Our specialism

Spitfire Door Specialistsin Godstone & Surrounding Areas

The S500 front door and the S600 pivot are statement entrances, and both have to be surveyed, prepared and set up correctly to operate as they should.

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Free no-obligation survey · Spitfire specialists · 10-year insurance-backed guarantee

Since 2005

Family-run in South Godstone

9.83 / 10

191 Checkatrade reviews

FENSA

Approved installer

10 years

Insurance-backed guarantee

CHAS

Accredited contractor

Overview

What spitfire doors involves

We supply and install the Spitfire Doors range, including S500 front doors and S600 pivot doors. Ask us about the options when you enquire.

Spitfire is the range we are known for. We supply and install the Spitfire aluminium doors, including the S500 front door and the S600 pivot door, and we are regularly approached specifically for technical advice on complex builds and pivot door installations.

A high-end aluminium entrance is not a commodity product. The leaf is heavy, the tolerances are tight and the ironmongery is engineered rather than generic. Getting one to close with a single finger, and stay that way for years, depends on the structural opening, the fixings, the packing and the final adjustment.

That is why nothing is ordered before we have surveyed the opening ourselves. On a door at this level, the installation is as much of the result as the product.

Who this is for

Homeowners wanting a genuine statement entrance
Contemporary new builds and full-house renovations
Architect-specified projects with tight sightline requirements
Builders needing pivot doors specified and set correctly
Properties matching an entrance to existing aluminium glazing
Trade customers buying supply only from drawings

Why it matters

What happens if it is left alone

A pivot door installed into an opening that is not properly prepared will never settle. The leaf is heavy and it turns on a pivot rather than conventional hinges, so any movement or deflection at the head shows up immediately as a door that drops, drags or fails to latch cleanly.

Ordering a premium door to the wrong specification is an expensive mistake, because these are made-to-order units. Handing, threshold type, opening direction, glazing specification and hardware finish all have to be right first time.

Buying a high-end door and pairing it with poor installation wastes most of what you have paid for. The difference between a door that feels engineered and one that feels merely heavy is almost entirely in the setting up.

Common mistakes we are called in to fix

Ordering from a sizing sheet rather than a surveyed opening.
Leaving structural support at the head to chance on a wide or tall opening.
Choosing a threshold that looks sleek but does not suit the exposure of the elevation.
Handing the installation to a general builder who has never set a pivot mechanism.

Our process

How we run the job, step by step

Step 1
Free survey
We visit, measure and look at the existing openings, lintels, cills and reveals. The survey is free and carries no obligation.
Step 2
Specification and quotation
You get one clear written quotation covering frames, glass, hardware, fitting, making good and certification; no hidden extras added later.
Step 3
Manufacture
Your frames are made to the surveyed sizes in UPVC or aluminium, with your chosen colours, glazing specification and hardware finishes.
Step 4
Installation
Our own installers fit the job. The work area is sheeted up and protected, materials are kept tidy and debris is cleared away each day.
Step 5
Making good
All making good is completed internally and externally, so the finished opening looks right from both sides before we leave.
Step 6
Certification and aftercare
You receive a FENSA certificate for replacement glazing, full product care advice and a 10-year comprehensive insurance-backed guarantee.

Benefits

What you actually get

A genuine specialism

Spitfire doors are a core part of what we do, not an occasional order, and we are approached for advice on them by other trades.

Surveyed before ordering

We measure and assess the opening, the head support and the threshold build-up ourselves before a made-to-order door is placed.

Correct set-up

Pivot and heavy-leaf doors are adjusted on completion so they operate with one hand and stay balanced.

Architectural sightlines

Larger leaf sizes and slim frames, with side panels and over-panels set out as one composition.

Engineered hardware

Ironmongery designed for the weight of the door, in finishes chosen to suit both faces of the entrance.

Backed properly

Installed by our own team, with full making good and a 10-year comprehensive insurance-backed guarantee.

In detail

Spitfire doors: the detail

Spitfire S500 front doors

The S500 is a contemporary aluminium front door designed as the focal point of a frontage. It suits wide entrances, tall openings and designs where the door, side panels and any glazed over-panel need to read as one composition rather than a door with pieces added around it.

Specification covers the leaf design, the glazing or solid panel arrangement, handle type from long bar pulls to flush options, colour, and whether the inside face matches or contrasts with the outside. We work through all of it at survey stage, because these are made to order and the design cannot be adjusted later.

Spitfire S600 pivot doors

A pivot door rotates on a pivot set into the threshold and head rather than swinging on hinges at one edge. That allows a far larger and heavier leaf than a conventional door, and it gives the distinctive movement people want from a high-end entrance.

It also places real demands on the installation. The structural opening must be sound and square, the head supported so there is no deflection under load, and the pivot mechanism set precisely so the door balances and closes cleanly. This is the installation customers come to us for specifically.

The wider Spitfire range

Beyond the S500 and S600 we can specify across the Spitfire aluminium range, matching an entrance to other glazing on the same elevation so that colour, sightlines and hardware finish stay consistent.

Where a more conventional door would serve you just as well, we will say so. Plenty of frontages are better suited to a standard aluminium entrance door, and we would rather tell you that than sell you a specification you do not need.

Working with builders and architects

On new builds and larger renovations we are happy to be involved early, while the opening is still on paper. Head support, threshold build-up and floor finishes all affect how a pivot door can be set, and they are far easier to resolve before the structure is built than afterwards.

We are CHAS accredited and used to working to a main contractor's programme, including supply-only orders where your own team is fitting.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

What makes a Spitfire door different from a standard aluminium door?

The Spitfire range is designed as an architectural entrance rather than a standard door set: larger leaf sizes, slimmer sightlines, engineered ironmongery and design options such as the S600 pivot. It is specified around the opening rather than picked from a size chart.

What is the difference between the S500 and the S600?

The S500 is a contemporary hinged front door built around large leaf sizes and slim framing. The S600 is a pivot door, turning on a pivot set into the head and threshold, which allows an even larger and heavier leaf and gives that distinctive pivot movement.

What does a Spitfire S500 or S600 cost?

These are made-to-order doors and the price depends on size, configuration, glazing, finish and hardware, so we quote after a free survey. We will also tell you honestly if a conventional aluminium door would serve you just as well for less.

Can a pivot door go into an existing opening?

Often, yes, but the opening has to be surveyed first. We check the structure at the head, the threshold build-up and the squareness of the reveal before confirming, because a pivot door only performs if what surrounds it is right.

Do you supply Spitfire doors to trade on a supply-only basis?

Yes. Send drawings or a schedule and we will quote from them. On pivot doors we will also flag anything in the opening detail that we think will cause your fitters difficulty.

How is the installation certified?

Where the work is replacement glazing it is installed to current Building Regulations and self-certified under FENSA, with your certificate issued on completion.

What guarantee comes with a Spitfire door?

All of our installations carry a 10-year comprehensive insurance-backed guarantee underwritten through InstallSure. Replacement glazing is also covered by a FENSA certificate, so there is no council notification for you to arrange.

Is the survey really free?

Yes. The survey is free and carries no obligation. We measure, discuss the options and send a written quotation; if it is not for you, that is the end of it.

Which areas do you cover?

We work from South Godstone across Surrey, Sussex, Kent and South London, with Godstone, Redhill, Reigate, Sevenoaks and Crawley as our core territory. Our trade counter is open Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm.

Specify your Spitfire door with people who fit them

Send us drawings, opening dimensions or a photograph of the frontage. We will tell you what the opening will take, how the door needs to be set, and what it will cost, after a free, no-obligation survey.