Aluminium VS uPVC Sliding Doors: Which Is the Better Choice?
When choosing sliding doors for your home or business two options spring to mind: aluminum and uPVC. Both have their pros and cons so the decision is key to getting the best.
Aluminum sliding doors are strong, durable, and sleek while uPVC doors are affordable and low maintenance.
In this article, we will compare the two in detail, looking at the features, benefits, and downsides. By the end, you’ll know which sliding door is right for you.
What is the Purposes of Sliding Doors?
The primary function of sliding doors is to bring great convenience to life. For example, when you need it, you can move it to one side, temporarily connecting two spaces and making the space appear larger. Or you can divide the place into two parts for privacy. Traditional partition doors and houses are originally integrated, and you cannot take them away. In contrast, sliding doors can be dismantled, removed, and reassembled.
What are the Different Types of Sliding Doors?
There are many classification standards for sliding doors, mainly divided into four categories.
- Divided by installation location: Partition doors such as kitchen partitions, living room partitions, balcony partitions, and bathroom partitions, cabinet doors such as walk-in wardrobes or integrated wardrobes.
- Style classification: Partition doors include embossed, engraved, white glass, silk screen, silk, jade sand, etc.
- Sliding track division: The sliding doors mainly serve the functions of separating spaces, blocking lines of sight, providing appropriate sound insulation, enhancing privacy, increasing spatial elasticity, and replacing swing doors.
- Materials of sliding doors: Woods, aluminium, and uPVC are all the key materials of sliding doors.
Aluminum Vs. uPVC Sliding Doors: Pros and Cons Comparison
Above all the categories, we will pick out of the material part to discuss. In recent years, there have been two main categories of sliding doors with different materials instead of wood, aluminium sliding doors or uPVC sliding doors.
The Advantages of Aluminium Sliding Doors
Aluminum is a very lightweight and durable material with full of aesthete. The characteristics of aluminum sliding doors are their ultra-thin line of sight and spacious glass panels. The glazed view can make the customers see the different sights during travel, or they can have the complete sunshine. It is because of their incredible weather resistance.
For example, there are multiple colors and styles to choose from. The gloss, satin and matte options, as well as wood grain, are all the choice of favors. If the customers require a high-grade decoration style, they will choose aluminum as their first choice.
Also, its sturdy frame improves energy efficiency, durability, weather resistance, and safety. You do not need to worry about the security problems.
Besides all, aluminum has excellent insulation. It can reduce energy waste to save your expense of energy.
The Advantages of uPVC Sliding Doors
Before understanding the pros of uPVC, we should understand the material.
UPVC is a resin material. Commonly known as hard PVC, it is an amorphous thermoplastic resin made by polymerization of vinyl chloride monomer with certain additives. The melt viscosity of UPVC is high, and its flow ability is poor. Even if the injection pressure and melt temperature are increased, the change in flow ability is not significant. Additionally, UPVC is a material that is difficult to shape. PVC is brittle, has poor thermal stability, and is not easy to process. Cannot be used directly, must be modified and mixed.
UPVC sliding doors are also a lightweight structure that can provide you with visually brighter spaces through their large glass panels.
They do have durability, weather resistance, and safety too, even if they are not better than aluminum sliding doors. However, they are better than woods, because uPVC does not rot. Its maintenance is simpler than the woods.
The Disadvantages Comparison
For the aluminum sliding doors, the price is the biggest problem. The purchase and installation cost of uPVC sliding doors is cheaper than that of aluminum.
However, compared with the aluminum sliding doors, uPVC is not as sturdy as aluminum. The line of sight is often more bulky and cannot provide large panel sizes. If overheated, it is also more likely to warp, which can affect operation and lifespan. Usually, uPVC can last for 20-35 years, but aluminum can last for 45 years.
uPVC supplies a similarly lightweight and thermal design as aluminium but is bulkier and less smooth than its alternatives. It can largely damage the aesthetic feeling. The bulky frames and lines of sight, and the limited accommodate large single panel or door sizes will make you have fewer choices to decorate.
Aluminum is a material that is easier to maintain and keep clean, but uPVC will dye and discolor in sunlight. If your place is facing the sunshine or the south direction, you may not pick the uPVC. The uPVC will heat up and expand under the sunlight, which means that uPVC sliding doors will become more difficult to open and close if they are over time used.
