How many times a day

The entrance of a twelve flat building opens and closes well over a hundred times on a weekday. That number turns the decision from a design question into a usage question. Leaf width, closing speed, where the glass sits and how much of the elevation is fixed all decide whether those hundred movements are easy or tiring.

A standard apartment entrance opening is 145 by 215 cm clear and 165 by 223 cm overall. Dividing it comes down to three things: how many leaves, in what proportion, and how much of the rest is glass.

One leaf or two

A 145 cm opening can technically be closed with one leaf, but on a shared entrance that is rarely the right call. A single wide leaf moves a lot of mass every time, the closer has to be set firmer to match, and the door becomes hard work for an older resident. It also catches the whole gust when open and slams the frame on the way back.

Two leaves halve that load. Daily traffic uses the wide leaf while the narrow one stays bolted and opens a few times a year on moving days. The closing mechanism gets an easier job as well.

Proportion follows clear passage

The critical figure on a shared entrance is the clear passage through the active leaf. A 90 cm leaf gives roughly 85 cm clear once frame and gasket are deducted, which is comfortable for a pushchair, a wheelchair or a loaded trolley. Below about 80 cm, accessibility starts to pinch.

So the useful split of 145 cm is around 90 plus 55. With the narrow leaf at 55 cm, opening both still yields close to the full width for furniture. A symmetric 72.5 plus 72.5 balances the elevation but drops daily passage to about 70 cm, which rules it out where accessibility is taken seriously.

Glazing ratio and lobby light

Glass does two jobs here. It brings daylight into the lobby and makes whoever is standing outside visible from within, which is both practical and a safety detail.

Three arrangements dominate. Horizontal or vertical lights in the middle band of the leaf glaze roughly a third of its area, lighting the hall without lightening the leaf too far. A shopfront arrangement glazes most of the leaf for maximum brightness, but the weight shifts into the glass and calls for toughened panes and stronger hinges. The third puts a solid leaf alongside fixed side lights, keeping the moving part robust while the light comes from panels that never move.

That third option is the most balanced for an apartment block. The leaf is the part that takes punishment; the fixed sections, being still, last. Most glazed double leaf compositions in our building entrance doors follow that logic.

Where fixed glass goes

When the opening exceeds 145 cm, give the difference to fixed panels rather than to the leaves. In a 200 cm opening the 145 cm door unit stays as it is and the remaining 55 cm becomes a side light; for symmetry, split it into two 27.5 cm panels. Above 215 cm in height a transom takes over and the leaf stays at standard size.

A useful habit with side lights is to start the glass 25 to 30 cm above floor level. Glazing that runs to the floor stays exposed to brooms, trolleys and cleaning equipment.

Glass safety

Toughened glass on a communal entrance is not a point for discussion. When it breaks it falls as small granules rather than sharp shards, which matters in a shared space. As glazed area grows the pane gets thicker, and bead depth is selected to match.

Other decisions that shape the split

  • A mailbox set into the door needs a solid panel area.
  • Whether the intercom panel sits on the door or on the wall.
  • Overhead closer or floor spring.
  • Which leaf is active; lock and handle follow it.
  • Escape direction, which fixes the swing.
  • A door stay, necessary on exposed entrances.

What we need to advise

Put together the opening sizes, the number of flats, whether wheeled access is needed and how much daylight the lobby gets, and the division decides itself. Send those notes and we will propose a leaf split and glazing ratio, then quote the chosen composition. For a grander entrance, the wide glazed compositions under glazed villa steel doors are worth comparing; for something plain, start with sheet panel doors.