go for Mahogany, Spanish cedar or white oak.

Pocket French doors: Pocket French doors are great space savers. If you have limited space, this is the right choice for you. Pocket doors slide into a wall instead of opening on a hinge.

Bi-fold French doors: Bi-folding French door units have two to four sections that fold in pairs. Normal width of each door is about 6 feet. Bi-fold French doors can open from either side for one pair or fold off both sides for two pair. These doors are most common for closets.

Multi-fold French doors: Multi-folding French doors are designed for places where folding doors are needed to cover a wider than normal area. These doors are normally used as home room dividers or hall dividers. Multi-fold door sections are available in 12 to 42 inches wide. They can be used in any configuration in even numbers.

Sliding French doors: Sliding French doors are great for balconies where there is limited space. These doors just slide on their way to open or close thus allowing more space for other furniture.