How to Choose the Best Front Door ?
The first element that welcomes visitors to your home is the front door. The door is the very first impression a visitor keeps in their mind when entering your French property. You have no choice but to take into account not only your aesthetic and style preferences, but also durability under varying weather conditions, the perfect colour, as well as safety concerns. Entry doors must be tough enough to support wind, rain, sun, and would-be intruders, yet handsome enough to make a good first impression. Unfortunately, meeting those needs is a tall order for many front doors.
Fortunately, there are plenty of options available. There are new wood doors that resist the elements better than earlier versions, as well as metal and fibreglasses that look like wood but provide greater security and that is often cheaper. A solid door or one with glass panels that offer more light is another good option.
Here are four steps to help you select the best front door:
– The first decision is to determine what material you would like for your door. Metal doors don’t last forever as they can peel quickly. Most of the older doors are made of wood or wood veneer, and that is our suggestion.
– It is also important to decide whether you will also install a storm door. Using a storm door in conjunction with a wood exterior door may contribute to the wood door warping or cracking. This is caused by heat getting trapped between the wooden exterior door and the storm door. However, a storm door is very useful when you live in Languedoc or Provence, where the weather changes rapidly.
– Select the style of your door. Doors can come with various panels or windows. For the most part, the style depends entirely on the look you want to achieve. However, the style can also influence how much cold air or heat ends up escaping through your exterior door.
– Once you’ve decided on the material and the style of your door, you need to take measurements. Obviously, it’s important to measure both horizontally and vertically before shopping for your exterior door.
If you lack ideas, you can purchase exterior doors at home improvement stores. If you do this, make sure you opt for a pre-hung exterior door. It is much easier and safer to install a pre-hung door. Also make sure the door has a secure lock system. Remember, this is the exterior door to your house, so you need to make sure it is secure from intruders. Selecting the best exterior front door for your home does take a little thought and research, but it is well worth it to find a door that meets all of your needs and one with which you will be pleased.
Sometimes, however, replacing a door simply means exchanging one door for another. In some cases you must rip out and replace the old door frame, which includes the door jambs and threshold. This is true especially if these wood sections have begun to rot. Even if you don’t note any defect on the old door frame, it still can bow and settle out of square, making it difficult to open and close the door. To make a new wood door fit an out-of-kilter frame, you’ll need to plane the top and bottom or even trim one of the edges so the door hangs correctly. This is only an option with a wood door; metal and fibreglass doors can’t be planed or cut.
Most new doors are pre-hung. That means the door hangs on hinges within a new frame. These systems also include weather-stripping. Pre-hung doors represent a good option when the old frame is in bad condition or if you are removing the frame because you want to enlarge the opening.
If you are replacing your old door with a pre-hung unit, check whether you need a left or right-hand door. Stand in the doorway and face outside. If the lockset is on your right, you have a right-hand door. If it’s on the left…well…then you have a left hand door. It’s as simple as that!
Now mind the doors please!