Door hinges: butt, pivot and concealed

The hinge carries the whole door for its life. Under-hinging a heavy leaf is the most common cause of doors dropping and binding.

Butt hinges

Two leaves and a pin, mortised into the door and frame edge. The workhorse for timber and framed doors.

• Number: two hinges up to a light 900 mm interior door; three on a standard door; four on a tall or heavy leaf or a fire door.
• Bearing type: plain-bearing for light doors, ball-bearing for anything with a closer or heavy use — the closer’s force wears a plain hinge quickly.
• Size and thickness: step up the hinge size and knuckle for wider, heavier leaves. Stainless for external and wet areas.

Pivot hinges

The door turns on a top and bottom pivot rather than edge hinges. Used for heavy doors, full-height doors, and where you want a clean edge with no visible knuckles. A floor spring is a bottom pivot with a closer built in.

Concealed hinges

Fully hidden when the door is shut, adjustable in three axes. Used for flush architectural doors and premium interiors where no ironmongery should show. They are rated by weight — check the leaf weight against the hinge rating and use the number the maker specifies, usually three or four.

Getting it right

Weigh the finished leaf including any cladding or glazing. Pick the hinge rated above that with the closer’s load added, and use the full number — do not save one hinge on a tall door.

Tell us the leaf size, weight, material and whether it has a closer, and we will spec the hinges.