Bringing the outdoors in

In a small space, ensuring plenty of natural light will make sure it feels spacious. If you can open it up to outside, to have no obstruction to nature, even better. Selecting the type of opening will obviously have significant impact on design, structure, and how it operates. Installed in a four season travel home, it will need be structurally very strong and well insulated.

The types most often used are French doors, sliding glass doors, and even glass garage doors. The more glass you have, the more important the insulation value. Double of triple pane is recommended. Each of the above options are traditional rectangular openings which gives some limitations on how wide you can make them.

Another very popular option in today’s luxury homes are the bifold door. With seemingly unlimited width options, it moves all the door panels out of the way when opened.

The challenge in a travel home is that you can not eliminate all the wall space needed for furniture of cabinets, etc. A unique solution to this is the combination bifold door/window unit. By combining these two into one, it can incorporate a bar counter. This can for example create a true indoor/outdoor kitchen.

While there are several manufacturers of bifold doors, only a few have a door/window combination without a center post, the key to that totally open feeling. Even fewer will allow their products to be installed on a home that is moving. Lastly the structural loads of having a 13’+ opening are significant and must be accounted for in the design.

The result has been an absolute game changer in how we live and enjoy our travel home. In combination with the disappearing deck it creates an entertainment kitchen space that is second to none. Uncompromised Life on the Road™