Aluminum Sliding Doors Vs. uPVC: What Other Differences?
Thermal performance
The thermal performance of aluminum is better than the uPVC. The sturdy aluminum frame is designed to retain heat and keep you warm for a long time. Also, it can reduce the energy you consume, then lower your future energy. Aluminum sliding doors are an economical and efficient solution that also helps reduce your carbon footprint. For your longer purpose, aluminum is the better choice.
The uPVC is not as strong as aluminum, but it can still provide excellent insulation performance. However, the performance is worse than the aluminum. As I mentioned before, if you want to use it in the sunlight room or balcony, you can not use it.
Security
Aluminum is an inherently strong material. This works well in providing excellent security. You will sleep comfortably because you know that any unwanted intruders will be prevented from entering your property.
uPVC is also very powerful and can provide you with enhanced security and protection. But, we have to face the truth that uPVC is not as sturdy as aluminum. It is easier to be broken under the big punch.
The security is based on the security methods, not the material of the sliding doors. So in this part, there are fewer differences.
Cost
uPVC sliding doors are cheaper than aluminum. Although its feature is not as sturdy and safe as aluminum doors, its price is satisfied with most customers. Therefore, you have to think it over with the different situations. If you need to use the sliding doors in a worse environment, the aluminum is better than uPVC, because you have to put the maintenance and repair fee inside of the cost. The durability of uPVC is weaker, and it does mean you may change a new uPVC sliding door within in short year.
Here’s a Comparison cost table between Aluminum Sliding Doors and UPVC Sliding Doors:
| Comparison Item | Aluminum Sliding Doors | UPVC Sliding Doors |
|---|---|---|
| Material Cost | Higher (Aluminum is more expensive) | Lower (UPVC is cheaper) |
| Installation Cost | Higher (Heavier, more complex installation) | Lower (Lighter, easier to install) |
| Maintenance Cost | Low (Durable, easy to clean) | Medium (Can discolor and expand with heat) |
| Durability | Long-lasting (40-45 years) | Shorter lifespan (20-35 years) |
| Energy Efficiency | High (Excellent insulation) | Medium (Good, but not as efficient as aluminum) |
| Security | High (Strong, impact-resistant) | Lower (Less impact-resistant) |
| Appearance | Premium (Customizable finishes) | Medium (Basic finishes) |
| Long-term Maintenance | Low (Very durable) | Higher (May need repairs or replacement) |
How to Choose the Best Sliding Doors Supplier?
Different requirements fit for different products. Therefore, which one is better aluminum or uPVC depends on the real expense, situation, and needs. However, no matter how you choose, the sliding door supplier is the key to your choice. Posting your requirements to the supplier and get its suggestions about the suitable sliding doors with different materials can make the choosing easier for you.
Precautions for Sliding Door Detection
1. Regular test: Sliding doors should be regularly inspected to ensure their normal operation and safe use. It is recommended to conduct a comprehensive test at least once a year and make appropriate adjustments based on usage.
2. Professional test: Sliding door detection requires professional knowledge and skills, and it is recommended to be carried out by professionals. Professional personnel can more accurately determine the operating status of sliding doors and provide effective solutions.
3. Timely maintenance: Any problems found during the testing process should be promptly repaired or replaced. To avoid safety accidents caused by equipment failures and ensure the long-term stable operation of sliding doors.
What is the Quality of A Good Supplier?
Of course, if you face testing and maintenance problems, you can ask your supplier for more help. A good sliding door supplier has all the services as follows.
- Experienced working group. Sliding doors are popular but many manufacturers occupy some parts of the market. If you choose a manufacturer the experience is the key. Usually, an experienced supplier can follow the trend of the decoration or construction industry. They will support more types of sliding doors as you want. One supplier can solve all your problems quickly like producing, designing, delivering, etc.
- Customized requirements. The unique style is what most young customers like. Customized is the beacon for the following products supporting field. If you want to build a special structure or decoration you have to find a supplier with customized service.
- Full product process. You need and supplier can provide you the detailed solutions and design a product for you. Talk to you to get more details and produce with high quality and free delivery to the customer. That’s a one-stop service. Also, they will be responsible for after-sales services like testing or maintenance.
